Algeria Since 1989
Between Terror and Democracy

Algeria's democratic experiment is seminal in post-Cold War history. It is the first Muslim nation to attempt the transition from an authoritarian system to democratic pluralism. This title shows that Algeria is at the heart of contemporary debates about Islam and secular democracy.

Algeria's democratic experiment is seminal in post-Cold War history. The first Muslim nation to attempt the transition from an authoritarian system to democratic pluralism, this North African country became a test case for reform in Africa, the Arab world and beyond. Yet when the country looked certain to become the world's first elected Islamic republic, there was a military coup and the democratic process was brought sharply to a halt. Islamists declared jihad on the state and hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed in the ensuing decade of state repression. In this book Le Sueur shows that Algeria is at the very heart of contemporary debates about Islam and secular democracy. He argues that the stability of Algeria is crucial for the security of the wider Middle East. "Between Terror and Democracy" is a lively examination of how the fate of one country is entwined with much greater global issues.

Chapter 1 - The Legacy of Decolonization and the Construction of an Identity CrisisChapter 2 - The Emergence of Political IslamChapter 3 - Women in Question and Emergence of Muslim Feminist PoliticsChapter 4 - The First Gulf War and the \'Talibanization\' of IslamChapter 5 - Between Dialogue and Eradication: Living with TerroristsChapter 6 - Blood and OilChapter 7 - Minority Rights and Majority RuleChapter 8 - Nobel Prize for Jacques Chirac?
Who\'s Kidding Whom after 9/11?Chapter 9 - Amnesty and Amnesia, or Reconciliation without Truth