Kherrata, a town 200 km East of the capital, Algiers, on Tuesday heard cries of “Algeria, free, democratic” as thousands from all walks of life thronged in a protest.
When the anti – government movement, known as the Hirak, started almost exactly two years ago it brought down a president and paved the way for some high-profile corruption prosecutions.
Its weekly protests in Algiers attracted huge crowds and were an unprecedented show of popular opinion, considering protests had in effect been prohibited in the city since 2001.
The peaceful protest movement, which does not have a centralized leadership, emerged in reaction to former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s decision to campaign for a fifth consecutive term in office.
The ailing leader who had suffered a stroke in 2013, had not been seen in public since 2017 and many Algerians saw his candidacy as a humiliation.
He was the target of the protesters’ anger along with his close inner circle, known as the “le pouvoir” or “the power”.
Covid-19 restrictions and curfews were relaxed and no less than six political parties were invited to the presidential palace to discuss the current political climate.
“We called on the president to take strong political measures that would restore the confidence of Algerians and establish real political will to bring about the desired change,” the Socialist Forces Front, traditionally an opposition party in Algeria, said in a statement after meeting the president.
But the president, who was once Mr. Bouteflika’s prime minister, is viewed by many with suspicion. He did not satisfy the demand for change.
Other opposition parties, such as the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), snubbed Mr. Tebboune.
“This is not the time to debate whether or not to participate in the legislative elections, the fate of the country is at stake,” Mahmoud Bougheriou, a prominent member of the RCD, told the BBC.
“Here, we are talking about mobilizing and returning to the streets, because today the Algerian people cannot go forward with this regime that has been in place since our independence.”
On Thursday, President Tebboune announced widely anticipated snap legislative elections and a cabinet reshuffle.
Most notably, however, he signed a presidential pardon for approximately 30 detainees from the Hirak who had been sentenced along with more than two dozen others who were waiting to go on trial.
“In total, between 55 and 60 people will go home to their families starting tonight or tomorrow,” the president said in what was clearly an olive branch offered to the protesters.
(Inputs from BBC)