Proclamation of the Algerian National Liberation Front

Questions for Further Study

• 1.: What cultural differences led to intense friction between the French and the Algerians, particularly in the nineteenth century?
• 2.: Why would some Algerians want their country to remain part of the French Empire, while others wanted complete independence?
• 3.: Compare the proclamation with the events surrounding the Proclamation of the Provisional Government of the Irish Republic. Comment on the similarities—or differences—in Algeria's quest for independence from France and Ireland's troubled relationship with England.
• 4.: What are the common themes in the Proclamation of the Algerian National Liberation Front and the Arusha Declaration of 1967? How do the two documents, read side by side, help modern readers form a picture of colonialism in twentieth-century Africa?
• 5.: In the twenty-first century, France is regarded as a peaceful nation, one very reluctant to go to war or to commit its troops in foreign nations. Yet in the mid-1900s, it fought hard to hold on to its colony in Algeria. Why did France stoutly resist Algerian independence?