Arab Spring certain to reach Algeria

Hamlaoui Akouchi Algiers - Hussein Bousaleh The secretary-general of Algeria's Movement for National Reform (El Islah), has said none of the country's reforms over the past two years have managed to positively impact the country's political scene. "Despite President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's pledges, there is no sign of democracy...this situation is paving for the Arab Spring to reach Algeria," said Hamlaoui Akouchi, who heads the Islamist party. In an exclusive interview with Arabstoday, Akouchi described the current political situation in Algeria as "paralytic", citing frequent protests demonstrating against the deteriorating economy. "Talking about reforms in Algeria amid the current situation on both the political and economic sides would be a joke," he said. The first general election in Algeria since the outbreak of the Arab Spring. saw 42.9 percent of eligible voters participate, although it dashed the hopes of Islamsits who wished to replicate the results of neighbouring countries' Islamist parties. The National Liberation Front (FLN), led by President Bouteflika, won 220 out of the 462 seats, while the National Democratic Rally (RND) of Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia came second 68 seats. Both parties constituted a majority in the new assembly. The Islamists came third with only 66 seats. Akouchi blamed the frustrating results, comparing to that of Islamists in Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco, on the "lack of unity" amongst Algerian Islamist parties. "Some parties refused to join the Islamist Green Algeria Alliance (GAA), such as the Justice and Development Party," he said. The Green Algeria Alliance is an Islamist coalition of political parties, created for the Algerian legislative election in May this year. It consists of the Movement of Society for Peace (Hamas), Islamic Renaissance Movement (Ennahda) and the Movement for National Reform (Islah). The alliance is led by Bouguerra Soltani of Hamas. Akouchi however proclaimed that the GAA was still hugely popular among Algerians, which pushed the government to rig the elections in favour of the FLN and RND. The Islamist leader accused the government of trying to create divisions between Algeria's Islamists through luring some of them to establish new political parties, like the Algeria for All party, found by Peace Society leader Ammar Ghoul. Akouchi added that the GAA's participation in the upcoming municipal elections would depend on the coalition's advisory council. However, the Islah secretary-general said all three parties in the bloc would run with a uniited list if they decided to run. "We wished that the May 10 elections were re-run after they were clearly rigged...the reality of what happened was contradictory to what we were aiming for. What's worse is that both the government and the parliament have gone on vacation while the people continue to suffer. Take the example of demonstrations by local security officials which was only met with violence from the regime's forces," he said. "If the current situation remains the same, the Arab Spring will definitely arrive in Algeria," he concluded.