Congestion In The Memory File And An Algerian Clinging To A Bold Treatment

All signs confirm that the file of memory between Algeria and France is still stalled, more than a year and a half after the creation of a joint committee of Algerian and French historians to discuss this delicate file. This was stated by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on the occasion of the “Day of Memory”, which is  commemorated every year on May 8th, as well as in the dialogue between the president of the committee on the Algerian side, the historian Mohamed Lahcen Zghidi.
The last meeting of the joint Committee was held last January in the French capital, Paris, after a previous meeting in the city of Constantine at the end of last year, and since then there has been no talk about this file, despite the attention it has received, especially from the French President, Emmanuel Macron, as well as its sensitivity and repercussions. On the future of the bilateral relations between Algeria and Paris.
In a message released by the Presidency of the Republic on the occasion of the National Day of Remembrance, President Tebboune said: “The file of memory does not erode with age or forgetfulness due to the passage of years and does not accept concessions or negotiations. It will remain at the heart of our concerns until it is addressed in an objective, courageous and fair treatment of the historical truth, and I am at the time While confirming the readiness to move towards the future in an atmosphere of trust, I consider that credibility and seriousness are a basic requirement for the completion of the procedures and efforts related to this delicate and sensitive file”.
The phrases contained in the letter of the first judge of the country show that the Algerian party is committed to the necessity of finding a solution to the question of memory, even if the solution is delayed in view of its complexity. The President’s letter also indicates that the passage of years and their succession do not mean that Algerians will neglect their just cause.
The President’s emphasis on the need for seriousness and credibility on the part of the other party also implicitly indicates that there are tangible obstacles on the Algerian side to the implementation of the required measures and that what has been done so far remains, at best, in the realm of symbolic, formal and partial steps.
Since the last meeting of the Mixed Committee last February, many statements and leaks have agreed that there are differences between the two parties on how to deal with sensitive points in this file, especially the issue of the archive and some of the belongings of the first founder of the Algerian state, Emir Abdelkader.
In the face of this uncertainty, the mixed committee is expected to return to its meeting in Algeria between the 20th and 24th of this month, according to a leak from the newspaper “Le Monde”, at a time when much is expected to make a breakthrough in this sensitive file that will determine the future of this committee.
The head of the Memory Committee from the Algerian side, Lahcen Zghidi, admitted in a symposium organized by the National Radio, on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, that there are obstacles facing Algeria’s recovery of its looted archives stacked in French basements, when he said: “We faced difficulties from the French side, related to the laws that are considered… All stolen goods, looted goods, etc., transported to France are an integral part of French sovereignty.”
The historian also spoke of the presence of resistance on the part of the French to the handing over of the original archives to Algeria and their focus on electronic copies of stolen documents, a proposal that was met with reservations by Algeria, as Lahcen Zghidi explained: “We assured them that we are not against technology and digitization, as it facilitates the work of scholars, but digitization cannot replace the original archive, which we will not abandon or neglect, even if it is a single paper written in Algeria”.
In the same context, the French newspaper “Le Monde” reported in its edition of Wednesday, May 8, on the disagreements between the two parties regarding Algeria’s recovery of Emir Abdelkader’s belongings. The newspaper said that last March, Algerian historians who were members of the mixed committee sent a list to their French counterparts. Among the objects confiscated by the French occupying army that Algeria wants to recover are two swords that belonged to Emir Abdelkader.