France Vows ‘Symbolic Actions’ but no Apologies for Colonization of Algeria
By Adlène Meddi – Jan 21, 2021
While a new French report highlights moves to reconcile Paris and Algiers on 132 violent years of colonization, some thorny issues remain
On Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron received a much anticipated report on Franceâs 132-year colonial rule of Algeria and the war that led to Algeriaâs independence in 1962, as part of an effort towards reconciliation of historical memory between the two countries.
A specialist of contemporary Algerian history, French historian Benjamin Stora, was tasked by Macron in July with âmaking a precise and just inventory of the progress done in France of colonization and the Algerian warâ, which remain painful subjects for millions of Algerian and French citizens nearly 60 years later.
Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune had also tasked his advisor and director of national archives, Abdelmajid Chikhi, to coordinate with Stora on the issue of memorialization.
France ruled over Algeria from 1830 to 1962, and many details of the bloody war of independence between 1954 and 1962âwhich is believed to have killed between 500,000 and 1.5 million Algeriansâremain unknown today.
While Macron is already set to participate in three different ceremonies in 2022 to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the Algerian war, the Elysee Palace has already announced that there would be âneither repentance nor apologiesâ for Franceâs actions at the time.
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âWordsâ and âactionsâ
The French presidency has chosen, at Storaâs recommendation, to engage in a âprocess of acknowledgment,” while saying âthere is no plan for repentanceâ or âpresenting excusesââarguing that past examples, such as Japanâs excuses to South Korea and China for crimes committed during World War II, did not necessarily lead to full reconciliation.
âRather than ârepentance,’ France should recognize the discrimination and exactions of which Algerian populations were the victims, and put forward precise facts,â Stora wrote in his report, seen by Middle East Eye. âThe excesses of a culture of repentance, or mollifying visions of a history trapped by memorial lobbies, do not contribute to appeasing the relationship to our past.â
These statements may come as somewhat of a surprise to some given Macronâs denunciation of colonialism as a âcrime against humanityâ during a visit to Algiers in 2017, when he was then only a candidate for the presidency.
In July, Tebboune had told news channel France 24 that he âhopedâ France would take stronger measures to acknowledge its wrongdoings in Algeria.
âWe have already received half-excuses. Another step needs to be takenâ he said. âThis would appease the mood and make it more amenable for economic relations, cultural relations, and neighborly relations.â
The Elysee emphasized that Macron âdid not regretâ his comments from four years ago. âThere is nothing more to add, however, there is a lot to do,â the French presidency said, adding that âthere will be wordsâ and âactionsâ from Macron âin coming monthsâ, as the Stora report is analyzed by the government in more depth.
Commemorations and the restitution of skulls
Among the actions suggested by the Stora report is the creation of a joint Franco-Algerian âmemory and truthâ commission to push forward initiatives between the two countries on the issue.
In addition to commemorations around the anniversary of the Evian accords, which put an end of the war in March 1962, Macron is reportedly scheduled to attend two more days of commemoration: one marking the deadly repression of Algerian protesters in Paris on 17 October 1961, and the national day of harkisâthe Algerian fighters who took Franceâs side during the conflictâon 25 September.
The report also recommended that several Algerian figuresâlike Emir Abdelkader, who led the fight against Franceâs conquest of Algeria in the 19th century; or Franco-Tunisian lawyer Gisele Halimi, who was opposed to the Algerian warâbe memorialised, including by burying Halimi, who died in July, in Parisâ hallowed Pantheon mausoleum.
The report also brings up the possible restitution of a number of objects to Algeria, such as the sword of Emir Abdelkader or the Bab Merzoug cannon taken by France in 1833.
Perhaps more importantly, Stora calls for the reactivation of a commission created in 2012 to locate the burial sites of Algerian and French individuals who were killed during the war, including those who were executed by France.
The historian also recommends that an existing binational scientific committee continue its work analyzing the remains of Algerian combatants from the 19th century held in the French National Museum of Natural History.
In July, France restituted to Algiers the skulls of 24 fighters decapitated for resisting colonization.
Another measure evoked by Stora, which may not be well received by Algerian authorities, is the possibility of facilitating the movement of harkis and their descendants between France and Algeria.
Due to their siding with the French colonial army during the war, harkis have a poor reputation in Algeria, and hundreds of thousands moved to France after independence.
Chikhi, Storaâs Algerian counterpart, had said in November that some issues, such as the fate of harkis, were ânot up for discussion,” arguing that their departure to France was âa freely made choice.”
Archives at the centre of tensions
Another delicate issue tackled by the French report is that of the archives of the colonial era, which were taken to France following the Algerian independence. The return of these archives to Algeria has been a major demand of independence fighters, who hope to shed light on many of Parisâ actions at the time.
A working group was established on the subject in 2013, but hasnât convened since 2016.
The Stora report recommends a âpilot committeeâ to create a shared and freely accessible archive between Paris and Algiers.
âConcretely, it is about returning within the briefest delays to the practice of declassifying âsecretâ documents archived before 1970âwith the understanding that it is up to the administration to proceed with the declassification of documents after that date,â the report read.
Beyond looking to the past, the report advocates more cooperation on shared cultural issues – including by promoting the translation of Algerian and French historical and literary works into French and Arabic, or giving more coverage in classrooms to Franceâs colonial history.
A museum of French and Algerian historyâwhich had been in the works in the French city of Montpellier before being dropped in 2014âcould also be back on the table.
âBy multiplying political and symbolic gestures, we could distance ourselves from a memory stuck in the past, where yesterdayâs conflicts play themselves out over and over,â Stora wrote.
âA motive for discord, memory could also reveal itself to be a creative force faced against those who would seek to erase the dark pages of the past.â
It remains to be seen how Macron and his government choose to enact the reportâs recommendations – and whether those actions are well received in Algeria.
Featured image: Algerians arrested during a French military operation on 21 April 1956, during the war of independence, in Algeria’s Tablat and Bir Rabalou region (AFP)
