Projected Conveyance of File on May 8th Massacres Before Human Rights Commission In Brussels

The meritorious win in the French presidential election by Emmanuel Macron coincided with the commemoration of the anniversary of 8th May 1945 horrendous massacres and many observers wonder if this burning file will witness new evolutions and will eventually cross the stage of formal state recognition of the heinous crimes committed by colonial France in Algeria.

 Mr. Macron was the first French politician to have explicitly recognized the French colonial crimes dubbing them as crimes against humanity, in an interview granted to “Echorouk” TV during his visit to Algeria earlier this year. 

The new president’s admission of the crimes of colonial France has shaken the political class in France itself, as this burning topic is considered to be among the seven taboos.

As a recall, in 2012 with the visit of former President François Hollande to Algeria, the hint to this outstanding issue was weak as Hollande referred to what he called “the plight and suffering of the Algerian people during the colonial period” and despite its weakness, such a statement was considered by some observers here and there as a sign of just courting the Algerian issue.

But the boldest statement came from the new French President, Emmanuel Macron, who openly admitted that French colonialism in Algeria was a crime against humanity as stipulated in the Charter of Human Rights, and this encouraged the National 8th May 45 Association to work out a heavy file on the massacres of May 8, 1945 and on the previous crimes committed by colonial France in Algeria. 

The indictment file is expected to be submitted soon by the relevant Association to the Commission on Human Rights in Brussels.