Algeria’s oldest opposition party boycotts elections

Poll station workers empty a ballot box to begin counting after a vote on a revised constitution ended at a station in Algeria’s capital Algiers on November 1, 2020 [RYAD KRAMDI/AFP via Getty Images]

Algeria’s oldest opposition party, the Socialist Forces Front (FFS), announced on Saturday its decision to boycott the early legislative elections scheduled for 12 June.

The statement said: “The elections do not constitute a solution to the multidimensional crisis that the country is experiencing. Therefore, the Socialist Forces Front cannot participate in these elections.”

According to the statement, the party demanded “the implementation of measures that allow the Algerian people to freely exercise their right to self-determination,” especially in relation to “ensuring respect for basic freedoms, fair access by all political and social actors to the media, and engaging in a comprehensive dialogue.”

After the dissolution of the House of Representatives in Parliament on 21 February, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune called for early legislative elections in an attempt to regain control after the resumption of the anti-regime protests.

The FFS joined other opposition parties that have already declared their intention to boycott the 12 June elections, including the Rally for Culture and Democracy and the Workers’ Party.

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