Algeria
All countries-
France's colonial legacy
Algerians turn away from French
An increasing number of government ministries in Algeria are announcing they will abandon French in future. They may be reacting to the mood among the population, but the move is also deliberate. By Dunja Ramadan
-
Russian war censorship denounced on World Press Freedom Day
Russia's ranking on the World Press Freedom Index has fallen again over the Kremlin's wartime censorship of the Ukraine conflict. From Myanmar to Mexico, journalists continue to risk their lives to deliver the news.
-
Abderrahmane Abdelli's "Songs of Exile"
Yearning for home
As current events continue to remind us, people all over the world are constantly being forced into exile. "Songs of Exile", created by Algerian Berber exile Abderrahmane Abdelli, captures the plight of these people and expresses some of their hopes and fears through music. By Richard Marcus
-
Book fair in Algiers
Habib Tengour and the "Poems of the World"
The Algiers book fair has taken place for the 25th time, following a two-year break owing to the pandemic. Independent Algerian publisher APIC used the occasion to showcase its avant-garde poetry series, initiated by the Algerian poet and ethnologist Habib Tengour. Interview by Regina Keil-Sagawe
-
Climate crisis and over-population
The Arab world has no answers
As challenges such as population growth and the end of the fossil fuel era loom large, not a single Arab regime is in a position to meet them. It is now incumbent upon Europe to encourage a response. Commentary by Rainer Hermann
-
"Naga (Part II)" by Flèche Love
The triumph of love and life over pain
"Naga (Part II)", on L-abe records, is the latest release from Swiss-Algerian performance artist Flèche Love (Amina Cadelli). Richard Marcus listened to the album and was struck by its emotional and intellectual honesty
-
Jewish-Arab identity
Cleo Cohen's "May God be with you"
Her grandparents are Jews – born in Tunisia and Algeria. Director Cleo Cohen has now broken the silence about this with a very personal debut. By Nadine Wojcik
-
Tunisia's ex-president Moncef Marzouki
The conscience of the Arab Spring
Moncef Marzouki was Tunisia's first democratically elected president after the fall of dictator Ben Ali. Today he is the most prominent critic of increasingly counter-revolutionary developments under President Kais Saied. Commentary by Ali Anouzla
-
Women's rights in North Africa
"The headscarf is losing its religious edge"
Moroccan sociologist Fatima Sadiqi believes that women's movements in North Africa have changed over the past ten years. Today, women from all social classes are fighting together for more rights, regardless of whether they are "secular" or "Islamic" feminists. Claudia Mende spoke with her for Qantara.de
-
Sixty years after the Paris Massacre
When will France apologise to the Algerians?
Shot, beaten to death or drowned: a demonstration by tens of thousands of Algerians ended in the "Paris Massacre" on 17 October 1961. Sixty years on, historians and victims' associations are calling for a sign from President Macron. By Andreas Noll
-
Sarhan Dhouib's "Erinnerungen an Unrecht"
Memories of injustice – for the liberation of Arab identity
The memory of experienced injustice plays a central role in the transformation of societies towards democracy. In the Arab world, the critical study of memory is only just emerging. The Tunisian philosopher Sarhan Dhouib from the University of Hildesheim has made an important contribution with his anthology, writes Sonja Hegasy in her review
-
Arab world
"The people aren't ready" – can Arabs do democracy?
"The people aren’t ready for democracy" has been the constitutional basis for Arab tyranny, its favourite slogan and its sacred narrative for more than a century. Yet, asks Khaled Hroub, what chance does democracy have, unless it is repeatedly put to the test by the people at all levels of society?