Algerian Parliament Unanimously Passes Historic Law Criminalizing French Colonialism

Algerian Parliament Unanimously Passes Historic Law Criminalizing French Colonialism
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In a session marking a definitive shift in Mediterranean geopolitics, the Algerian People’s National Assembly unanimously passed a landmark bill on Wednesday, December 24, that officially criminalizes the 132-year French colonial era.

The legislation formally designates the period from 1830 to 1962 as a “state crime” and establishes a permanent legal framework for demanding reparations and a formal apology from Paris.

The law codifies twenty-seven specific categories of offenses, ranging from massacres and population displacement to the systematic looting of national heritage. A critical component of the mandate focuses on the environmental and health consequences of French nuclear testing in the Algerian Sahara during the 1960s. The Algerian state is now legally required to pursue Paris for the release of secret topographical maps of nuclear burial sites and for financial compensation for generations of citizens suffering from radiation-linked illnesses.

Domestically, the bill introduces strict “anti-denialism” measures, including prison sentences of up to ten years for anyone who justifies or praises the colonial past in public or through media. Speaker Ibrahim Boughali described the vote as a “sovereign act,” asserting that the nation’s historical memory is a non-negotiable pillar of state identity. While the French Foreign Ministry characterized the initiative as a hostile move, Algerian officials maintain that true bilateral cooperation remains impossible without addressing historical justice. The bill now moves to the Council of the Nation for final approval before being signed into law by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.