**The extent, nature, and brutality of the recent massacres have left even the battle-weary Algerians searching for words to express their dismay and helplessness.

SLAUGHTER of innocent civilians, especially women and children, cannot be justified under any circumstances. However, that’s what is currently happening in Algeria. The savagery displayed in that country beggars the imagination of any descent human being.

More than 2,000 people are estimated to have been killed since the beginning of Ramadan. At least 60.000 have died since 1992. Although last week, government casualty count for January put the figures at 27,000 dead and 21,000 injured.; The government of President Liamine Zeroual. a retired general, has sought to play down the casualty numbers in an effort to show that it is still in control of this petroleum-rich nation.

The scale of the massacres and their frequency have finally raised alarm around the world. Human rights organisations are raising questions about the massacres and calling for independent investigations. A delegation from the European Union has Just returned from Algeria after a fact-finding mission. They have called for more candor from the Algerian authorities about the violence. The United Nation’s commissioner for human rights and the US State Department have also called for an international inquiry to report on extra-judicial executions.

The seeds of the current conflict in Algeria goes back to late 1991 when the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) won the first round of the country’s multiparty legislative elections. The army responded by cancelling

the second round of the election. banning the FIS and arresting its leaders. The FIS took the path of an armed conflict.

The FIS. in its bld to gain power, negotiated with Algeria s other secular parties and agreed to follow democratic principles. In 1995. the parties signed an agreement — the Rome platform — which was eventually rejected by the army-backed goverh-

The government tried to re-Sain its political legitimacy by olding new elections under restrictive rules. FIS was barred from participating in these elections. Elections were held to elect a new president, legislature and local councils. Despite accusations of massive voterigging. a former army general was elected President. The election to the legislature and local councils were dominated by a pro-government party.

Consequently, the violence worsened with blessings from both groups. Each side tried to use the general population in its fight. The government has provided afros to a section of the population hoping to use them in their fight against the members of several splintered Islamic factions. Prominent among them are the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) and the Islamic Salvation Army, the armed wing of the FIS. Recent reports have blamed the GIA for the indiscriminate massacres of civilians, while the Islamic

Salvation Army is known to have targeted mainly government security forces. On the other hand, government forces do little to protect civilians. In fact, armed government supporters have been blamed for violence linked to robbery, tribal vendettas, and attempts to drive poor peasants off their

Many Algerians blame the government for complicity believing that the GIA is infil-trated by government security forces. They conspire to keep terrorism alive in order to reduce the chances of an accommodation by the moderates in the ruling regime with the Islamic parties.

The .existence of political violence’is not new to tne Algerians. After spending more than a century under French occupation, they fought a brutal war of independence. This was followed by a single-party rule for a long time leaving the common mass feeling angry and marginalised. However, the extent, nature, and brutality of the recent massacres have left even the battle-weary Algerians -searching for words to express their dismay and helplessness.

The western governments had. so far, ignored the massacre of the civilian population because it never threatened their economic interests. Algeria is a major supplier of gas to southern Europe and its oil and gas fields were not the target of attack. They bolstered the

regime using IMF-aid and debt rescheduling packages hoping that the government will succeed in ending the killings.

In reality, the government itself has been involved in the cycle of violence. Its willingness to end the violence can be questioned, in particular, following three recent massacres in August and September just outside Algiers. The government army was accused Of looking the other way while hundreds of civilians were killed by armed gangs.

It is clear from recent events that the only solution which can bring back peace in Algeria is political. The violence started when a party which, by all accounts, won the election in 1991 was not given the opportunity to form the govern-

Despite my personal misgivings about the dogmatic religious message being spread by the FIS. the process of successful democracy requires that the party winning an election should be given the chance to rule. If and when the electorate becomes disillusioned with the workings of the ruling party, they would vote that party out of power. The Algerian electorate were denied the right to choose a government of their liking. The army-backed regime failed to grasp the basic teaching of democracy. The resulting events brought death to many, and misery to the rest.

We, in Bangladesh, can sympathise with the frustration of the members of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) who were denied power in Algeria in 1991 despite winning the election results. However, we cannot condone the human carnage being unleashed by both the Islamic fundamentalists and the government. For the sake of democracy, both parties will

have to stop instigating violence. The FIS must disband the armed splinter groups associated with its organisation. The government, on the other hand, has to take concrete steps in restoring peace and security in the country. Only by allowing a free and fair election participated by all political parties and by respecting the verdict of such an election can the Algerian government succeed in thwarting the evil hands of terrorism.

The author is a Professor of. Economics at Marquette University. Wisconsin. USA.