Algeria's Transition to What? 1

Algeria’s moment of crisis that prompted the first move toward greater political openness came dramatically in October 1988. ² The generation that had come of age after independence, but for whom jobs were lacking after the oil-price collapse of the mid-1980s, took to the streets in a genuine youth revolt. Many Algerians who had endured the dreariness and depravations of the one-party era were willing to cheer the angry young men on. The regime, dominated since independence in 1962 by the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN) and the military/security apparatus, resisted the temptation to resort to a policy of pure repression. Instead, President Chadli Bendjedid, egged on by some young reformers, decided to engage in dramatic political reform. ³