The Imaginary Concord and the Reality of Discord: Dealing with the Algerian Civil War

Abstract

In 1999, the Algerian state implemented the Law on in order to stop the bloody civil war that had raged between Islamist armed groups and the state since 1992. Relying on the critical currents of official discourses, this article contends that the use of the phrase Civil Concord, instead of reconciliation, which presupposes a recognition that a wrong has been committed, is dictated by the particular paths that official Algerian history has taken. Indeed, the concept of Civil Concord continues the silencing of divergent memories and of the social groups that defend them. These groups not only demand peace (as is the official claim of Civil Concord) but also demand justice. This article discussed the openings as well as the limits of the Law on Concord.