FYI
Shawgi Tell
Graduate School of Education
University at Buffalo
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Sun, 13 Jul 1997 22:50:21 -0700
From: MER Editorial <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Algeria - Gross Injustice & Militarism Prevail
M I D - E A S T R E A L I T I E S - MER EDITORIAL
***************************************************************
"News, Analysis & Commentary They Don't Want You to Know"
***************************************************************
INJUSTICE IN ALGERIA - HEAD OF ISLAMIC SALVATION FRONT "CONVICTED"
***************************************************************
To receive MER regularly request from: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
G R O S S I N J U S T I C E I N A L G E R I A
MER - Washington 7/13/97:
With deaths and casualties approaching 100,000, the Western-
backed Algerian military's civil war against the nationalist and
populist "Islamic" forces shows no signs of ending. The U.S.,
France, and other Arab militarist "client-regimes" in the region
lead by Egypt are dedicated to subjugating nationalist Islamic
movements at any cost.
Five years ago the head of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS)
in Algeria, Abdelkader Hachani, was on his way to taking political
power through the ballot-box -- otherwise known as democracy. The
Algerian military seized control of the country, ended the elections,
instituted marshall law, arrested Hachani, and has since conducted
a scorched-earth massacre policy. Hachani has been held ever since
without trial on trumped up charges of "undermining state security".
Of course those who have really undermined the state are the
generals who seized power. One day in the future, as in other
countries like Argentina and Chile, maybe the Generals will find
themselves imprisoned for their outrages.
Now, attempting to give some deceptive veneer of legitimacy to
their bloody rule, the Generals have tried Hachani in one of their mock
courts and found him guilty (of course!) of urging Algerian troops to
disobey their officers rather than subvert the electoral process.
It is in fact a charge he is guilty of -- but one for which he should
be applauded rather than imprisoned!
Justice will eventually come to Algeria. But not now.
Meanwhile, the Western governments and their associated "human
rights" organizations of various names and types haven't got much
to say about all this. In reality "human rights" and "democracy"
are what they rhetorically favor when its convenient; but about the
opposite of what they actually practice in this inflamed and
embittered Middle Eastern region.
M I D - E A S T R E A L I T I E S
(202) 362-5266, Ext 638 Fax: (202) 362-6965 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
***************************************************************
To receive MER weekly just send a message to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] with only the words
SUBSCRIBE MER-L in the subject and message areas.
***************************************************************
For previous MER information, commentary, editorials & Readers Comments:
http://WWW.MiddleEast.Org
