Magharebia
By Nazim Fethi in Algiers for Magharebia
Two years after the announcement was made to revise the Algerian constitution, plans are moving forward to bring about change.
Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on Sunday (April 7th) tasked a new panel of top academics with preparing a draft bill on the revision of the constitution.
The committee of experts is due to present its findings “as soon as possible”, the president’s office said in a Sunday statement. The president has instructed the prime minister to proceed with the installation of the commission.
The draft bill on the revision of the constitution should be ready by the end of this year, which would mean that the new version of the constitution would be in place in time for the 2014 presidential election.
No details of the revision have yet filtered through with regard to either the creation of the post of vice president or presidential term limits.
The committee of experts is made up of five members, including Chairman Azzouz Kerdoun, Faouzia Benbadis, Bouzid Lazhari, Ghaouti Mekamcha and Abderrazak Zaouina.
The group is expected to examine the document summarising the meetings held by the prime minister and the chairman of the Council of the Nation with “political and social actors”.
Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal said Monday that “no prior limits have been set for the plan to revise the constitution, other than those relating to abiding by national principles and the fundamental values of Algerian society.”
The committee will examine the proposals made in the preliminary document and give its opinion on its contents and overall consistency, make any suggestions that it considers relevant in order to flesh out the document, and draw up a draft bill on amendments. The recommendations will include where to implement an article as well as transitional provisions to enable it to be introduced gradually.
The committee’s findings will then be submitted for evaluation to the president, who will then decide on a final draft, according to the prime minister.
Two options have been selected: the parliamentary route if the amendments are straightforward or a referendum if the revision affects the balance of powers. For the time being, however, no details of the overall form of this revision have emerged.
Since taking office in 1999, President Bouteflika has partially revised the constitution on two occasions. The first amendment was passed in 2002 in order to recognize Tamazight as a national language, and the second was passed in 2008 in order to remove the presidential term limit and to establish quotas for women in elected assemblies.
As for the current preparations, President Bouteflika has promised a “major revision”.
Some political parties support a fourth presidential term for Bouteflika, while others are fiercely opposed to the idea. Many others are waiting to see whether their proposals have been taken into account and, above all, whether President Bouteflika will decide to seek a fourth term of office before they make up their minds.
The Algerian People’s Movement (MPA) led by Amara Benyounes and the Gathering for Algeria (TAJ) led by Amar Ghoul, both of whom are ministers in the current government, support the idea of a fourth term of office for Bouteflika.
“Mr Bouteflika is the best person for this job,” Benyounes said, adding that his party sees constitutional reform as “a means of preserving the democratic and republican nature of the Algerian state and of maintaining the Council of the Nation with a third of its members appointed by the president”.
The Jil Djadid (New Generation) party led by Sofiane Djilali, which is supported by Ahmed Benbitour, a former prime minister and the sole candidate for the 2014 presidential election, recently created a front to oppose Bouteflika’s candidacy.
Bouguerra Soltani, the leader of the Movement for a Peaceful Society (MSP), has said that “if no limit is placed on the number of terms of office, there is no point in participating in the next presidential election.”
The leader of El Karama (Dignity) party, Mohamed Benhamou, has said that the decision to amend the constitution, which was taken as part of a package of political reforms, must be voted on in a national referendum. Benhamou has advocated a semi-presidential system, which he argues, would create a “balance between the president and parliament”.
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