Yemen and Algeria rocked by violently repressed protests
Sunday 23rd January, 2011
Unrest has continued to spread across North Africa and the Middle East with demonstrators in Yemen on Saturday demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, while riot police in Algeria clashed with demonstrators, injuring dozens.
The demonstrations in Yemen appear to have been inspired by the public revolt that took place in Tunisia, leading to the resignation of Ben Ali, who had ruled the country for more than twenty years.
Yemeni President Saleh has been in power for 32 years and is accused of overseeing a government riddled by corruption and mismanagement. Yemen is the poorest country in the Middle East, is running out of water and is also one of the most restrictive, with few political freedoms.
Public demonstrations against the president and his government have been rare, however, a line few dared cross.
The protest at the University of Sanaa, attended by 2,500 activists, students and opposition groups, was therefore unprecedented, not only in its size but also in its brazen demands, calling for President Saleh to resign and comparing him mockingly to the former president of Tunisia, Ben Ali.
“Get out, get out, Ali,” chanted the crowd. “Join your friend, Ben Ali!”
Organisers of the protest have called for a revolution in the impoverished, authoritarian state, vowing to continue their protest and march down the streets of the capital to the presidential palace at “the heart” of the capital city.
Since the uprisings in Tunisia, Saleh has tried to quell public dissent with a carrot-and-stick approach, halving income taxes and placing controls on the price of certain goods, while simultaneously deploying anti-riot police to key areas of the capital and surrounding areas.
At Saturday’s protest, around 30 people were detained after officials fired tear gas to break up the crowd, many of whom have been particularly angered by proposed constitutional changes that would allow Saleh to remain president for life.
Yemen has been rocked by similar protests in various cities, but protests in the tightly controlled capital are unprecedented, leading many to suggest that dissent may be growing in the authoritarian state.
Several people have been killed and many injured in at least three similar protests in cities around the country and many have been displaced by police responses, some of which have included the firing of mortar shells at protesters.
In Algeria, protests have also been put down after a wave of public suicides by fire rocked the country, going to the very core of the government and its responsibility to the people.
Saturday’s clashes saw riot police battling rock and chair wielding protesters in the capital, Algiers, leaving 19 injured, according to official reports, but a member of the political opposition has put the figure at over 40.
In another clear reference to Tunisia, protest organisers draped the Tunisian flag next to the Algerian flag over a balcony at the opposition party headquarters, chanting “Boutef out!” in reference to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika who is in his second term of office.
Elected in 1999, President Bouteflika has proposed an amendment to the constitution, which would broaden his presidential powers and allow him to run for office indefinitely, a move seen by many to be the political equivalent of over-staying one’s welcome.
Algeria and Yemen are both countries in which internal politics are complicated by Islamist insurgencies. Yemen, like Algeria, does not allow public gatherings, a law aimed at combating insurgent activity, although in both countries such laws are seen as undemocratic and restrictive.
Sunday 23rd January, 2011
Unrest has continued to spread across North Africa and the Middle East with demonstrators in Yemen on Saturday demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, while riot police in Algeria clashed with demonstrators, injuring dozens.
The demonstrations in Yemen appear to have been inspired by the public revolt that took place in Tunisia, leading to the resignation of Ben Ali, who had ruled the country for more than twenty years.
Yemeni President Saleh has been in power for 32 years and is accused of overseeing a government riddled by corruption and mismanagement. Yemen is the poorest country in the Middle East, is running out of water and is also one of the most restrictive, with few political freedoms.
Public demonstrations against the president and his government have been rare, however, a line few dared cross.
The protest at the University of Sanaa, attended by 2,500 activists, students and opposition groups, was therefore unprecedented, not only in its size but also in its brazen demands, calling for President Saleh to resign and comparing him mockingly to the former president of Tunisia, Ben Ali.
“Get out, get out, Ali,” chanted the crowd. “Join your friend, Ben Ali!”
Organisers of the protest have called for a revolution in the impoverished, authoritarian state, vowing to continue their protest and march down the streets of the capital to the presidential palace at “the heart” of the capital city.
Since the uprisings in Tunisia, Saleh has tried to quell public dissent with a carrot-and-stick approach, halving income taxes and placing controls on the price of certain goods, while simultaneously deploying anti-riot police to key areas of the capital and surrounding areas.
At Saturday’s protest, around 30 people were detained after officials fired tear gas to break up the crowd, many of whom have been particularly angered by proposed constitutional changes that would allow Saleh to remain president for life.
Yemen has been rocked by similar protests in various cities, but protests in the tightly controlled capital are unprecedented, leading many to suggest that dissent may be growing in the authoritarian state.
Several people have been killed and many injured in at least three similar protests in cities around the country and many have been displaced by police responses, some of which have included the firing of mortar shells at protesters.
In Algeria, protests have also been put down after a wave of public suicides by fire rocked the country, going to the very core of the government and its responsibility to the people.
Saturday’s clashes saw riot police battling rock and chair wielding protesters in the capital, Algiers, leaving 19 injured, according to official reports, but a member of the political opposition has put the figure at over 40.
In another clear reference to Tunisia, protest organisers draped the Tunisian flag next to the Algerian flag over a balcony at the opposition party headquarters, chanting “Boutef out!” in reference to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika who is in his second term of office.
Elected in 1999, President Bouteflika has proposed an amendment to the constitution, which would broaden his presidential powers and allow him to run for office indefinitely, a move seen by many to be the political equivalent of over-staying one’s welcome.
Algeria and Yemen are both countries in which internal politics are complicated by Islamist insurgencies. Yemen, like Algeria, does not allow public gatherings, a law aimed at combating insurgent activity, although in both countries such laws are seen as undemocratic and restrictive.
