Algeria to end emergency

By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Feb 2011, 15:52 BST
Updated 3rd Feb 2011, 20:31 BST
Algeria's government has promised to end a 19-year-old state of emergency and provide more political freedoms, concessions designed to keep out a wave of uprisings sweeping the Arab world.

The announcement yesterday followed pressure from government opponents who demanded the emergency powers be scrapped and are planning a protest in the capital on February 12.

The government had argued it needed the extra powers under the state of emergency to fight Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda but the insurgency has abated, sparking public debate about whether the powers are still justified.

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The lifting of the state of emergency will happen "in the very near future," Algeria's official APS news agency quoted president Abdelaziz Bouteflika as telling ministers.

Mr Bouteflika said the government should adopt new measures to promote job creation, a nod to the problem of unemployment which is particularly acute among young Algerians.

The Algerian president also instructed that national TV and radio stations must give airtime to all political parties.