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31 December 2009
An unknown number of people – estimates range between 500,000 and 1.5 million – have been displaced in Algeria since 1992 due to ongoing conflict between insurgent Islamist groups and the government. In particular, large-scale massacres of civilians between 1996 and 1998 by the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) forced many Algerians to flee affected areas. Media sources, including the newspaper El Watan, suggested there were 500,000 IDPs in 2004.
Security has improved considerably in recent years, but the group known as Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) was still active in 2009. While AQIM had previously been active in the north and in the regions of Aurés and Jijel, in 2009 it was also active in the south, on the Saharan borders with Mali, Niger, and Mauritania.
The President began a third presidential term in 2009 after modifying the constitution to allow for re-election. The government has consistently reported that there is no internal displacement in Algeria, and limited access to displacement-affected areas makes reliable figures unavailable. Algeria was not among the countries which signed the Kampala Convention.
Government figures on urban growth rates show that the expansion of cities has slowed over time, and would appear to corroborate the statement that few IDPs or migrants are still arriving in cities. However, the government does not systematically release full indicators, and its figures do not take into account the many people living in slums around cities without legal residence. Such informal settlements have grown significantly in Algiers, Blida, Médéa, Chlef, Tiaret, Sidi Bel Abbes, Relizane and Oran.
It is unlikely that a significant number of IDPs achieved durable solutions by 2009 given the magnitude of the displacement situation. The continuation of the state of emergency since 1992 remains an issue of concern.
Although Algeria was affected by large-scale displacement caused by conflict between 1992 and 2002, internally displaced people (IDPs) were not a priority for the government during or after the conflict. As a result, even the most basic information about their number and situation has consistently been unavailable. The European Union estimated at the end of the conflict that violence had displaced one million people, while other sources put the number as high as 1.5 million. The government has not contested these figures.
Furthermore, there is no indication about whether these IDPs have achieved durable solutions. The government has stated that no-one remains displaced, but has not provided information about returns or living conditions in areas of origin. It is likely that most IDPs have remained in the cities they fled to, and mixed with other poor populations there, as access to livelihoods in rural areas has remained very limited. Lack of support, justice, and reparations for IDPs has been the norm. (...)
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29 September 2009