GENEVA- Minister of State, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ramtane Lamamra has reiterated, Tuesday in Geneva, Algeria’s commitment to the rule of State and human rights protection.
In his address at the high-level segment of the 34th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Lamamra underlined the far-reaching reform process in Algeria since April 2011, at the initiative of President of the Republic Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and which was crowned with the amendment of the Constitution.
The minister added that this revision would “strengthen and consolidate the rule of state, freedoms, participatory democracy, equal opportunities between men and women, role of opposition, separation of powers and independence of justice.”
Lamamra said that the forthcoming legislative elections, scheduled for 4 May, are part of the reform process.
“The forthcoming legislative elections would be held, for the first time, under the supervision of the High Independent Authority for Election Monitoring (HIISE), which was set up following the revision of the Constitution,” said Lamamra.
“International observers are invited to deploy across the country,” he said.
The minister reaffirmed Algeria’s support to the Palestinian people, whose inalienable national rights have been denied by the occupying forces.
As regards the situation in Western Sahara, Lamamra said “the people of this territory, the last colony in Africa, continue to suffer from the occupation of their land and are not allowed to decide freely their future through a self-determination referendum.
The minister underlined the responsibility of the UN in achieving the decolonization of this territory.
Lamamra also seized this opportunity of the meeting to denounce Islamophobia, which is contrary to the spirit of coexistence and tolerance.
Source: Lamamra reiterates in Geneva Algeria’s commitment to human rights protection
