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| Africa: North |
| Algerian Islamic Party Supports Amnesty to End Rebel Violence |
| 2005-02-13 |
| Algeria's leading opposition Islamic party will back a general amnesty aimed at ending more than a decade of rebel violence if an emergency law restricting political activity is lifted, media reported yesterday. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has called for an amnesty to end the conflict, which has killed an estimated 150,000 people and almost destroyed Algeria in the 1990s. The amnesty, which is expected to be put to a referendum later this year, is expected to include rebels and security forces but no details have yet been given. "The general amnesty will not have an effect if the state of emergency is not lifted," said Abdallah Djaballah, leader of the main legal Islamic party El Islah. He said the long-running conflict would not end unless democracy was strengthened. In 1992 militants started a rebellion after the army canceled legislative elections a now banned Islamic party was set to win, plunging the North African nation into near-civil war. Djaballah's support for an amnesty is important as he is seen as the voice for the moderate Islamic movement and is expected to be influential on undecided rebels on whether or not they lay down their arms, analysts say. |
| Posted by:Fred |