Manchester University Press
2 Grappling for a communist foothold
Abstract
The vast terrain, limited infrastructure, rigidly-divided urban working class and overwhelmingly rural population made the diffusion of socialist ideas extremely difficult. When the PCF’s Algerian region was launched in 1920, its European membership felt that revolution in France was a prerequisite for a socialist Algeria that would remain part of France. Under pressure from the Comintern, which saw anti-colonial and national liberation struggles as means of weakening imperialism, Communists in Algeria eventually adopted a policy in support of Algerian independence. However, their call for independence and their anti-colonial opposition to the Rif War precipitated the wrath of the French state, which subjected them to heavy repression, with prison sentences of up to two years. Together with purges resulting from the Comintern’s New Line, the Algerian communist movement was decimated by 1930.
Abstract
The vast terrain, limited infrastructure, rigidly-divided urban working class and overwhelmingly rural population made the diffusion of socialist ideas extremely difficult. When the PCF’s Algerian region was launched in 1920, its European membership felt that revolution in France was a prerequisite for a socialist Algeria that would remain part of France. Under pressure from the Comintern, which saw anti-colonial and national liberation struggles as means of weakening imperialism, Communists in Algeria eventually adopted a policy in support of Algerian independence. However, their call for independence and their anti-colonial opposition to the Rif War precipitated the wrath of the French state, which subjected them to heavy repression, with prison sentences of up to two years. Together with purges resulting from the Comintern’s New Line, the Algerian communist movement was decimated by 1930.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of tables viii
- General editor’s introduction ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- List of abbreviations xiii
- Map xv
- Introduction 1
- 1 The land and its conquest 11
- 2 Grappling for a communist foothold 26
- 3 ‘The mountain “was going communist”’ 56
- 4 ‘This land is not for sale’ 81
- 5 The nation in formation 110
- 6 For an Algerian national front 145
- 7 Sparking an insurrection 180
- 8 ‘Our people will overcome’ 217
- 9 ‘We need a country that talks’ 252
- Conclusion 267
- Bibliography 281
- Index 298
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- List of tables viii
- General editor’s introduction ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- List of abbreviations xiii
- Map xv
- Introduction 1
- 1 The land and its conquest 11
- 2 Grappling for a communist foothold 26
- 3 ‘The mountain “was going communist”’ 56
- 4 ‘This land is not for sale’ 81
- 5 The nation in formation 110
- 6 For an Algerian national front 145
- 7 Sparking an insurrection 180
- 8 ‘Our people will overcome’ 217
- 9 ‘We need a country that talks’ 252
- Conclusion 267
- Bibliography 281
- Index 298
