Algeria's Hirak movement returns in force ahead of elections
ALGIERS - The clampdown and arrests of demonstrators and civil society activists taking part in the Hirak, Algeria's pro-democracy movement, are on the rise again in the weeks before the 12 June parliamentary elections.
The arrests mark the end of a three-month appeasement period that started with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune's order to release 59 political detainees, and after a yearlong pause due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
But what is new about this recent flare-up? While authorities have long repressed the protests and targeted prominent organisers, they have for the first time brought terrorism-related charges against Hirak activists in an attempt to sow fear and undermine the movement.
"It represents a worrying new trend of Algerian authorities using terrorism-related legislation to repress the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and expression ahead of the elections in June," Amnesty International said on 17 May.
Meanwhile, those detained by authorities in recent protests, Algerians from all walks of life, have accused state security forces of torture and even sexual abuse.
According to human rights groups, the Hirak, as the leaderless mass movement is known, persists because political grievances have not yet been tackled. In fact, most demonstrators feel the regime has utterly failed to address their legitimate demands.
Immediately after his election in December 2019, President Tebboune announced that he was "open to a dialogue" with the Hirak and openly declared that his government would "consolidate democracy, rule of law, and respect for human rights."
However, the regime has continued to crack down on the opposition, indicting dozens of peaceful protesters.
The watershed moment was a clampdown on 26 March, resulting in hundreds of arrests throughout the country.
According to the National Committee for the Liberation of Detainees (CNLD), an Algiers-based watchdog group, as of February 2021, no less than 2,500 demonstrators, reporters, and democracy advocates had been arrested for non-violent involvement with the Hirak.
The Algerian League for Human Rights said this week that more than 800 people were detained across the country in just one day on 21 May.
While the majority have been released, the journalist-run website Algerian Detainees says at least 133 are still in detention.
So far, Algerian authorities have also used repressive laws to indict demonstrators under charges such as "harming national unity," "incitement to unarmed gatherings," or "insulting the President."
