Algeria MP proposes anti-normalisation bill

Algerian MP Amira Selim has proposed a bill which prohibits the promotion of normalising ties with the Israeli occupation on mass media and alternative media, Safa news agency reported yesterday.

In an exclusive interview with Safa, the MP said that this bill reflects the vision of the Algerian institutions regarding the Palestinian cause as they reject all forms of normalisation.

She also stressed that this bill represents the final word of the Algerian MPs without any intervention from the executive authority.

The bill, she said, reflects the struggle of the Algerian MPs in defence of Palestinian rights and for the sake of spreading awareness that normalisation is a dangerous issue that goes against the steadfast Algerian stances towards the Arab issues, mainly the Palestinian cause.

According to Selim, “this draft law aims to end the conversations related to this phenomenon inside the Algerian society as such conversations could lead to deep ideological differences that would undermine public stability.”

The Algerian people, she explained, expressed their rejection of this issue, noting that this was very clear on social media.

READ: The normalisation plague is deadlier than the Covid-19 pandemic

This law, she said, would prevent any mass media or anyone working in the field from promoting the normalisation of ties with Israel subjecting them to possible legal action.

She also said that the law would prevent any marches or syndication activities, as well as any activities on social media or alternative media that promote or support normalisation.

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has said: “Algeria will never recognise the state of Israel,” stressing that the “sacred” Palestinian cause “is the mother of all issues in the Middle East.”

Since mid-August, the US has announced normalisation deals between Israel and four Arab states: the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco.

A growing number of countries in the MENA region are normalising ties with Israel – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]