Islam, Democracy and the State in Algeria: Lessons for the Western Mediterranean and Beyond

by Bonner,Michael; Bonner,Michael

• ISBN13: 9780415348294
• ISBN10: 0415348293
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-10-19
• Publisher: RoutledgeCurzon

Summary

Modern Algeria has been, in many ways, a harbinger of events and trends that have affected the Arab and Muslim worlds. The country's bold experiment in democratization broke down in the early 1990s, largely over the question of whether the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) should be permitted to come to power following its victories in local, regional, and national elections. A devastating civil war followed. Now that order has been restored and the country has a new government, questions about governance, Islam, and international relationships are once again at the top of Algeria's political agenda. How these issues are resolved will not only determine Algeria's future, but will also have important implications for other states in North Africa and the Western Mediterranean. This book was previously published as a special issue of the Journal of North African Studies.

Table of Contents

About the Contributors	vii
Introduction	1	(13)
MICHAEL BONNER, MEGAN REIF AND MARK TESSLER
ALGERIA AT THE CROSSROADS
Why the Violence in Algeria?	14	(14)
LUIS MARTINEZ
Population Transitions, Youth Unemployment, Postponement of Marriage and Violence in Algeria	28	(18)
ALI KOUAOUCI
Political Liberalisation and the Islamist Movement in Algeria	46	(22)
AZZEDINE LAYACHI
Algeria's Agonies: Oil Rent Effects in a Bunker State	68	(14)
CLEMENT M. HENRY
Algeria's Transition to What?	82	(11)
WILLIAM QUANDT
ECONOMY AND SOCIETY
Gender as a Catalyst of Social and Political Representations in Algeria	93	(9)
BOUTHEINA CHERIET
Economic Reforms in Algeria and their Impact on Higher Education and Student Benefits	102	(13)
ABDELBAKI BENZIANE
Economic Reforms in Algeria: An Overview and Assessment	115	(11)
KADA AKACEM
INTERNATIONAL NETWORKS AND EXTERNAL POWERS
'What Has Become of My Friends?' Questions Regarding the New Algerian 'Diaspora' in France	126	(14)
FANNY COLONNA
The Barcelona Process, the Role of the European Union and the Lesson of the Western Mediterranean	140	(13)
FULVIO ATTINÀ
The Role of External Actors in Algeria's Transition	153	(16)
MOHAMMED AKACEM
The Resurgence of Algeria's Foreign Policy in the Twenty-First Century	169	(15)
YAHIA H. ZOUBIR
CONCLUSIONS: ALGERIA IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE
The View from the Street: The Attitudes and Values of Ordinary Algerians	184	(18)
MARK TESSLER
Islamist Politics and the Democratic Imperative: Comparative Lessons from the Algerian Experience	202	(14)
JOHN ENTELIS
Algeria at Forty: A Midlife Crisis	216	(7)
I. WILLIAM ZARTMAN
Index	223