It’s the first protest since the Algerian army chief called earlier this week for a constitutional process to declare President Abdelaziz Bouteflika unfit for office
. Other politicians and parties backed the idea as a solution to the gas-rich country’s political crisis.But protesters see the proposal as a way for the secretive political elite to keep their grip on power and name a hand-picked successor to Bouteflika, who has been largely out of the public eye since a 2013 stroke.
One sign accused the political elite of being “Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves.” Another read “Not Moscow, Not Paris, Not Washington – The Choice should be Algerian,” in reference to concerns of foreign interference in the crisis. A former French colony with close ties to France, Algeria was a powerful ally of Moscow in the Soviet era but in recent years has also become a key partner of the U.S. and Europe in fighting terrorism.
When the protests broke out last month, the demonstrators’ anger was more focused on Bouteflika himself, and demands that he abandon his bid for a fifth term after 20 years in power.
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