Algerian Protests Coincide With Palace Coup
In 1999, Abdelaziz Bouteflika rose to presidency in Algeria by drawing support from the country’s military. Since then, he has amended the constitution to allow his presidency to extend beyond two terms and is now serving a fourth term. Recently, however, his health has become a contentious issue of growing concern. Bouteflika had an emergency treatment for a bleeding stomach ulcer in 2005 and has had two strokes since then.Now 78 years old, Bouteflika has been invisible from the public eye for over two years. Even his closest advisors have not seen their leader in over a year, leading Algerians to believe that their president may no longer be alive. The president supposedly communicates with his ministers via letter, but many sources doubt that he is still running operations in Algeria. The National Liberation Front, the party that has controlled the state since 1962, has been ruled by le pouvoir, a secret military and political elite group through a system of consensus.
Abdelaziz Bouteflika casts his ballot in May 10th's 2012 legislative election.
Experts believe that recent shifts are uncharacteristic of Bouteflika and hint at a palace coup. For example, the jailing of two senior generals and a purge of the leading intelligence service are indications of transitions in power. “We have this feeling that the president has been taken hostage by his direct entourage,” Lakhar Bouregaa, a former comrade of Bouteflika in the struggle for independence told Al-Watan, an Algerian daily that aligns with the opposition. Some predict that Saïd Bouteflika, the brother of Adbelaziz, is leading the new clique in power while others doubt that Saïd lacks the support of the army and public.
This shift in power comes at an unfortunate time for Algeria. The National Liberation Front suppressed riots during the Arab Spring in 2011 and maintained its powerful rule over the state. However, recent months, have been tumultuous. As a result of the collapse in oil revenues, inflation has soared to 4.8% and youth unemployment is nearly 30%. Algerians have begun a new wave of increased protests that police and security forces have met with fierce opposition. The town of Oued El Ma began a strike and transitioned to an attack on the local prison on January 19 when the government cancelled its plans to build a solar panel factory, which would ameliorate the youth unemployment problem. The harsh government response leveled the town.
In order to appease the populace, Bouteflika (or whoever is acting on his behalf) has disclosed the draft of a constitution, but analysts remain skeptical. “I don’t believe these constitutional changes will affect the citizens’ daily life. They are above all concerned that hard-won social gains are not jeopardized,” reported Hocine Bellaloufi, author of Democracy in Algeria: Reform or Revolution, to Al-Monitor. Bellaloufi holds that the draft constitution is a mere distraction from the government’s domestic price hike.
The draft constitution limits presidency to two terms, overturning Bouteflika’s 2008 amendment to extend his presidency. This may be an indication of an impending transition of power within le pouvoir. Although simultaneous public unrest and an internal political transition form a recipe for a new Arab Spring in Algeria, there is still doubt due to the country’s history of civil war. A long and bloody civil war during the 1990s has left the country scarred and potentially unwilling to relive the trauma of another uprising.