The Algerian People's Party (in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, Parti du Peuple Algerien PPA), was a successor organization of the North African Star (''Étoile Nord-Africaine''), led by

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that h ...

Algerian

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

Messali Hadj. It was formed on March 11, 1937. In 1936, the Etoile Nord Africaine (ENA), its predecessor, had joined the French

Front Populaire The Popular Front (french: Front populaire) was an alliance of French left-wing movements, including the communist French Communist Party (PCF), the socialist French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) and the progressive Radical-S ...

, a coalition of French leftist political parties in power at the time. The relationship lasted a bit over six months. The government formed by the Front Populaire dissolved the ENA in January 1937, hence the creation of the PPA two months later. Despite using peaceful methods of protest, the group's members were constantly pursued by the police in France and banned by

colonial authorities in Algeria. From 1938 until 1946, it operated as a clandestine organization. However, it had only moderate activities during World War II. There was also great hope that Algeria would be rewarded for its help in liberating France from the Germans, but in May 1945, the events of the Sétif and Guelma massacre ended all hopes. Early May 1945, Pierre Gazagne, secretary of the

general government The General Government (german: Generalgouvernement, pl, Generalne Gubernatorstwo, uk, Генеральна губернія), also referred to as the General Governorate for the Occupied Polish Region (german: Generalgouvernement für die be ...

headed by

Yves Chataigneau Yves Jean Joseph Chataigneau (22 September 1891 – 4 March 1969) was a French diplomat and colonial governor. Graduating in history and geography, in 1919 after having been a lieutenant during the First World War, he began his career in diplomac ...

, took advantage of his absence to exile Messali Hadj and to arrest the leaders of the PPA.Extraits de l’entretien d’Annie Rey-Goldzeiguer avec Christian Makarian et Dominique Simonnet, publié dans l’Express du 14 mars 2002
, on the LDH website The PPA was reconstituted October 1946 under the name Mouvement pour le Triomphe des Libertes Democratiques (MTLD) A few ex-PPA members, having decided that freedom could only be acquired through military means, created the Organization Speciale (OS) while loosely maintaining membership in the MTLD. The OS sought the support of all the different Algerian political organizations to create the Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN) after launching the Algerian War of Independence in 1954. Messali Hadj had completely lost control of the movement in a process that began more than two years earlier when he refused to compromise with the mainstream in the MTLD. In 1955, he created his own so-called

resistance group A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

, by the name of the Algerian National Movement (''Mouvement National Algérien'')(MNA). Supported by the French, it was marginalized during the eight years of war, attacked and destroyed by the FLN both in Algeria and during the "

café wars A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

" in France.

References

*'Les Origines du 1er Novembre 1954', by Benyoucef Ben Khedda. Editions Dahlab, 1989. 1937 establishments in Algeria 1946 disestablishments in Algeria Defunct political parties in Algeria Defunct political parties in France Political parties established in 1937 Political parties disestablished in 1946 {{Algeria-party-stub

See also

References