National Liberation Front (Algeria)
Encyclopedia
The National Liberation Front ' onMouseout='HidePop("24887")' href="/topics/Arabic_transliteration">transliterated
: Jabhat at-Taḥrīr al-Waţanī; , hence FLN) is a socialist political party
in Algeria
. It was set up on November 1, 1954 as a merger of other smaller groups, to obtain independence
for Algeria from France.
body that directed the war for independence
against France. It was created by the Revolutionary Committee of Unity and Action
(CRUA), and emergent paramilitary
networks continuing the nationalist tradition of the Algerian People's Party
(PPA). The CRUA urged all the warring factions of the nationalist movement to unite and fight against France. By 1956 - two years into the war
- nearly all the nationalist organizations in Algeria had joined the FLN, which had established itself as the main nationalist group through both co-opting and coercing smaller organizations. The most important group that remained outside the FLN was Messali Hadj
's Mouvement national algérien (MNA). At this time the FLN reorganized into something like a provisional government. It consisted of a five-man executive and legislative body, and was organized territorially into six wilayas, following the Ottoman era administrative boundaries.
The FLN's armed wing during the war was called the Armée de Libération nationale
(ALN). It was divided into guerrilla
units fighting France and the MNA in Algeria (and wrestling with Messali's followers over control of the expatriate
community, in the so-called "café wars
" in France), and another, stronger component more resembling a traditional army. These units were based in neighbouring Arab
countries (notably in Oujda
in Morocco
, and Tunisia), and although they infiltrated forces and ran weapons and supplies across the border, they generally saw less action than the rural guerrilla forces. These units were later to emerge under the leadership of army commander Col. Houari Boumédiène
as a powerful opposition to the political cadres of the FLN's exile government, the GPRA
, and they would eventually come to dominate Algerian politics.
, a cease-fire agreement with the FLN. In July the same year, the Algerian people approved of the cease-fire agreement with France in a referendum
, supporting economic and social cooperation between the two countries as well. Full independence followed, and the FLN seized control over the country. Political opposition in the form of the MNA and Communist organizations was outlawed, and Algeria constituted as a one-party state. The FLN became its only legal and ruling party.
Immediately after independence, the party experienced severe internal power struggle. Political leaders coalesced into two grand camps: a Political Bureau formed by the radical Ahmed Ben Bella
, who was assisted by the border army, faced off against the political leadership in the former exile government; Boumédiène's army quickly put down resistance and installed Ben Bella as President. The single most powerful political constituency remained the former ALN, which had entered largely unscathed from exile and was now organized as the country's armed forces
; added to this were regionally powerful guerrilla irregulars and others who jockeyed for influence in the party. In building his one-party regime, Ben Bella purged remaining dissidents (such as Ferhat Abbas
), but also quickly ran into opposition from Boumédiène as he tried to assert himself independently from the army.
(who was in 1999 elected President of Algeria
). A statist-socialist and anticolonial nationalist, Boumédiène ruled through decree and "revolutionary legitimacy", marginalizing the FLN in favor of his personal decision-making and the military establishment, even while retaining the one-party system.
. The military remained well represented on the FLN Central Committee, and is widely held to have been the real power-broker in the country. During the 1980s the FLN toned down the socialist content of its programme, enacting some free-market reforms and purging Boumédiène stalwarts.
However, it was not until 1988 that massive demonstrations and riots
jolted the country towards major political reform. Rival political organizations were permitted, after the Algerian Constitution was amended to allow a multiparty system and democracy
. The FLN was cut off from its privileged position in the state apparatus and military.
The electoral gains of the Islamist FIS
however led to a military coup d'état
against the weakened FLN government in 1992. Algeria was under direct military rule for some time, and after formal democracy
was restored, the FLN remained outside the ruling apparatus; the military clans in power now drew political legitimacy from other parties. The party remained in opposition to the government during the first part of the Algerian Civil War
, notably in 1995 signing the Sant'Egidio Platform
, which was highly critical of the military establishment; however, after internal power struggles and a leadership change, it returned to supporting the Presidency.
was primarily Algerian nationalist, understood as a movement within a wider Arab nationalism
. It essentially drew its political self-legitimization from three sources: Nationalism, and the revolutionary war against France; Socialism, loosely interpreted as a popular anti-exploitation creed; Islam, defined as a main foundation for the national consciousness, and a crucial factor in solidifying the Algerian identity as separate from that of French Algerians or pied-noir
s.
As the name implies, it viewed itself as a "front" composed of different social sectors and ideological trends, even if the concept of a monolithical Algerian polity gradually submerged this vision. A separate party ideology was not well developed at the time of independence, except insofar as it focused on the liberation of Algeria. Its nationalist outlook was also closely intervowen with anti-Colonialism and anti-Imperialism
, something which would remain a lasting characteristic of Algerian foreign policy; but also with pan-Arab
solidarity. This latter aspect led to the denial of or refusal to deal with the separate Berber
identity held by as many as 30% of Algerians, something which caused fierce opposition and led to the splintering of the movement immediately after independence, as Hocine Aït Ahmed
set up the Berberist and pro-democracy Socialist Forces Front
(FFS).
The organization committed itself to Socialism
, but understood this along the lines of Arab Socialism
, and opposed doctrinaire Marxism
. The existence of different classes
in Algerian society was generally rejected, even if several of the party's top ideologues were influenced to varying degrees by Marxist analysis. Borrowed Marxist terminology was instead commonly reinterpreted by party radicals in terms of the conflict with France, e.g. casting the colonizer in the role of economic exploiter-oppressor as well as national enemy, while the label of "bourgeoisie
" was applied to uncoöperative or pro-French elites. The FLN did for pragmatic reasons absorb Communist
activists into its ranks during the War of Independence, but refused to allow them to organize separately after the war, and quickly moved to dissolve the pro-Moscow Algerian Communist Party
(PCA). This proved of little significance, however, since independent Algeria was set up as a single-party system under the FLN soon thereafter. Many Communist intellectuals were later co-opted into the regime at various stages, notably during the early Ben Bella and late Boumédiènne years, but the ban on their party and refusal to accept Marxism remained in place.
Also strongly present as an ideological influence on the FLN was Algerian Islam
, especially of the reformist-nationalist variety espoused by Ben Badis and his group of nationalist ulema
. The movement absolutely rejected atheism
and was not overtly secularist, contrary to widespread perception in the West, and during the war Islam was perhaps its most important mobilizing ideology. Still, after independence, the party would in practice assume a strongly modernist interpretation of Islam, supported social transformation of Algerian society, the emancipation of women, etc., and worked only through secular institutions. Religion was thus relegated to the role of legitimizing factor for the party-regime. This was especially the case under the presidency of col. Houari Boumédiènne (1965–78), but even then Islam was considered the state religion and a crucial part of Algerian identity, and Boumédiènne himself took pride in his Quranic training. His predecessor Ahmed Ben Bella
(1962–65) was more committed to the Islamic component of the regime, although always viewed as more of an Arab nationalist than an Islamic activist (and he remains far removed from what is today referred to as Algeria's Islamists). Boumédiènnes successor, col. Chadli Bendjedid
(1979–92) would tone down the Socialist aspect of the movement, and during the mid- to late 1980s he reintroduced religiously conservative legislation in an attempt to appease growing Islamist opposition. During and after the Algerian Civil War
, the party's position has remained that of claiming Algerian Islam as a main influence, while simultaneously arguing that this must be expressed as a progressive and modern faith, even if the party generally keeps in line with the conservative social mores of Algeria's population. It has strongly condemned the radical-fundamentalist religious teachings of the Islamic Salvation Front
(FIS) and other Islamist groups, even while supporting the inclusion of non-violent Islamist parties in the political system and working with them.
During all periods of Algerian post-colonial history, except for a few years c:a 1990-96, the FLN has been a pillar of the political system
, and has primarily been viewed as a "pro-system" party. Its role as Algeria's liberators has remained the absolute cornerstone of the party's self-perception, and the defining feature of its otherwise somewhat fluid ideology. Today the FLN is close to president
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
, who has been made honorary chairman. It mixes its traditional populist
interpretations of Algeria's nationalist-revolutionary
and Islamic heritage with a pro-system conservatism
, and support for gradual pro-market
reform qualified by statist reflexes. Since the breakdown of the single-party system and its detachment from the state structure in c:a 1988-1990, the FLN has been in favor of multi-party democracy, whereas before that, it upheld itself as the only organization representing the Algerian people.
, emerged as a rival to the President of Algeria
, Abdelaziz Bouteflika
, but lost his struggle for control over the party. Benflis won 6.4% of the vote at the presidential elections
of April 8, 2004. Abdelaziz Belkhadem
took control of the party after the elections, and was later promoted to Prime Minister of Algeria
. The FLN serves as one of the three parties in the ruling Presidential Alliance (with the National Rally for Democracy/RND, and the Movement of Society for Peace
/MSP-Hamas).
At the 2007 elections, the FLN received 22.98% of the vote and 136 seats in Parliament after losing 63 seats but remaining the largest party in Algeria. With other large parties remaining in coalition with the FLN, Belkhadem was able to form another government.
Arabic transliteration
Different approaches and methods for the romanization of Arabic exist. They vary in the way that they address the inherent problems of rendering written and spoken Arabic in the Latin alphabet; they also use different symbols for Arabic phonemes that do not exist in English or other European...
: Jabhat at-Taḥrīr al-Waţanī; , hence FLN) is a socialist political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
. It was set up on November 1, 1954 as a merger of other smaller groups, to obtain independence
Independence
Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory....
for Algeria from France.
Anticolonial struggle
The FLN is a continuation of the main revolutionaryRevolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
body that directed the war for independence
Algerian War of Independence
The Algerian War was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria's gaining its independence from France...
against France. It was created by the Revolutionary Committee of Unity and Action
Revolutionary Committee of Unity and Action
Revolutionary Committee for Unity and Action was a militant group in Algeria fighting French colonial rule. CRUA regrouped former elements of OS and radical from MTLD. In total the founders of CRUA consisted of 33 persons.CRUA would later evolve into the FLN.-Reference:* Tlemcani, Rachid, State...
(CRUA), and emergent paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
networks continuing the nationalist tradition of the Algerian People's Party
Algerian People's Party
The Algerian People's Party , was a successor organization of the North African Star , led by veteran Algerian nationalist Messali Hadj. It was formed on March 11, 1937...
(PPA). The CRUA urged all the warring factions of the nationalist movement to unite and fight against France. By 1956 - two years into the war
Algerian War of Independence
The Algerian War was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria's gaining its independence from France...
- nearly all the nationalist organizations in Algeria had joined the FLN, which had established itself as the main nationalist group through both co-opting and coercing smaller organizations. The most important group that remained outside the FLN was Messali Hadj
Messali Hadj
Ahmed Ben Messali Hadj was an Algerian nationalist politician dedicated to the independence of his homeland from France...
's Mouvement national algérien (MNA). At this time the FLN reorganized into something like a provisional government. It consisted of a five-man executive and legislative body, and was organized territorially into six wilayas, following the Ottoman era administrative boundaries.
The FLN's armed wing during the war was called the Armée de Libération nationale
Armée de Libération Nationale
The Armée de Libération Nationale or ALN was the armed wing of the nationalist Front de Libération National during the Algerian War of Independence...
(ALN). It was divided into guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
units fighting France and the MNA in Algeria (and wrestling with Messali's followers over control of the expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
community, in the so-called "café wars
Café wars
The Café Wars took place during the Algerian War, as a part of the internal fighting in France between two rival Algerian nationalist movements, the MNA and the FLN ....
" in France), and another, stronger component more resembling a traditional army. These units were based in neighbouring Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
countries (notably in Oujda
Oujda
Oujda is a city in eastern Morocco with an estimated population of 1 million. The city is located about 15 kilometers west of Algeria and about 60 kilometers south of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the Oriental Region of Morocco and the birthplace of the current Algerian president,...
in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, and Tunisia), and although they infiltrated forces and ran weapons and supplies across the border, they generally saw less action than the rural guerrilla forces. These units were later to emerge under the leadership of army commander Col. Houari Boumédiène
Houari Boumediene
Houari Boumedienne served as Algeria's Chairman of the Revolutionary Council from 19 June 1965 until 12 December 1976, and from then on as the fourth President of Algeria to his death on 27 December 1978.- Background :Mohamed Ben Brahim Boukharouba was born near Héliopolis in the province of...
as a powerful opposition to the political cadres of the FLN's exile government, the GPRA
Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic
The Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic was the government-in-exile of the Algerian Front de Libération Nationale during the latter part of the Algerian War of Independence .- Creation and purpose :The GPRA was set up in Cairo, Egypt, by the FLN on September 19, 1958, four years...
, and they would eventually come to dominate Algerian politics.
Post-independence turmoil
The war for independence continued until March 1962 when finally, the French government signed the Évian AccordsÉvian Accords
The Évian Accords comprise a treaty which was signed in 1962 in Évian-les-Bains, France by France and the F.L.N. . The Accords put an end to the Algerian War with a formal cease-fire proclaimed for March 19, and formalized the idea of cooperative exchange between the two countries...
, a cease-fire agreement with the FLN. In July the same year, the Algerian people approved of the cease-fire agreement with France in a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
, supporting economic and social cooperation between the two countries as well. Full independence followed, and the FLN seized control over the country. Political opposition in the form of the MNA and Communist organizations was outlawed, and Algeria constituted as a one-party state. The FLN became its only legal and ruling party.
Immediately after independence, the party experienced severe internal power struggle. Political leaders coalesced into two grand camps: a Political Bureau formed by the radical Ahmed Ben Bella
Ahmed Ben Bella
Mohamed Ahmed Ben Bella was a soldier and Algerian revolutionary, who became the first President of Algeria.-Youth:...
, who was assisted by the border army, faced off against the political leadership in the former exile government; Boumédiène's army quickly put down resistance and installed Ben Bella as President. The single most powerful political constituency remained the former ALN, which had entered largely unscathed from exile and was now organized as the country's armed forces
Military of Algeria
The People’s National Army is the armed forces of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria. Algeria has a large and reasonably well-equipped military to counter foreign and domestic threats...
; added to this were regionally powerful guerrilla irregulars and others who jockeyed for influence in the party. In building his one-party regime, Ben Bella purged remaining dissidents (such as Ferhat Abbas
Ferhat Abbas
Ferhat Abbas Kabyle: Ferḥat Σabbas, was an Algerian political leader and briefly acted in a provisional capacity as the yet-to-become independent country's President from 1958 to 1961.- Background :...
), but also quickly ran into opposition from Boumédiène as he tried to assert himself independently from the army.
Boumédiène era
In 1965, tension between Boumédiène and Ben Bella culminated in a coup d'état, after Ben Bella had tried to sack one of the Colonel's closest collaborators, Foreign Minister Abdelaziz BouteflikaAbdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
(who was in 1999 elected President of Algeria
President of Algeria
The President of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Algerian armed forces.-History of the office:...
). A statist-socialist and anticolonial nationalist, Boumédiène ruled through decree and "revolutionary legitimacy", marginalizing the FLN in favor of his personal decision-making and the military establishment, even while retaining the one-party system.
FLN under Chadli
Boumédiène held tight control over party leadership until his death in 1978, at which time the party reorganized again under the leadership of the military's next candidate, Col. Chadli BendjedidChadli Bendjedid
Chadli Bendjedid was the sixth President of Algeria from February 9, 1979 to January 11, 1992.-Early career:...
. The military remained well represented on the FLN Central Committee, and is widely held to have been the real power-broker in the country. During the 1980s the FLN toned down the socialist content of its programme, enacting some free-market reforms and purging Boumédiène stalwarts.
However, it was not until 1988 that massive demonstrations and riots
1988 October Riots
The 1988 October Riots were a series of street-level disturbances and riotous demonstrations by Algerian youth, in the autumn of 1988, which indirectly led to the fall of the country's single-party system and the introduction of democratic reform, but also to a spiral of instability and...
jolted the country towards major political reform. Rival political organizations were permitted, after the Algerian Constitution was amended to allow a multiparty system and democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
. The FLN was cut off from its privileged position in the state apparatus and military.
The electoral gains of the Islamist FIS
Islamic Salvation Front
The Islamic Salvation Front is an outlawed Islamist political party in Algeria.-Goals:...
however led to a military coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
against the weakened FLN government in 1992. Algeria was under direct military rule for some time, and after formal democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
was restored, the FLN remained outside the ruling apparatus; the military clans in power now drew political legitimacy from other parties. The party remained in opposition to the government during the first part of the Algerian Civil War
Algerian Civil War
The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives, in a population of about 25,010,000 in 1990 and 31,193,917 in 2000.More than 70 journalists were...
, notably in 1995 signing the Sant'Egidio Platform
Sant'Egidio platform
The Sant'Egidio Platform of January 13, 1995 was an attempt by most of the major Algerian opposition parties to put an end to the Algerian Civil War, which had begun in 1992 as a military coup d'état overturned election results that would have brought the Islamic Salvation Front , an Islamic party,...
, which was highly critical of the military establishment; however, after internal power struggles and a leadership change, it returned to supporting the Presidency.
Ideology
The FLN's ideologyIdeology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
was primarily Algerian nationalist, understood as a movement within a wider Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
. It essentially drew its political self-legitimization from three sources: Nationalism, and the revolutionary war against France; Socialism, loosely interpreted as a popular anti-exploitation creed; Islam, defined as a main foundation for the national consciousness, and a crucial factor in solidifying the Algerian identity as separate from that of French Algerians or pied-noir
Pied-noir
Pied-Noir , plural Pieds-Noirs, pronounced , is a term referring to French citizens of various origins who lived in French Algeria before independence....
s.
As the name implies, it viewed itself as a "front" composed of different social sectors and ideological trends, even if the concept of a monolithical Algerian polity gradually submerged this vision. A separate party ideology was not well developed at the time of independence, except insofar as it focused on the liberation of Algeria. Its nationalist outlook was also closely intervowen with anti-Colonialism and anti-Imperialism
Anti-imperialism
Anti-imperialism, strictly speaking, is a term that may be applied to a movement opposed to any form of colonialism or imperialism. Anti-imperialism includes opposition to wars of conquest, particularly of non-contiguous territory or people with a different language or culture; it also includes...
, something which would remain a lasting characteristic of Algerian foreign policy; but also with pan-Arab
Pan-Arabism
Pan-Arabism is an ideology espousing the unification--or, sometimes, close cooperation and solidarity against perceived enemies of the Arabs--of the countries of the Arab world, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea. It is closely connected to Arab nationalism, which asserts that the Arabs...
solidarity. This latter aspect led to the denial of or refusal to deal with the separate Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
identity held by as many as 30% of Algerians, something which caused fierce opposition and led to the splintering of the movement immediately after independence, as Hocine Aït Ahmed
Hocine Aït Ahmed
Hocine Aït Ahmed is an Algerian politician....
set up the Berberist and pro-democracy Socialist Forces Front
Socialist Forces Front
The Socialist Forces Front , , is a social democratic and secularist, political party in Algeria. It was formed in 1963 by Hocine Ait Ahmed...
(FFS).
The organization committed itself to Socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, but understood this along the lines of Arab Socialism
Arab socialism
Arab socialism is a political ideology based on an amalgamation of Pan-Arabism and socialism. Arab socialism is distinct from the much broader tradition of socialist thought in the Arab world, which predates Arab socialism by as much as fifty years...
, and opposed doctrinaire Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
. The existence of different classes
Social class
Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'...
in Algerian society was generally rejected, even if several of the party's top ideologues were influenced to varying degrees by Marxist analysis. Borrowed Marxist terminology was instead commonly reinterpreted by party radicals in terms of the conflict with France, e.g. casting the colonizer in the role of economic exploiter-oppressor as well as national enemy, while the label of "bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
" was applied to uncoöperative or pro-French elites. The FLN did for pragmatic reasons absorb Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
activists into its ranks during the War of Independence, but refused to allow them to organize separately after the war, and quickly moved to dissolve the pro-Moscow Algerian Communist Party
Algerian Communist Party
The Algerian Communist Party was a communist party in Algeria. The PCA emerged in 1920 as an extension the French Communist Party and eventually became a separate entity in 1936 ....
(PCA). This proved of little significance, however, since independent Algeria was set up as a single-party system under the FLN soon thereafter. Many Communist intellectuals were later co-opted into the regime at various stages, notably during the early Ben Bella and late Boumédiènne years, but the ban on their party and refusal to accept Marxism remained in place.
Also strongly present as an ideological influence on the FLN was Algerian Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, especially of the reformist-nationalist variety espoused by Ben Badis and his group of nationalist ulema
Ulema
Ulama , also spelt ulema, refers to the educated class of Muslim legal scholars engaged in the several fields of Islamic studies. They are best known as the arbiters of shari‘a law...
. The movement absolutely rejected atheism
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
and was not overtly secularist, contrary to widespread perception in the West, and during the war Islam was perhaps its most important mobilizing ideology. Still, after independence, the party would in practice assume a strongly modernist interpretation of Islam, supported social transformation of Algerian society, the emancipation of women, etc., and worked only through secular institutions. Religion was thus relegated to the role of legitimizing factor for the party-regime. This was especially the case under the presidency of col. Houari Boumédiènne (1965–78), but even then Islam was considered the state religion and a crucial part of Algerian identity, and Boumédiènne himself took pride in his Quranic training. His predecessor Ahmed Ben Bella
Ahmed Ben Bella
Mohamed Ahmed Ben Bella was a soldier and Algerian revolutionary, who became the first President of Algeria.-Youth:...
(1962–65) was more committed to the Islamic component of the regime, although always viewed as more of an Arab nationalist than an Islamic activist (and he remains far removed from what is today referred to as Algeria's Islamists). Boumédiènnes successor, col. Chadli Bendjedid
Chadli Bendjedid
Chadli Bendjedid was the sixth President of Algeria from February 9, 1979 to January 11, 1992.-Early career:...
(1979–92) would tone down the Socialist aspect of the movement, and during the mid- to late 1980s he reintroduced religiously conservative legislation in an attempt to appease growing Islamist opposition. During and after the Algerian Civil War
Algerian Civil War
The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives, in a population of about 25,010,000 in 1990 and 31,193,917 in 2000.More than 70 journalists were...
, the party's position has remained that of claiming Algerian Islam as a main influence, while simultaneously arguing that this must be expressed as a progressive and modern faith, even if the party generally keeps in line with the conservative social mores of Algeria's population. It has strongly condemned the radical-fundamentalist religious teachings of the Islamic Salvation Front
Islamic Salvation Front
The Islamic Salvation Front is an outlawed Islamist political party in Algeria.-Goals:...
(FIS) and other Islamist groups, even while supporting the inclusion of non-violent Islamist parties in the political system and working with them.
During all periods of Algerian post-colonial history, except for a few years c:a 1990-96, the FLN has been a pillar of the political system
Politics of Algeria
Politics of Algeria takes place in a framework of a presidential republic, whereby the President of Algeria is head of state while the Prime Minister of Algeria is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government...
, and has primarily been viewed as a "pro-system" party. Its role as Algeria's liberators has remained the absolute cornerstone of the party's self-perception, and the defining feature of its otherwise somewhat fluid ideology. Today the FLN is close to president
President of Algeria
The President of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Algerian armed forces.-History of the office:...
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
, who has been made honorary chairman. It mixes its traditional populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
interpretations of Algeria's nationalist-revolutionary
Revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
and Islamic heritage with a pro-system conservatism
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
, and support for gradual pro-market
Market economy
A market economy is an economy in which the prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system. This is often contrasted with a state-directed or planned economy. Market economies can range from hypothetically pure laissez-faire variants to an assortment of real-world mixed...
reform qualified by statist reflexes. Since the breakdown of the single-party system and its detachment from the state structure in c:a 1988-1990, the FLN has been in favor of multi-party democracy, whereas before that, it upheld itself as the only organization representing the Algerian people.
Present situation
The party received 34.3% of the parliamentary vote in the elections of 2002 and 199 seats in parliament. The FLN's former secretary-general Ali BenflisAli Benflis
Ali Benflis is a politician in Algeria and former Prime Minister from 2000 to 2003. As of 2003, he is the general secretary of the National Liberation Front party. He was defeated in the Algerian presidential election of April 8, 2004 by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, taking only 6.4% of the...
, emerged as a rival to the President of Algeria
President of Algeria
The President of Algeria is the head of state and chief executive of Algeria, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Algerian armed forces.-History of the office:...
, Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
, but lost his struggle for control over the party. Benflis won 6.4% of the vote at the presidential elections
Algerian presidential election, 2004
Presidential elections were held in Algeria on April 8, 2004. The incumbent president, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, was re-elected with 85.0 percent of the vote.-Candidates:*Ali Benflis: candidate of the Front for National Liberation...
of April 8, 2004. Abdelaziz Belkhadem
Abdelaziz Belkhadem
Abdelaziz Belkhadem is an Algerian politician who is the Minister of State, Personal Representative of the Head of State. He previously served as Prime Minister of Algeria from 2006 to 2008. He is the Secretary-General of the National Liberation Front .Belkhadem was born in Aflou, Laghouat...
took control of the party after the elections, and was later promoted to Prime Minister of Algeria
Prime Minister of Algeria
The Prime Minister is the head of government of Algeria.The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of Algeria, along with other ministers and members of the government that the new Prime Minister recommends. The People's National Assembly must approve the legislative program of the new...
. The FLN serves as one of the three parties in the ruling Presidential Alliance (with the National Rally for Democracy/RND, and the Movement of Society for Peace
Movement of Society for Peace
The Movement for the Society of Peace is an Islamist party in Algeria, led until his 2003 death by Mahfoud Nahnah. Its current leader is Bouguerra Soltani. It is aligned with the international Muslim Brotherhood...
/MSP-Hamas).
At the 2007 elections, the FLN received 22.98% of the vote and 136 seats in Parliament after losing 63 seats but remaining the largest party in Algeria. With other large parties remaining in coalition with the FLN, Belkhadem was able to form another government.
Further reading
Aussaresses, General Paul, The Battle of the Casbah: Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Algeria, 1955-1957. (New York: Enigma Books, 2010) ISBN 978-1-929631-30-8.See also
- French rule in AlgeriaFrench rule in AlgeriaFrench Algeria lasted from 1830 to 1962, under a variety of governmental systems. From 1848 until independence, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France, much like Corsica and Réunion are to this day. The vast arid interior of Algeria, like the rest...
(1830–1962) - The Wretched of the EarthThe Wretched of the EarthThe Wretched of the Earth is Frantz Fanon's most famous work, written during and regarding the Algerian struggle for independence from colonial rule...
- The Battle of Algiers
- Frantz FanonFrantz FanonFrantz Fanon was a Martiniquo-Algerian psychiatrist, philosopher, revolutionary and writer whose work is influential in the fields of post-colonial studies, critical theory and Marxism...
- Jeanson networkJeanson networkThe Jeanson network was a group of French communist militants led by Francis Jeanson who helped Algerian National Liberation Front agents operating in the French metropolitan territory during the Algerian War. They were mainly involved in carrying money and papers for the Algerians and were...