Key Terms and Takeaways from the Background

Hello Delegates!

We just wanted to share some Key Terms and information with you that we find important to this topic and the preparation that you all are doing leading up to the weekend of the conference. We hope these terms help solidify your research and give you more confidence for committee!

Colonization: the process of one country or entity settling and/or establishing control over the indigenous people in the area. France colonized Algeria in the 1830s in which they established Algeria to be an integral part of France. 

Nationalism: The advocacy for political independence and self determination of a nation. Nationalism in Algeria started progressing in the 1920s by the Muslims in French Algeria because of decades of religious destruction and the North African Star movement in 1926. These views continued to increase in the 1940s after WWII as more Algerian Muslims who supported assimilation joined the movement for independence. 

Pied Noirs: Refers to the European settlers living in Algeria. These people were not necessarily French and in fact that the time leading up to the war, the majority of pied noirs at the start of the war were not of French descent.

Wilayas: The way the Algerian nationalist divided the nation into 6 different wilayas or military-political governorates with each having their unique role in the war. The names of the wilayas were Aurés, Constantine, Kabylie, Algiers, Oran, and Sahara. The main wilayas during the war were the Aurés, Constantine, and Kabylie wilayas along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and the more mountainous region in Algeria. 

The National Liberation Front (FLN): Refers to Algeria’s leading force in the Algerian War who served more as an independence movement rather than a political body. They were the driving factors behind events with the goal of destabilizing France’s control over Algeria so that they would recognize their independence. They also had their military wing known as the National Liberation Army (ALN) who mobilized under their revolutionary ideas. 

Guerilla Warfare: Refers to irregular styles of fighting by conducting fast-paced, smaller-scale events against a military typically done by armed civilians, revolutionaries, and paramilitary personnel. This was used by Algerian revolutionaries by brutally attacking French soldiers, committing acts of vandalism, and detonating bombs in crowded areas. These tactics were more popularly done in the mountains of Tlemcen and the Traras in the west.

“Day of Tomatoes”:  The nickname for the day were newly elected Prime Minister Guy Mollet went to central Algiers on February 6th, 1956 with the goal of creating peace after the Philippeville Massacres but was met with a mob of pied noirs who pelted him with tomatoes and dirt to show their disapproval of Mollet and General Catroux. 

Internationalization: The process of making an issue or conflict that was primarily contained to more regional issues a more international issue by bringing in more international actors and support. Algeria was able to internationalize this conflict by exploiting the Cold War and its tensions. The case study in the synopsis does a great job going further into detail about this process and how Algeria was able to use it to their advantage. 

We understand that a lot of content is covered in our topic synopsis and there is a lot of information pertaining to the Algerian War so we would like to state some of our key takeaways to help you all find clarity and give you some direction on what your crisis arcs should focus on:

1. While the build-up to the Algerian War is set in stone, from now on you all are creating your own history. Consider what your character wants out of the current situation that this committee will be facing, and see how you can leverage your characters’ powers and connections to achieve your own personal goals while working towards the common united goal of your committee. Because this is a crisis committee, your crisis arcs and plans will greatly shape the direction of committee, so make sure you push it in a direction your character approves of.
2. Also consider how the build-up to the Algerian War is relevant to the current situation. For example, what events in Algeria or France have happened in the past that you can take advantage of to benefit your character and the cause? In which regions of Algeria can you expect to find the most support and opposition? What has the role of propaganda and other tools been on both sides of the conflict leading up to the war? This does not necessarily have to be in the past decade: consider how even colonization beginning in the nineteenth century might play a role in the current situation.
3. Since this is the Algerian War, we will be expecting some skirmishes. However, keep in mind the setting and background of this war. In terms of sheer military might, France is much more powerful than the FLN; it would be smart of the FLN to consider a strategy to take advantage of what they have at their disposal to weaken the French. Similarly for the French, they should also consider their own military situation and take advantage of what’s at their disposal to effectively deal with the FLN. Although the French might have the military might, what weaknesses of theirs should be covered up before they are exploited by the FLN? Consider these points when passing in directives; this committee is just as much about carefully planning for war as it is about engaging in battles.
4. We have also seen the importance of the populace of Algeria, including pied noirs and native Algerians, in shaping the events leading up to the current situation. Consider how gaining the trust of some populations and alienating other populations might affect the direction and progress of your committee. 
5. Similarly, we have also seen how influence from the world outside France and Algeria have affected the current situation. For example, the idea of self-determination at the end of World War I and the limited international support for Algeria from the Bandung Conference. What role might the international community play in furthering your committee’s goals?

Hopefully this post helped with your understanding of the topic and your confidence going into debate! We are all so excited to see you in committee and watch you apply your research to crisis skills!

Best,

Taylor Lang and Ted Kim

JCC, BMUN 71