Rachad
Rachad (Arabic رشاد) is an Algerian political movement. Its stated objective[1] is to "break with political practices in place since independence" and "establish a state in which the rule of law, democratic principles and good governance prevail" through non-violent means. It calls upon the Algerian people to overthrow the government by peaceful mass protests, arguing that the government is controlled by a military junta largely responsible for the horrors of the Algerian Civil War and for the country's economic and social malaise.
Rachad was founded in 2007 by a number of Algerian opponents of the current government, including[2] Abbas Aroua, Mourad Dhina, Rachid Mesli, Mohamed Samraoui, and Mohamed Larbi Zitout (all living in exile), and others living in Algeria whose identity has not been made public.[3] In September 2008, its founding member Abbas Aroua, through the Cordoba Foundation, organised a conference in Geneva, "Perspectives on political change in Algeria", which brought together Algerians from a variety of political perspectives who oppose the current system, including Rachad, to agree on a set of shared principles[4]. Along with other groups across the political spectrum, it called for a boycott of the 2009 presidential elections[5]; afterwards, it condemned the reported results as fraudulent (as later confirmed by Wikileaks in 2011Wikileaks: 09ALGIERS370), and claimed that the true participation rate was just 16%.[6]. The organisation has made extensive use of TV and the Internet to spread its ideas, with spokespersons appearing on major channels including Aljazeera[7]. In January 2011, as unprecedented large-scale protests began in Algeria, it called upon its supporters to join demonstrations against the system.
[edit] External links
- Rachad homepage (also in in Arabic, French)
- Rachad TV, YouRachad, and TvRachad
- A warning for Turkey (Guardian article mentioning Rachad)
- Algérie: Création à Londres d'un mouvement d'opposition (Liberation)
- New Algerian movement calls for "radical nonviolent reform" (Al Hayat)
