Le Monde Diplomatique article bothers Algeria

The issue’s absence from newsstands in Algeria has all the hallmarks of an act of censorship. Written by Pierre Daum and entitled “Memory banned in Algeria,” the article looks back at some of the darker episodes of the so-called “black decade.”

The monthly’s distributor usually receives a permit every month allowing the latest issue to be sent to retailers. But the relevant authorities have not issued the permit this month and have not explained why.

When reached by RSF at the start of the week, Le Monde Diplomatique said: “For the time being, it is not possible to talk about censorship. But it is hard not to think that this unusual delay is linked to the August issue’s content, which includes an article about the Algerian civil war 20 years later. If our distributor does not get the necessary authorization, we will soon make the article available for free on our site.”

Le Monde Diplomatique’s website is now providing unrestricted access to the article.

“We urge the Algerian authorities to provide an official explanation for why this issue of Le Monde Diplomatique is not yet on sale and to take the necessary steps to ensure that it is distributed normally throughout the country,” RSF said. “A democracy gains strength by respecting the freedom to inform and not by refusing to face its past, no matter how painful.”

Article 46 of the 2005 Algerian Charter for Peace and National Reconciliation prohibits mention of the massacres that took place during the civil war of the 1990s.

Algeria is ranked 134th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2017 World Press Freedom Index.