Repeated Messages From France Not To Apologize For Heinous Crimes Committed In Algeria

There was no remembrance related to the tragic memory between Algeria and France, but it was a station for political and media debate between the “two arch-rivals”, and between the French themselves, who used the Algerians’ untold tragedies and deep suffering as a rich substance in their political and electoral battles.

The fifth of December of each year, coincides with what is called in the former colony the “National Day to Commemorate the Dead of France during the Algerian War and the Fighting in Morocco and France,” an occasion on which the French presidency used to issue a statement in which it exposed the sacrifices of all who fought for the continuation of colonialism by France in Algeria and in its eastern and western neighbors.

In a statement circulated by the Elysée Palace on the night of Sunday to Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron defended what he described as a “complex history” and a “combined memory”, nearly 60 years after the end of the “Algeria War”, as it is called by historical and political literature in France, and the victorious liberation revolution, as termed by the Algerian side.

In a statement from the Elysee Palace, the French president begged “forgiveness” on behalf of the state of France, announcing the law of “recognition and compensation” towards this category of Algerians who preferred to fight alongside the French occupation army during the liberation war.

Macron described what happened to the “harki” during the liberation war and the stage that followed it as “the complex story, this complex memory, is ours, to be known and recognized in all its components”, as he put it.

The French presidency confirmed in its statement that Macron, since his arrival at the Elysée Palace nearly five years ago, has not faltered, since the beginning of his term, in “promoting works related to history and memory around this period and its actors (…), provided that it is passed on to younger generations”.

He added in this regard: “Since 2003, France has dedicated December 5th to those who died for France in these wars of decolonization, for those who returned from it, for those who suffered there and for those who still suffer from it in addition to the disappeared, as well as the people who had to abandon the country in which they were born,” referring to the centenarians and black-feet people who had to leave Algeria after independence”.

The Elysée Palace focused at length on the French memory in Algeria, and praised the sacrifices and suffering of the Harkis, and the tragedies of the black feet and the centenarians due to their leaving their hometown, according to the statement, but it did not dare to respond to the repeated Algerian demands, represented in an apology for the horrendous crimes of colonial France, which he admitted as a candidate for the presidential elections in 2017 during his visit to Algeria, before he relapsed upon his return to Paris.

Macron, because of the electoral accounts, sold his position, became identifiable even with the proposals of the extreme right, whose leader Marine Le Pen tweeted yesterday on the occasion of this anniversary, by writing on her Twitter account: “Let us not let France’s honor be violated because of the cowardice of our leaders towards the Algerian authorities”.

Eric Ciotty, the other right-wing candidate who recently lost the race, took advantage of the occasion and wrote provocatively: “No, France is not guilty of a crime against humanity in Algeria. No, France is not guilty for wanting to share progress in the world”.