The independent press of Algeria is under attack

The communications ministry called on the national press for “strict compliance” with foreign funding law, reports the official agency APS, an agency with the reputation of being the regime’s propaganda arm.

In the statement rant published by the ministry, all stakeholders in the national press were called to “strictly comply with the laws in force in the current transition phase”, adding that “foreign funding of the national press, of whatever nature and from whatever source, is absolutely prohibited”.

It should be noted that the media funding laws the ministry refers to were enacted in 2014 by the brother of former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Saïd Bouteflika, who is now incarcerated and accused of unlawfully running the country in the shadows after his brother suffered from a paralysing stroke.

According to one of these laws, media must “declare or justify the origin of the funds constituting their share capital and those necessary for their management, in accordance with the legislation in force”.

The ministry is proving aggressive in its handling of the free press, likely taking advantage of the current Covid-19 pandemic to shut down critical voices of the regime. Furthermore, in its press release, the ministry emphasized the possible sanctions for non-compliance with these various Bouteflika-era laws, before going on to accuse two media, Radio M and Maghreb Emergent, which were blocked on April 9, after publishing an article critical of the corrupt regime, of being funded by foreign stakeholders. The management of Radio M and Maghreb Emergent denied the “defamatory” accusations and went on in a statement to explain in detail where their funding came from.

“This radio was launched thanks to the addition of funds, possibly from public fundraising organized as part of a crowdfunding operation and donations from abroad, through organizations that have a stated vocation to strengthen the so-called ‘modernization’ and ‘democratization’ processes. (…) It is, as we understand it, an element of foreign soft power, the cultural and media arm of foreign diplomacy which intervenes in these processes called ‘democratization’ in the countries of the South by encouraging actors sorted out on and considered as real or potential agents of influence to encourage and support” read on the statement.

Since the election, and in particular since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak, the authorities have been increasingly targeting pro-democracy activists. Many were kidnapped by the secret service from their homes’ porches and taken to unknown destinations, others were summoned by the police for interrogation.

Even Facebook users did not escape this censorship outbreak, with a number of users being summoned and/or arrested for publications on Facebook legitimately questioning the contamination and death toll figures put forward by the Algerian authorities. Figures denounced as misleading by a number of doctors operating in the field who are confronted with the dire reality of a failed health system on a daily basis, lacking even the most basic protective equipment.

Abdelmadjid Tebboune, the army-appointed president, rejected by the majority of Algerians, was appointed on 12th December 2019 amid a gangland fight within various branches of the military junta, each with their preferred candidate.