ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITY, APOLOGIES AND FULL COMPENSATION FOR CRIMES COMMITTED: these are the demands made by the Algerian Parliament to France for the colonial period.

Translated by Silvia Toro

On Wednesday, December 24, the lower house of the Algerian Parliament unanimously approved a bill holding France legally responsible for crimes committed during the colonial times, demanding a formal apology and full compensation.

The text of the bill states that French colonization of Algeria, which lasted from 1830 to 1962, was characterized by mass killings, deportations, extrajudicial executions, physical and psychological torture, nuclear testing, systematic exploitation of resources, and the marginalization of the indigenous Muslim population. French colonial rule ended with the war of independence (1954–1962) and the Evian agreements. According to Algerian historians, the conflict caused approximately 1.5 million deaths.

The law requires “full and fair compensation for all material and moral damages” suffered, stating that it is an inalienable right of the Algerian state and people. In addition, they demand for the return of archives, the decontamination of French nuclear test sites in the Sahara, recognition of the massacres, and the return of the Ottoman Baba Merzoug cannon, a historical symbol of the defense of Algiers, stolen by French troops in 1830 and now kept in the port of Brest.

Reactions from France wasted no time in coming. President Emmanuel Macron had already stated in the past that crimes against humanity had been committed during the colonial period, but without offering a formal apology. He reiterated this position in 2023, stating that it was not his place to apologize. On this occasion, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot stated in an official note that this initiative would be “manifestly hostile, both to the desire to resume Franco-Algerian dialogue and to calm work on memorial issues.”

Brahim Boughali, the president of the Algerian assembly, on the other hand, stated that “Algerian memory cannot be erased or negotiated.”

This act comes amid a climate of severely deteriorating relations between Algeria and France. In recent years, in fact, there have been many events that have undermined this relationship.

In 2024, France decided to tighten visa requirements for Algerian officials, prompting an immediate reaction from Algiers: the expulsion of French diplomats. In 2025, the situation worsened further with the recall of ambassadors and restrictive measures.

Furthermore, in July 2024, the French government decided to support Morocco's claims on Western Sahara, which is a territory disputed between Morocco and the Polisario Front, a movement supported by Algeria that has been claiming independence from Moroccan occupation for decades. For years, Algiers has supported the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination. The region, rich in phosphates, fish stocks, and energy potential, is at the center of strategic interests involving not only the Maghreb but also Europe and the United States.
Finally, in November 2025, the arrest of French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, accused of crimes against national security, contributed to worsening the already climate of mistrust.

From a legal standpoint, the law does not impose any obligations on France, as it is a legislative act by one state that makes demands on another sovereign state. However, its political weight is significant not only in relations between Algeria and France, but also in the broader context of claims made by former colonial states against European powers, reopening the debate on historical responsibility, memory, and international justice.

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