Publication

This paper describes how Algeria has transitioned from civil war, state failure, and moral decay to stability during the presidency of Abdelaziz Bouteflika. Taking office in 1999, Bouteflika devised and implemented a successful peace plan. However, the paper also shows how the government effort to hasten peace undermined the chance for reconciliation. The authors conclude that genuine reconciliation is not a question of taking administrative steps to implement decisions made by the few, imposing them from the top down; rather, it is a long process that would engage the entire social fabric, with all its political groups and institutions.