By Eyad Khalifa
Albawaba.com - Amman
The head of the Algerian Peaceful Community Movement, Sheikh Mahfouz Nahnah, said Monday that the crisis in his country was the result of a political deadlock, unilateral decision making – and foreign meddling.
The Islamist leader told Albawaba.com that the characteristics of violence in his country were clear from the beginning, and so they were exploited by “certain malicious groups rejected by our people many times.”
Nahnah condemned the military’s interference in civil society and political life, despite hinting that there were no political institutions capable of filling the vacuum.
The sheikh, who ran in two successive presidential elections, discussed the armed struggle in his country and the alleged role of foreign agents, who he said had been harming the country’s security.
Following are excerpts from the interview:
Q. Algeria has been witnessing unrest and tensions in the tribal region over the past few weeks. What do you think are the reasons behind these events?
A. What has happened in some of the country’s regions is the result of the political deadlock, the insistence of some sides on their views, and exaggeration of their individual heroism.
Perhaps you have seen our statements issued before the violence erupted, in which we warned against the risks of an explosion. Any experienced observer could have noticed the indications of the violence before it occurred. But there are certain groups who want to exploit social injustice to undermine the national unity, and Algeria’s Arab and Islamic identity. These groups have carried out revenge operations against the Algerian people because it did not vote for them, and against the government because it is no longer under their domination.
Many foreign parties, including the European Union, have interfered to incite Algeria’s internal disorder. We wanted the EU to deal with us within a partnership framework, without any contempt, domination or investment complex, which is still in the minds of some people inside and outside Algeria.
Therefore, what has happened in these regions is the result of a complex crisis with various reasons and factors. But the vigilant citizens in the other Algerian territories, together with the stance of the Algerian scholars, clerics and prominent figures, have eased and contained the risks of disorder.
The latest violence in Algeria lies within the parameters of the temporary state of weakness which our Arab and Islamic countries are witnessing. Similar situations exist in Indonesia, Pakistan, Egypt, Iraq, Sudan, Macedonia and Albania. The explanation for all of this is the weakness of our Islamic nation and the wish of those behind globalization to have absolute domination over the whole world.
Q. You were the first to propose an initiative for solving the abovementioned problem. What are the details of your initiative, and do you think there will be a solution without intervention by the military?
A. The military is a strategic institution, which engaged itself in building our country and protecting it. It is waiting for the emergence of strong civil and political currents that are capable of leading the country, in order to dedicate itself to its defensive role as a professional army.
Despite our appreciation of the sensitive role which the military has played in these transitional periods, we do not advocate its involvement in political struggles, inasmuch as we demand it to protect the Constitution, the country’s borders, and the integrity and rights of our citizens.
Our initiative is based on our knowledge of the nature of balances within the authorities and society, and their relations with the regional and international balances. It is also based on our awareness of the people’s demands and their concerns. As you know, our movement is deeply rooted in our society, and is represented throughout the Algerian territories. This is in addition to our unique participation in government institutions. We attempt to propose what pushes democracy forward.
No solution for the Algerian crisis can disregard the role of the military, in view of the terrorist and ethnic threats and the attempts to internationalize the Algerian problem. It is inappropriate to exclude the military from the formula of transformation, and it is illogical for this institution to interfere in every issue and keep politicians out of the game.
Some parties seek the disruption of all the institutions in the country and a return to square one, because they are not convinced of Algeria’s independence. Others are only confident in institutions in their own ways, and according to their whims, while others attempt to destroy the country. These minorities have been rejected in elections, whatever their influence may be, so they started provoking the majority in order to defeat them by any means.
We in the peace movement have recognized since the revolution that the exclusion of the military from the attempts to find a solution for the crisis or the process of political transformation will fail. Pragmatism prompts us not to gloss over the facts and be deluded by fantasies and stupidity. Rationalism teaches us that the army believes that it has liberated the country and protected its independence. These beliefs have made some in the army try to satisfy their own whims, instead of going back to their bases and abiding by the Constitution and the country’s laws.
Politicians, too, should avoid radicalism. Military, political and civil extremism lead to more deterioration, pain, breakdowns and new colonialism represented by globalization, Zionism, and the World Bank’s monopoly.
All Algerian parties are now looking for a way to escape from the crisis, as evidenced by the increase in the number of initiatives. We in the peace movement are interested, first of all, in finding the minimum common ground agreed upon by Algerians. This is to overcome the crisis and save the country, and that’s why we are delaying the presentation of our initiative until the optimal acceptance is achieved. Therefore, we have kept the session of the Shura Council open to discuss developments and follow up on the initiative, in addition to enriching the thoughts and proposals that guarantee success.
Any initiative that lacks thinking and views becomes useless, and an opportunity for those who want to implement their shady projects. These projects include those calling for normalization; those claiming a lack of national security; those who fear political actions in which Islam becomes an effective partner; those who try to disturb the international balance in the region; and those who seek the abolition of the middle class and the creation of a minority upper class.
Q: The Algerian leadership has referred to foreign interference in the recent crisis. Is there such interference, or it is just a matter of pinning blame on an outsider?
A: Interference from abroad is a fact. However, the authorities must refer by name to those parties involved, and we will wait for the results of inquiries being carried out by ad hoc committees, because the national and international public opinion no longer buy general statements in such issues.
We, in HAMS, continuously call for our foreign partners, including France, to keep themselves abreast of the deep transformations taking place in our society, and stop building their stands on impressions conveyed to them by their agents in the country. These agents harm the interests of both the Algerian people and the foreign partners themselves. These partners should reconsider the situation, applying new rules which ensure that mutual interests are served and security and stability prevail in the Mediterranean basin and all regions.
Things cannot be corrected unless there is positive promotion of democracy, with avoidance of dependence on accounts of individuals who neither represent the people, nor behave democratically even within their own groups and parties. The application of old policies when it comes to new developments serves the interests of none and reduces chances for a serious and positive dialogue.
Q: In your opinion, on what basis could a resolution of the Kabylie crisis be built?
A: This can be achieved through dialogue, mature democracy, free and fair elections, leaving the past behind and adhering to Islam as the cementing factor which has for ages protected the national unity against rifts and external aggression. It is a big strategic mistake to rule out democracy and elections in major national issues of any society. It is a big mistake to rule out the factor that has united the Algerians for centuries or seek strength without the Arab, Islamic heritage. It is also a mistake to believe this devilish misconception that incites the Imazighen (Berbers) against the Arabs and renders the whole society vulnerable to foreigners, who would become the judge as regarding the political, cultural and even linguistic issues concerning the citizens. Unfortunately, this has become unmistakably noticeable nowadays.
It is a big mistake that a country that belongs to one culture becomes, at the level of the authority and parties, a tool in the hands of the foreigner, who will intensify his efforts for more degradation and self-annihilation in the country through penetration via stupid collaborators.
Q: Why has militant groups’ violence returned after a brief halt following the national accord law to reach its highest peak recently?
A: It is another result of the political impasse and insistence of one-sided mentality, and individual heroism.
The national accord needed more steps, political, economic and social, to handle not only the outcome, but also the roots of the crisis. The president [Abdel Aziz Bouteflika] has failed to fulfill the legal and economic guarantees he pledged and so there has been such an imbalance nourished by the drawbacks.
Regardless of who incite militant attacks, and whatever their motives and backgrounds are, the suppression the youth feel drives them into belligerent reactions, that are being repeated and developed due to the incorrect practices on the part of the authorities, who insist on marginalizing society’s institutions and depend solely on speeches, foreign tours and France’s help.
Nevertheless, the violence has not stopped at all. What happened is that the Islamic Salvation Army realized that the conflict with the authority was leading nowhere, and so declared a unilateral truce as a sign of good will. Such a stance should be followed by similar decisions by armed groups who seem to enjoy the bloodbath, ignoring their peers’ move and appeals by Islamic clerics to stop the killings.
They have chosen the path of eradicating all those who oppose them, agreeing among themselves on one thing: to pursue confrontation and bloodshed.
Such a philosophy has led to the rioting and sabotage under the so-called Imazighen identity, which we believe to be the sister, and not the rival, of the Arab identity.
Both the Arabs and the Imazighen have built one civilization and one people and fought should-to-shoulder to protect the one nation before such obsessions and insanity spread, fueled by the political system’s inability to guarantee security, employment, education, health care, transport, freedom of speech and respect for human rights.
In light of such helplessness, elements of the regime’s collapse are there, unless it turns to true democracy.
