Hope of a new dawn

The ousting of the 82-year-old ailing Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, following large scale protests across Algeria, seen as the second phase of the Arab uprising, is reminiscent of the overthrowing of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak eight years ago.

Before he stepped down after the large scale protests against his regime in 2011, Mubarak had said he was not seeking to extend his presidential mandate but would still remain in power for more than six months. Similarly, Bouteflika, who ruled the country for 20 years, also said he was not planning on running for a fifth term.

Like Mubarak, the Algerian leader was also said to be planning to pass on the power to relatives—the sons in Mubarak case and the brothers in Bouteflika case. This triggered massive street protests in Algeria and led to the army to intervene.

Both the leaders were also initially planning on running in the upcoming elections despite their poor health. The presidential terms were extended more than the fixed tenure in both the cases.

The protesters in Algeria voiced the same sentiments that led to the Arab uprisings also known as Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and Syria in 2011.

Four of Bouteflika's long-ruling counterparts – in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Libya were all ousted following the 2011 Arab uprisings.

Tens of thousands of people from all sections of the society demonstrated across Algeria since February end, after the wheelchair-bound ailing Bouteflika announced his decision to run for the fifth term for the presidential elections, to be held on April 18. Among other things, they demanded that Bouteflika should resign immediately.

They had no organisers. Initially, it began online, demonstrating the power and reach of the social media particularly among the youths, and later people from other generations also actively participated in demonstrations.

They highlighted corruption and unemployment plaguing the country and demanded an overhaul of a stagnant political system dominated by veterans of the 1954-62 war of independence against France.

The country's oil wealth is drying and the government is unable to temper the popular discontent through state spending. Over a quarter of its youth are unemployed and corruption are rampant.

After many days of silence and perhaps sensing the public mood Bouteflika, who has been in power since 1999, in a letter read out on the state television on March 11 sought to defuse the unrest by abandoning his re-election bid but gave no indication of whether he would step down when his mandate expires next month.

The Algerian leader, who has barely appeared in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, also postponed the April elections indefinitely and announced that he would step down only after a new constitution is adopted through a referendum and a successor is elected. There was no word as to when either would be held.

Continued protests in various cities even after Bouteflika's letter sent a clear message that the demonstrators do not intend to back down. Even some of his key allies abandoned him.

As the public anger continued to mount, the chief of army staff Ahmed Gaid Salah intervened and called for Bouteflika to be declared unfit to rule and initiation of impeachment proceedings against the embattled president.

"There is no more room to waste time," he said in a firm message to the president adding, that "we decided clearly… to stand with the people so all their demands get fulfilled."

Finally faced with continued public anger and the intervention of the army, Algeria's longest-serving president on April 3 announced that he has resigned, prompting celebrations across the country.

A fresh election has to be held within 90 days and till then chairman of the upper house of parliament Abdelkader Bensalah is in charge as caretaker president.

There is a need to ensure that the elections are held on time and are free and fair as Bouteflika's most trusted people are still part of the system and they would probably like to interfere with the process to save their skins.

The country's opposition remains badly fragmented. Although Algerian analysts have spoken for promoting prominent figures within the political system, it remains to be seen if this would happen. Bouteflika virtually never allowed the opposition to flourish.

Also, it was necessary that the army, which is the most powerful institution in the country, should help in the smooth transfer of power. The army chief is the most influential man in the country and he will defend his interests and those of other top-ranking officers. The army's role in the unfolding situation will be very crucial. There is already a fear that the army chief might position himself to take control of the country.

To ensure a free and fair election it will be better to have a transitional council comprising prominent persons acceptable to all sections, youth leaders, human rights lawyers and academicians. International observers should be assigned to oversee the election process. It is time for a new generation of leaders to take over.

It is important that the army has so far abstained from militarising the crisis. Both army and protestors have demonstrated their rejection of violence and desisted from doing anything that would lead to a repetition of the civil war.

After a decade-long civil war and 20 years of increasingly grotesque politics, the Algerian people hope for a new dispensation that works for their betterment. This requires a profound yet peaceful renewal of the political and socio-economic fabric of the country.

The people of Algeria, specially the youth, have proven to be aware of their political duties and conscious of the stakes of the current crisis. They successfully carried out their agitation without the help of any foreign power or mediation.

(The author is a former Editor of PTI. He has also served as West Asia Correspondent for PTI, based in Bahrain from 1988 to 1995. Views expressed are strictly personal)