ABSTRACT

It is not only under dictatorships and authoritarian regimes that access to records on major human rights abuses meets with obstacles. Barriers also exist in democratic countries such as France. In 1789, the French Revolution established the principle of universal access to archives, a principle France has, however, so far failed fully to implement. Legislation concerning the conditions for access to archives came into force in 1979, current regulations being mainly based on the 2008 Act and the French Heritage Code. Particular impediments stand in the way of access to the records of two of the most controversial periods in French 20th-century history. Those relating to World War II have gradually been made accessible, but barriers remain regarding another dark period in French history, the colonial wars, in particular the Algerian War. These barriers contravene the principles of international law, and especially the right of victims of enforced disappearances and their families to the truth. They are challenged by many historians, archivists and private citizens, who are urging that these archives should be freely accessible, provided that the statutory periods of closure have expired.