Rabat - According to the latest news, the Algerian military shot two Moroccan citizens across the border, one of whom is seriously injured. This is undoubtedly the most serious breach of border sovereignty in a long time.
The Algerian authorities will fabricate a poor excuse, as usual, of contraband activity across the border. The Algerians have always argued that contraband from Morocco harms their economy because most of the goods sold by Algerians to the Moroccans around Oujda, Saidia, and Ahfir are subsidized by the Algerian government, such as sugar, oil, flower, medicine, and petrol.
This is true, in fact. But what the Algerian officials do not say is that this activity is the daily bread of thousands of Algerians on the other side, who are not benefiting from the rentier wealth of this country and have, over the years, turned into smugglers.
The Algerian security forces have tolerated such a practices for decades, until two years ago when, at the request of the DRS (Department of Intelligence and Security), they cracked down on smuggling on the grounds it makes the borders porous for arm smuggling.
The truth of the matter is that the DRS, the most powerful arm of the Algerian army, wants to drag Morocco into a border conflict so they can blame their internal problems on their antagonistic neighbor. But why on earth would they do such a foolish thing and incur the wrath of Morocco and global opinion? The answer is simple and straightforward. Algeria needs a scapegoat for two basic reasons:
Firstly, in Arab tribal tradition, there is a strange concept that states that if things go poorly for someone, he would want to drag his enemy in to suffer the same hardships he does: « 3aliyya wa 3ala a3da2i ».
Algeria, in spite of its wealth, is a country full of anger and contempt within its population. The country is very rich, yet only a small minority of its people profit from this wealth. The rest are poor, living in shantytowns, under the poverty line, and waiting for the opportune moment to leap across the Mediterranean to become illegal immigrants in Europe or risk drowning in the sea Either situation is a way out for people who have lost all hope.
The only reason this underlying anger did not translate into an uprising during the Arab Spring is because the Algerian people were sick of the violence and the blood of the black decade of civil war from 1992 to 1999, between the Islamists and the military that led to the deaths of a quarter of a million people. However, the national anger against the establishment is still there. To defuse such negative energy, an outside enemy is needed. In this particular case, Morocco is the ideal candidate.
Secondly: Algeria has always been jealous of Moroccan stability and economic growth and development despite the fact that Morocco does not have oil or natural gas. Also, the quality of life in Morocco is far better than in Algeria.
In Algeria, a civil war could erupt any time. Indeed, for quite some time now the Amazigh and the Arabs have been at each other’s throat, and the state has been unable to stop or solve the existing problem. Worse, the Amazigh have said repeatedly that the police always side with the Arabs.
Deep down, the Algerian authorities want to implicate Morocco, in one way or another, in their internal problems and use it as a scapegoat for their persistent difficulties.
Algeria today is very sick and needs psychological treatment and coaching to solve its various problems, which are as follows:
1- Succession:
President Bouteflika is believed to be terminally ill. He has been rushed recently to a hospital in Switzerland for urgent medical treatment. He has been incapacitated by his several strokes, but continues to indirectly rule the country because he is the best front man that the Algerian military junta could hope for.
Now, that there is no hope for him. The generals are a each other’s throat to take his seat. The most likely candidate for the presidency is Mohamed Lamine Mediene, nicknamed Taoufik, head of the powerful DRS.
2- Terrorism:
In spite of many years of anti-terrorist efforts taken by the army, the country is still insecure. Indeed, two terrorist acts proved that particular point: the massive attack on the In Amenas gas production site in 2013, in which dozens of foreigners died, and recently the unfortunate kidnapping and execution of the French mountain climber Hervé Gourdel by ISIS-sympathizers Jound al-Khalifa.
3- Endemic corruption within state spheres and embezzlement of state funds, like what happened within the gigantic and rich oil and gas monopoly through the state-run company Sonatrach.
4- Popular anger because of bad governance:
People in Algeria are sick of their government, which is corrupt, inefficient, and unable to solve the nation’s problems, in spite the massive national wealth. For the people, the wealth is there for the state cadres only.
Algeria today is sick of its massive wealth, military might, internal conflicts, people’s anger, and feeling of humiliation [7ogra] mirrored also in endemic terrorism.
What Algeria needs today is to talk with itself, discuss the future, initiate transparency and trust, fight tribalism, nepotism, patriarchy and corruption, put an end to embezzlement, and to consider Algerians as a people worthy of respect. Instead of walking the path of forgiveness and reconciliation with its citizens, it is walking the path of war with Morocco.
Shooting innocents for no valid reason is considered as a declaration of war, but Morocco and its leaders are wise enough not to give Algeria an excuse to fulfill its provocative dream, neither today nor tomorrow. However, Morocco will certainly show strength in its condemnation of such an insane act.
“The Government of the Kingdom of Morocco strongly protests against this direct and unacceptable attack on the life of Moroccan civilians by the Algerian army and denounces an irresponsible act that adds to other provocative actions recently recorded at the borders”, said a statement of the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Will Algeria learn to respect its neighbors in a good Islamic way? I doubt it. More provocations are ahead, so more national mobilization is needed to counter the crazy and irresponsible objectives of the Algerian military dictatorship seeking external sparring-partners.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Morocco World News’ editorial policy
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