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2012-05-23

Algerian opposition parties boycott Parliament

By Fidet Mansour for Magharebia in Algiers – 23/05/12

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At least 14 Algerian political parties plan to boycott Parliament to protest the outcome of the legislative election.

Describing themselves as victims of "massive fraud", the 14 opposition parties have joined forces to pressure the government to declare the recent legislative elections void. The parties met on Monday (May 21st) in Algiers to announce the creation of the "Front for the Protection of Democracy".

After several marathon meetings, they took their appeal to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who they said bears the "full responsibility for the massive fraud which marked the ballot on May 10th".

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According the declaration, as an act of defiance against the government, the 14 parties decided to set up a "parallel parliament", which is expected to hold its first "session" on May 26th. The statement did not reveal, however, how they planned to do it. They are also calling for a "national consensual body", whose mission will be to prepare the new constitution, as well as for the appointment of a "government of national unity" to oversee the transition period.

The Front for the Protection of Democracy formally announced its members' divorce from the government and then went on to accuse authorities of involving state institutions in the consolidation of their single vision of the country's political management.

"Bouteflika did not follow through on his commitments," Justice and Development Front (FJD) chair Abdallah Djaballah told reporters at the end of the meeting where the group also released a formal declaration outlining their demands.

Djaballah criticised the European Union observers who came to Algeria to monitor the legislative elections by saying that "Algeria bought Europe's silence in return for preferential gas deals" – a reference to the energy agreement due to be signed by the two sides over the coming weeks.

In addition, the 14 parties decided to boycott the work of Parliament by withholding their MPs.

"It was difficult for party leaders to persuade their elected members to give up their seats," senior FJD member Lakhdar Benkhelaf told Magharebia. The alternative would have been to keep people in their posts but boycott the plenary sessions, he explained.

Three parties, however, abandoned the boycott initiative to keep their parliamentary seats. The Labour Party (PT) won 17 seats in the election, the Front of Socialist Forces (FFS) took 21 and the Green Alliance won 47.

In spite of the defection, Abdelmadjid Menasra, who chairs the Front for Change (FC) and also attended the meeting, said that he would leave the Front's door open to "all those fighting for change in the country".

Menasra said that he would not lose faith and that he was convinced that "the initiative will have the backing of all those parties who see themselves as the opposition."

Some, however, expressed doubt that they will be successful their endeavour.

"The opposition's position has been weakened by the absence of the main parties who carry weight on the political scene," political analyst Sabri Moussa said. "Without the PT, FFS and Green Alliance, the initiative risks failure."

As far as the president to declaring the election void, Moussa indicated that Bouteflika will most likely remain "unsympathetic".

On the streets of Algeria, opinion is divided between those who have refused to accept the result as a done deal and those who see the initiative as dead on its feet.

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    farid bondy 2012-6-7

    To all the bearded people and their affiliates who are angry at Gillette razors but have the latest cell phones, luxury cars, cash and are living the high life- Continue with your business, but leave Algeria in peace. You will break your fangs here. It is not Disney Land here and the people are not fickle such that they can be taken by Al Jazeera, the pig under the orders of its gunslinger Uncle. The guys here are more believers than you are and will ever be, you bunch of hypocrites in the service of the highest bidder! Emigrate to Qatar since there are not enough of you to make a football team with replacements and all that and since the Gauls do not want you in their country. They use you, fine, but they do not want you there. They do not like your behavior. They say that you make a mess in less time than it takes to say it. They want to put you in power in the non-Arab countries of the Maghreb and in all the Arab countries – and not for good reasons, clearly! They know that with you these countries will wake up in a blink of an eye in the Stone Age, and that is good for them to do their business. The Gauls - their leaders, that is, since the people are out of the picture – are not nice on the televised news at 8 pm. After the aperitif, everything stops. Later, if they do not figure out everything, then it is still not their fault. These are at least a few fantasies, all the same. So, bearded people, the ball is in the court. We are calm, and God recognizes his own!!!

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    hicham 2012-6-2

    Long live Algeria

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  3. Anonymous_thumb

    أبو حسام من الجزائر العاصمة 2012-6-2

    How can we change the regime in Algeria? 1/ Staying home for three days – Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday- for all workers, men and women in the private and public sectors on a regular basis every week. 2/ go out in popular one million people peaceful silent rallies every Friday to the offices of the president of the republic and submit a protest petition. Respect rules of the political game. 3/ don’t pay dues of the state including power bills, lease, different direct and indirect taxes. 4/ Calling for the establishment of an independent investigation committee in the presence of a representative of the human rights organization in order to consider different cases of corruption violations and dysfunctions, presenting its results and report to the nation directly in all radio, audiovisual channels. 5/ commitment of the state to hand power peacefully to the Islamic Salvation Front which won the elections with an overwhelming majority in 1992. 6/ respect all parties to the popular will, neutrality of the national popular army to avoid that the country slides again. 7/ appoint an independent government for 45 days to supervise presidential elections and hand power to the legitimate president who belongs to the Islamic Front.

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  4. Anonymous_thumb

    Fils des Aures 2012-6-1

    To Anonymous- You are quite free to hate anything you would like to hate. Not that you are the one who is setting the tone. “Hate” is a term that has more to do with psychiatry than with politics, by they way, but you do what you want and see if we care! If you are Tunisian, why so much hatred? If you are Moroccan, then no comment! If you are Algerian, then know that there are many of us who love Tamazgha to the point that we give ourselves to it. Your little mean remarks make no sense and are insignificant. Long live the Algerians who love Algeria more than themselves! God save Algeria !!!

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    rachid 2012-5-28

    What good is there in electing a parliament since the President is the one who appoints the ministers and the Prime Minister. Because of this, there is neither a majority, nor opposition. What is more, 90% of the laws are dictated by Presidential order. Why have a parliament? Wake up, people! You are bewitched.

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    Anonymous 2012-5-27

    Everything is fabricated in Algeria. You have made us hate this country! If faithful martyrs who sacrificed their lives for this country were to wake up from their tombs, they would have said it would be better to return to the tomb!

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    muslim non islamiste 2012-5-26

    The boycott initiative belonged to the Islamists, who refused to admit the Algerian people’s rejection of them. Yet, this rejection did not come about overnight, but from the Black Decade, which they inflicted on Algeria with the support and funding of the sworn enemies of all of not just the Algerian people, but all of the peoples of the Third World. The people have never given up throughout their history whether or not the bad students, the sore losers and the persons frustrated with history like it. For the imposers, who think to make our sacred Islam their business in order to install themselves permanently in power to serve themselves and their greedy masters, the delusion is great and the failure is bitter. They cannot manage to overcome their shock. As for their funders and their liars, it is a black hole. They will have to find something else. Greed is never a winning strategy because the peoples always unmask the imposers and their verdict is without appeal. Islamism as a strategy to exploit Islam for lowly political ends is over with. It is part of the dark past that is already over! Islam belongs to all humanity, not to a few opportunistic, unprincipled, godless, lawless politicos, who are pathetic puppets to foreign interests and enemies of their own people.

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  8. Anonymous_thumb

    زقرب 2012-5-24

    In the name of God the most gracious the most merciful. “And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are the disbelievers.” My dear brother, anyone who participated in these elections has betrayed the covenant of November 1st and Soummam congress in which martyrs and true Mujahids agreed to set up a constitutional council gathering all political movements together without exclusion in order to prepare for free and fair elections where the people would choose who would rule them. However, 50 years of geographic independence, political and economic colonization is the result of treason led by the Staff of the Liberation Army which is governing us to this day.

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    bel hajj 2012-5-24

    Good! These elections are a sham and a disgrace to democracy! Bouteflicka and the Mafia Generals who control him are responsible!

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    nacer 2012-5-24

    How can a party which was approved only 24 hours before the elections to form a “parallel parliament”? Everything is possible in Algeria.

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