The Algerian predicament shows that the political situations faced by the peoples of North Africa and West Asia cannot all be seen in the same light, despite specific similarities. The current protests in Algeria have indeed been in support of changes similar to those demanded in the rest of the region — democratic reform, freedom from corruption, and civil rights. It also bears recall that the last presidential election — in which President Abdel Aziz Bouteflika took 90.2 per cent of the vote — was boycotted by opposition parties, who alleged widespread fraud. A key difference between Algeria and many of its neighbours, however, is that it has relatively free privately owned media organisations, apart from state-run media. Further, television broadcasts from France are widely watched, and internet access is generally unrestricted. Secondly, revenues from recently discovered oil and natural gas reserves have enabled Mr. Bouteflika to subsidise food and award public service staff huge pay rises.
The Algerian street continues to be wary of political involvement, and the protests have been on a much smaller scale than those in neighbouring countries. This caution is understandable in view of their country's terrible legacy of violence. In the liberation struggle against France, more than a million people died before the colonial power left in 1962. Later, the country went through a decade of civil war that followed the annulment of the 1992 election after the first round, which was won by the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS); about 150,000 were butchered. The military regained its political dominance, imposing an emergency that lasted until February 24, 2011. The armed forces continue to be involved in domestic security, and public protest is banned in the capital, Algiers. The President has acted to mollify public anger over inflation and runaway food prices through concessions. While such measures do not address the structural issues of corruption and unemployment, the evidence is that a substantial proportion of the 35 million population continues to be disengaged from public participation. When protest movements struggle to sustain their momentum, the government can claim they have little or no popular support. All this has international ramifications too: the European Union, for example, can maintain trade and economic relations with Algeria without too much controversy. But the clock is ticking. Algerians must show the courage, the clear-sightedness, and the wisdom needed to usher in democratic political reform without blood-letting. This will benefit not just Africa's second largest country but also the region beyond.