International Women's Day in Algeria [RO-18 March 1995] "Women spontaneously occupied the city of Algiers on 8 March, went out into the streets, moved around - the flower sellers sold out of roses -- and met no hostility from the young men in the streets, which is something new. Perhaps this is a new generation of young men. Such resistance in daily life by "ordinary" Algerian women -rather than only those who have an "European" mentality and way of life - has been neglected by the media abroad. "A street theatre " tribunal" was organised by El Rafd (Refusal), a group closely allied to the former Communist Part (Tahadi). Fundamentalist leaders Ali Belhadj and Abassi Madani were sentenced to death by the tribunal. This action got widespread media coverage in France. The problem is that this action claimed that the problem is simply one of religious obscurantism, attacking the enlightened ones, the elite among the women. And the tribunal judged only one side. There are not only 10,000 widows of victims of Islamic fundamentalist violence in this country. There are also 3,500, or 10,000 widows of the victims of the other side. This is the classic approach of the "exterminator" current - we are the modernists, which means the others are the barbarians. They have no right to a defence, or even to live. And so sympathisers of the Islamic Salvation Front are being killed even if they are not armed, and even if they are not politically active any more."
International Viewpoint #265 April 1995 17
Algeria the situation in a positive direction. There should be more demonstrations in favour of democratic reforms and democratic forces, like on 3 December 1994 in Paris. Those abroad should also demand the cancelling of Algeria's foreign debt. Even if the regime is sucking resources out of the country for its own benefit, the abolition of the foreign debt would create much better possibilities for relaunching the economy.
Leila: Abolish the debt, yes. But for