The Algerian Civil War 1992-2002 :: essays research papers fc

Thus, what motivates men to slay the enemy is anger, Sun Tzu says in The Art of War. The difference of opinion between Algerian Islamic fundamentalists and the Algerian military backed policy-making science is rooted in anger. The conflict, which began as skirmishes between brass forces and Islamic fundamentalists, has taken on the proportions of a civil war as fundamentalists carried out kidnappings, assassinations and an otherwise(prenominal)(a) forms of civil disturbance. The government has tried pacifying the Muslims by including Islamic leaders in the government, but extreme ferocity committed by both parties in the conflict has made a peaceful solution difficult to achieve. This violence has claimed the lives of an estimated 100,000 people in the years between 1990 and 2002. The Roots of AngerThe coppice between the fundamentalists and the military government stems from Algerias experimentation with political liberalization. The travail to create more points of view and more political parties in the government has backfired horrendously. The violence of modern day Algeria stems from the failure of mild democratization in the North African country. Following nomination by the National exit Front (FLN) fellowship, Chadli Bendjedid was elected President in 1979 and re-elected in 1984 and 1988. The National sacque Front feeld as a virtual one-party governance until the political system was reformed in 1989. Antigovernment sentiment stemming from corruption, housing shortages, unemployment, and other severe economic and social problems boosted the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in spite of the partys quite a public commitment to theocratic rule under Islamic law. This seemingly innocuous act was actu whollyy quite revolutionary. For the first time, an Arab country had authorized the creation of a political party that had made the creation of an Islamic republic its main goal . A new constitution was adopted in 1989 that allowed the formation o f political parties other than the FLN. It also removed the armed forces, which had run the government since the days of the 1980s, from a designated role in the operation of the government. Between 1989 and 1990, forty-four new political parties emerged, many with distinct social agendas. These agendas included human rights, independent women organizations and other cultural movements . Among the scores of parties that sprang up under the new constitution, the militant Islamic Salvation Front was the most successful, winning more than 50% of all votes cast in elections in 1990 as well as in the first stage of national elections held in December 1991.