Ahmed Ben Bella
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Ahmed Ben Bella | |||||||||||||||||||||
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أحمد بن بلّة | |||||||||||||||||||||
1st President of Algeria | |||||||||||||||||||||
In office 15 September 1963 – 19 June 1965 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Vice President |
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Succeeded by | Houari Boumédiène as Chairman of the Revolutionary Council | ||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister of Algeria | |||||||||||||||||||||
In office 27 September 1962 – 15 September 1963 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Benyoucef Benkhedda as Head of Government | ||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by |
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Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Maghnia, French Algeria | 25 December 1916||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 11 April 2012 Algiers, Algeria | (aged 95)||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse | [3] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation |
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Ahmed Ben Bella (
Ben Bella played an important role during the Algerian war of independence against France, leading the FLN, organizing the shipment of foreign weapons and coordinating political strategy from Cairo. Despite not being present in Algeria, French authorities tried to assassinate him multiple times. Once Algeria gained independence in 1962, Ben Bella's Oujda Group seized power from Benyoucef Benkhedda's provisional government after a short crisis, and Ben Bella became prime minister of Algeria with Ferhat Abbas as acting president. Ben Bella succeeded Ferhat Abbas on 15 September 1963 after rapidly sidelining him, and was elected president after winning an election with 99.6 per cent of the votes.
Ben Bella pursued
Early life
Ahmed Ben Bella was born on 25 December 1916 in the commune of
Ben Bella began his studies in Maghnia, where he went to the French school, and continued them in the city of Tlemcen, where he first became aware of racial discrimination. Disturbed by the animus against Muslims expressed by his European teacher, he began chafing against imperialism and colonialism and criticized the domination of French cultural influence over Algeria. During this period, he joined the nationalist movement.[6]
Service with French Army
Ben Bella first volunteered for service in the French Army in 1936. The Army was one of the few avenues of advancement for Algerians under colonial rule and voluntary enlistment was common. Posted to Marseille, he played center midfield for Olympique de Marseille in 1939–1940.[7] His only appearance for the club was in a game against FC Antibes in the Coupe de France on 29 April 1940 in Cannes,[8] during which he scored a goal.[9] Club officials offered him a professional spot on the team, but he rejected the offer. He also played for IRB Maghnia.[10]
Ben Bella enlisted again in 1940, believing that the French Army offered the best opportunity for non-discriminatory treatment of Algerians. Fighting for France during the
On 8 May 1945, while France was celebrating Germany's surrender, widespread protests erupted in the Algerian town of Sétif. The war had intensified colonial repression of the Algerians, prompting a backlash that led to the deaths of more than 100 Europeans and around 1,500 Algerians, according to official reports.[5] Anti-colonial insurgents, however, put the number of Algerian deaths at around 10,000. The fallout from the Sétif uprising shocked Ben Bella and his Algerian companions, as they realized that France would not recognize their claim to equal treatment despite their wartime service.[13]
Before independence
First organization for uprising against French regime in Algeria
After the Sétif and Guelma massacre in 1945, Ben Bella returned to Algeria, becoming politically active in the opposition movement against the French regime. French authorities sent assailants with the intention of assassinating him on his farm.[citation needed]
The attempt against his life failed, but the farm was confiscated and he went into hiding. After the nationalist parties had achieved great success in local elections in 1947, by this was followed by the fixing of the Algerian Assembly elections in 1948 by French officials, agreed to and justified by the Socialist Governor-General Marcel-Edmond Naegelen, Ben Bella became convinced that achieving democratic independence through peaceful means was illusory. Together with Messali Hadj and his party, he helped to found the Organisation Spéciale (OS), a paramilitary organization whose strategic aim was to take up arms against the French colonial regime as quickly as possible. This group became the immediate predecessor of the National Liberation Front. He was in charge of organizing the wilayas (regional military sections of the FLN) and supplying weapons to insurgents and getting financial support from friendly Arab countries.[14]
On 4 April 1949, Ben Bella led a robbery of the central post office in Oran to gain funds for the organization, obtaining 3 million francs which he used to buy weapons. He was eventually caught in 1950 and sentenced to eight years' imprisonment in
At the outbreak of the Algerian War in 1954, Ben Bella was based in Cairo, where he had become one of the nine members of the Revolutionary Committee of Unity and Action that headed the Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN), founded in November that year during a secret meeting of Algerian leaders in Switzerland. The FLN soon began armed insurrection against the French colonists,[17] which became a guerilla war in Algeria.
Algerian War
Ben Bella played an important role during the war, leading the FLN, organizing the shipment of foreign weapons and coordinating political strategy. Although he was not present in Algeria, assassination attempts against him by French authorities persisted. After national independence, he was named vice president of Algeria in Benyoucef Benkhedda's cabinet.[18]
Ben Bella and his associates were responsible for developing a system of bases and routes for providing the National Liberation Army (ALN) in Algeria with weapons, ammunition and other supplies. The ALN logistical system was focused in Egypt and Libya in the early years of the war. Once the French occupation of Tunisia and Morocco ended in 1956, Ben Bella and his associates established a system of camps in both countries for training men and sending them into Algeria.[19]
Ben Bella felt excluded from the Soummam conference on 20 August 1956, and thus rejected it for its "secularism", the decision to integrate the European minority in independent Algeria, and the misrepresentation of delegates.[20] According to Abane Ramdane, Ben Bella's rejection of the charter was due to the fact that it was drafted by Kabyles.[20] Ben Bella was also accused of not providing enough money and weapons for the cause.[14]
In 1956, he refused to receive a package delivered by taxi to his hotel in Cairo. A bomb exploded inside the taxi as it drove away, killing the driver. That same year, while in his hotel in Tripoli, a pied noir gunman with links to French intelligence called Jean David entered his room and fired, wounding but not killing him. The shooter was later killed by guards while fleeing, at the Libyan border.[21]
In October 1956, he was arrested in
At the FLN conference in Tripoli in May–June 1962, Ben Bella repealed the Soummam conference and gave priority to the implementation of a national Arab-Islamic culture and identity of Algeria.[20]
Like many
Due to Pakistan's support for the FLN, Ben Bella had been given a Pakistani diplomatic passport to make his foreign travels possible in the face of an international manhunt co-ordinated by the French and their allies.[23][24][25] Ben Bella also traveled on a Pakistani diplomatic passport during the years of his exile from Algeria in the 1980s.[24]
Algerian independence
Ben Bella's government
After Algeria's independence, Ben Bella quickly became a popular leader. In June 1962, he challenged the leadership of the premier, Benyoucef Benkhedda. This led to several disputes among his rivals in the FLN, which were quickly suppressed by Ben Bella's rapidly growing number of supporters, most notably within the armed forces, whose chief was
As prime minister, Ben Bella arranged to legalize the seizures of autogestion spontaneously undertaken by Algerian workers. In March 1963, he drew up (with his circle of advisers) a set of decrees to nationalize all previously European-owned land. In his words, the "Tripoli program remained a dead letter, and independence and revolution made no sense, as long as Algerian soil was in hands of the big landowners".[27]
He used his position to push for the approval of the constitution drawn up by the FLN, and alienated allies.
During his presidency, Ben Bella was confronted with the challenge of building a postcolonial state infrastructure from the ground up; the country had no independent state traditions and its senior civil servants had always been staffed by the French. Despite a predisposition toward an egalitarian way of governing and a lifestyle lacking in extravagance (he did not live in the governor's palace, and maintained an open-door policy with Algerian citizens), Ben Bella's actions in government did not always match his intentions. After stabilizing the country, he embarked on a series of initially popular but chaotically handled land reforms for the benefit of landless farmers, and increasingly turned to socialist rhetoric.
His policy of autogestion, or self-management, was adopted after Algerian peasants seized former French lands and was inspired by Marxist Yugoslavian leader Josip Broz Tito. He also worked on the development of his country, instituting reforms, undertaking campaigns for national literacy, and nationalizing several industries[30] and calling for socialization of the economy and Arabization.[31]
On many occasions, however, he improvised government policy as he went, as with his National Solidarity Fund, for which he asked the Algerian people to "voluntarily" hand over jewellery and banknotes.
In international relations, he had to maintain connections with the former colonial master France, and also accepted economic aid from both the US and the
He also established good relations with Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and Cuba. After his 1962 visit, Cuba sent a health mission to Algeria, with doctors and medical help, and later sent weapons and soldiers as aid during the Sand War against Morocco.[33] He was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 30 April 1964.[34]
During his tenure, Ben Bella encountered political struggles with former leaders of the FLN, including Mohammed Khider, Ferhat Abbas,
In addition to political resistance, Ben Bella faced religious opposition. The Association of the Algerian Ulema claimed that the "state Islam" that Ben Bella wanted to achieve was not an application of true Muslim values, but rather an attempt to please the population.[36]
His government was
House arrest and later freedom
After being deposed in 1965, Ben Bella was detained for eight months in prison. He was then transferred to an isolated villa in Birouta, where he was placed under house arrest for 14 years. He was, however, permitted a private life there, and in 1971 he married Zohra Sellami, an Algerian journalist; their meeting was arranged by Ben Bella's mother. They became religiously observant Muslims, and adopted two girls, Mehdia and Nouria.[38] After Boumedienne's death in 1978, restrictions on him were eased in July 1979, and he was freed on 30 October 1980. Ben Bella briefly resided in France but was then expelled in 1983. He moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, and launched the Mouvement pour la Démocratie en Algérie (MDA), a moderate Islamic opposition party, in 1984. In September 1990, he returned to Algeria,[38] and, in 1991, led the MDA in the first round of the country's abortive parliamentary elections. The MDA was banned in 1997.
Later life
In 2003, Ben Bella was elected president of the
He was also the chairperson of the
Illness, death and state funeral
In February 2012, Ben Bella was admitted to a hospital for medical checks. At the same time, a report circulated that he had died, but this was denied by his family.[39]
Ben Bella died on 11 April 2012 at his family home in Algiers.
Heads of state and government present at state funeral
Country | Title | Dignitary |
---|---|---|
Mauritania | Prime Minister | Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf[42] |
Morocco | Prime Minister | Abdelilah Benkirane[43] |
Sahrawi Republic | President | Mohamed Abdelaziz[44] |
Tunisia | President | Moncef Marzouki[43] |
Awards and honors
- Algeria:
- France:
- Croix de Guerre (1940)
- Médaille militaire (1944)
- Morocco:
- Grand Cordon of the Order of Ouissam Alaouite[45]
- Singapore:
- Order of Temasek (1963)[46]
- South Africa:
- Soviet Union:
- Hero of the Soviet Union (1964)[48]
- Order of Lenin (1964)[48]
- Lenin Peace Prize (1964)[49]
- Yugoslavia:
References
- ^ Ottaway, Professor Marina; Ottaway, David; Ottaway, Marina (15 December 1970). "Algeria: The Politics of a Socialist Revolution". University of California Press – via Google Books.
- ^ Villa avec piscine au Club des Pins II pour Ahmed Ben Bella|DNA - Dernières nouvelles d'Algérie. Dna-algerie.com. Archived 29 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "AFP: Algeria's first president 'in good health': daughter". 23 February 2012. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- ^ "Mort de Ben Bella, héros de l'indépendance algérienne". Le Monde.fr (in French). 11 April 2012. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- ^ "Britannica Academic". academic.eb.com. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ "Ben Bella profile on om-passion, unofficial Olympique de Marseille site". Om-passion.com. 24 October 2011. Archived from the original on 9 February 2009. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- ^ Ben Bella, un président buteur s'est éteint…. OM.net.
- ^ Olympique de Marseille, saison 1939-1940. Om4ever.com.
- "Saïd Amara: "C'était un joueur élégant, technique et efficace"". Algerie360 (in French). Archived from the original on 1 January 2014. - ^ "Jubilé Cherfaoui Ali à Maghnia Un hommage mérité" (in French). Vitaminedz. 26 May 2007. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ Robert Merle, Ahmed Ben Bella, Edició de Materials, 1965
- ISBN 978-1-4408-4361-7.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-313-26257-9.
- ^ Sultan Galiev: Le père de la révolution tiers-mondiste, Benningsen Alexandre, pg.277-278
- ISBN 978-0-19-538207-5.
- ^ Robert Merle, Ahmed Ben Bella, Edició de Materials, 1965.
- ^ Ottaway, Professor Marina; Ottaway, David; Ottaway, Marina (15 December 1970). "Algeria: The Politics of a Socialist Revolution". University of California Press – via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-0-275-96388-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-317-81362-0.
- ISBN 978-1-4472-3343-5.
- ISBN 978-1-78738-011-0.
- ^ Siddiqi, Shibil (22 January 2011). "Middle East on the march". The Express Tribune, Karachi. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- [1] Archived 9 June 2013 at the Wayback Machine
- "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2015. Retrieved 12 April 2012.{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b Promoting Principled Positions Promoting Principled Positions at the Wayback Machine (archived 31 December 2008), article by Senator Mushahid Hussain
- ^ "Algeria mourns former president Ben Bella". United Press International, Inc. 12 April 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
- ISBN 978-1-5381-2068-2.
- ^ Jeffrey James Byrne, "Our Own Special Brand of Socialism: Algeria and the Contest of Modernities in the 1960s", in Diplomatic History, volume 33, issue 3 June 2009, pg. 433
- ^ Evans, Martin; Phillips, John, The anger of the dispossessed, Yale University Press, 2008, 74.
- ISBN 0-19-829645-2
- ^ Kang, Mani Singh, "The Legacy of the Revolutionary Algerian Statesman Ahmed Ben Bella (1916 – 2012)", on The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, American Educational Trust, Washington, 2012,42.
- ^ Evans, Martin; Phillips, John, The anger of the dispossessed, Yale University Press, 2008, pg. 75.
- ^ Kang, Mani Singh, "The Legacy of the Revolutionary Algerian Statesman Ahmed Ben Bella (1916 – 2012)", on The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, American Educational Trust, Washington, 2012, pg. 43.
- ^ Gleijeses, Piero, "Cuba's First Venture in Africa: Algeria, 1961-65", in Journal of Latin American Studies, Cambridge University Press, Vol 28, No. 1, February 1996.
- ^ (in Russian)Biography, warheroes.ru. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
- ^ Evans, Martin; Phillips, John, The anger of the dispossessed, Yale University Press, 2008, pg. 76.
- ^ Evans, Martin; Phillips, John, The anger of the dispossessed, Yale University Press, 2008, pg. 77.
- ^ Gregory, Joseph R. (11 April 2012). "Ahmed Ben Bella, Revolutionary Who Led Algeria After Independence, Dies at 93". The New York Times.
- ^ a b Joffe, Lawrence (11 April 2012). "Ahmed Ben Bella obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ "Algeria's first president 'in good health': daughter". The Daily Star. 23 February 2012.
'He left hospital today and is at home and in good health, considering he is 95,' Mehdia Ben Bella told AFP, dismissing the reports about her father's demise as 'scandalous'.
- ^ "Algeria's first president Ahmed Ben Bella dies". BBC News. 10 January 2012. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- ^ "Algerian founding father Ben Bella dead at 95". Al Jazeera. 4 October 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
- ^ "Tunisian president, Mauritanian PM in Algeria for funeral of Ben Bella". Xinhua News Agency. 13 April 2012. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
- ^ Daily Star(AFP). 12 April 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
- AllAfrica(Tunisia-live.net). Retrieved 20 December 2013.
- ^ Le Polisario aux funérailles de Ben Bella, Alger frôle l’incident diplomatique avec le Maroc - April 16, 2012
- ^ "Report From London: Review Of Events Leading To The Signing …". www.nas.gov.sg. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
- ^ The Presidency - National Orders Booklet 2004
- ^ a b The New York Times – May 7, 1964
- ^ Toledo Blade – Apr 30, 1964
- ^ "Potpisana zajednička deklaracija". Slobodna Dalmacija (5928): 1. 13 March 1964.
Further reading
Aussaresses, General Paul, The Battle of the Casbah: Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Algeria, 1955–1957. New York: Enigma Books, 2010. 978-1-929631-30-8.
External links
- Ben Bella's biography from rulers.org
- Profile of the ruler
- BBC on 20 June 1965 – on the coup against Ben Bella.
- Che Guevara, Cuba, And The Algerian Revolution by Ahmed ben Bella, The Militant, Vol. 62 / no 4, 2 February 1998
- BritanicaAcademic Ahmed Ben Bella, by Robert Merle[permanent dead link]
- Ahmed Ben Bella, Revolutionary Who Led Algeria After Independence, Dies at 93
- Appearances on C-SPAN