ALGERIA: People on streets of Algiers dismiss President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's promises to ensure free elections, amend the constitution and end jailing of journalists

Record ID: 574016

  • Title: ALGERIA: People on streets of Algiers dismiss President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's promises to ensure free elections, amend the constitution and end jailing of journalists
  • Date: 17th April 2011
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) ALGERIAN CITIZEN, FATEH, SAYING: "According to what I understand, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is asking for the help of the people, every citizen does his part."
  • Embargoed: 2nd May 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Algeria, Algeria
  • Country: Algeria
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVAA3H9442INSWOVX1IM2QVVYKU4
  • Story Text: Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika promised on Friday (April 15) to ensure free elections, amend the constitution and end jailing of journalists -- moves aimed at preventing local unrest turning into a national uprising.
    People on the streets of the capital Algiers were absorbing the news on Saturday (April 16), but most seemed unimpressed.
    "Bouteflika's speech yesterday was like he didn't say anything new. We were expecting something new but he didn't add anything. Everything we have read before in the newspapers he said again in his speech," said Nazim, a student.
    "I am not convinced, it's his third mandate and he didn't do anything. He still has two years to finish his mandate and he didn't do anything, there is no change, because he can't make any change because it's the ruling party who decide and not him, he is just supporting the ruling party," said Bilal.
    Bouteflika, who had not spoken in public for at least three months, said he had decided to amend the constitution "to reinforce representative democracy" in Algeria.
    In a 30 minute speech broadcast on state-owned television, 74 year-old Bouteflika announced he would change the electoral law in Algeria, which is due to hold the next presidential election in 2014.
    Unlike the uprisings which toppled leaders in nearby Egypt and Tunisia, Algeria's protests are localised and have yet to coalesce into a nationwide political movement.
    But the growing protests have become a daily occurrence in the capital.
    At a small protest on Saturday, demonstrators said the current government could not be reformed and called on Bouteflika to leave office.
    "We are against reforms within the system, we are against the current system, and we want radical and immediate change, before the chaos," said a man called Said.
    "It's a non-event, he ignored the situation in Algeria. It has been three months that there are 11,500 protest movements in the streets and he ignored it. He talked about the assembly, the assembly can do nothing for the people because it was elected by faked elections. The national assembly does not represent Algeria and it must be dissolved," said Ali Yahia Abdenour from the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights. "The president himself, since 1999 he has been elected by rigged elections. He is neither legitimate nor legal, he must leave office, leave power to the youth of independence."
    Algeria's government strategy so far to deal with the wave of strikes and demonstrations has been to use oil money and give protesters what they want. But commentators say this has encouraged other people to take their demands to the streets.
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