(Beyrouth) – In the lead-up to the visit of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, scheduled for September 2023, Algerian authorities should halt their attacks on civic space and allow independent organizations to operate without arbitrary restrictions, stated 15 human rights advocacy groups today.
The visit of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of peaceful assembly and association, Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, is scheduled from September 16 to 26. Last year, Algerian authorities, who have since intensified their repression of fundamental freedoms, including freedom of association and assembly, had postponed his visit.
“Nassera Dutour, President of the Collective of Families of the Disappeared in Algeria, stated, “Algerian authorities are ruthlessly cracking down on the Algerian pro-democracy movement and anyone who criticizes the government. It is imperative that UN experts, supported by the international community, stand up for those fighting for human rights in the country.”
The UN Special Rapporteur’s visit offers Algerian authorities a significant opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to respecting human rights obligations, according to the signatory organizations. They should release all individuals imprisoned for their activism or peaceful expression, allow civil society organizations, unions, and political parties to operate freely, and repeal repressive laws used to suppress dissent.
Algerian authorities dissolved the oldest human rights defense organization in Algeria, the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LADDH), as well as a prominent association, the Youth Action Rally (RAJ). At least two political parties – the Socialist Workers’ Party (PST) and the Democratic and Social Movement (MDS) – have been suspended, and two independent media outlets, Radio M and Maghreb Emergent, have been shut down, further silencing dissenting voices. Journalist Ihsane El Kadi, sentenced to seven years in prison, researcher Raouf Farrah, and journalist Mustapha Bendjama, both sentenced to two years in prison, have all been imprisoned on baseless charges of “receiving foreign funds to undermine public order.”
“Aissa Rahmoune, Vice President of the International Federation for Human Rights, stated, “Algerian authorities have taken extreme measures to silence critical voices and lock down civic space. On the occasion of the Special Rapporteur’s visit, Algeria must release all prisoners of conscience and cease all prosecution of activists and human rights defenders for exercising their legitimate rights.”
Throughout the period following the June 2021 legislative elections and until the third anniversary of the pro-democracy Hirak movement in February 2022, harassment, intimidation, and attacks on dissidents intensified. By the end of 2022, there were 280 activists, demonstrators, and government critics imprisoned for their involvement in the Hirak movement. Local organizations and individuals documenting arbitrary arrests and detentions were also targeted, including human rights defender Zakaria Hannache, who was sentenced in absentia to three years in prison in March 2023 on baseless charges of “spreading false information,” “receiving funds,” and “undermining state security and national integrity.”
“The civic space has been so severely restricted by Algerian authorities that even the few freedoms gained since the 1990s have been obliterated,” said Ziad Abdeltawab, Vice President of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies. “Authorities must urgently reverse course and respect the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly.”
Between 2020 and 2023, several laws were added to Algeria’s already repressive legal arsenal to stifle freedom of association and assembly. The penal code was amended to include an article providing for up to 14 years in prison for receiving foreign funds in connection with an organization or association. Similarly, by Presidential Decree No. 21-08 of 2021, the criminal offense of terrorism was expanded to criminalize actions aimed at working or inciting, by any means, to seize power or change the system of governance through unconstitutional means. In March 2023, a union law was adopted, aiming to closely control union activity.
The signatory organizations draw the Special Rapporteur’s attention to the risks of harassment and intimidation against civil society activists he may meet during his visit to the country and call on Algerian authorities to ensure their safety and integrity.
