Marnia Lazreg

In Le Soir d'Algérie: Quotidien algérien indépendent.

In Muftah.

In the understandable euphoria created by the ouster of Mubarak,the media see every country in the Middle East and North Africa through the same analytical grid used in following the evolution of the Egyptian pro-democracy movement. This creates a distortion in appraising situations that are quite different. More important, there is a tendency to take the words of any blogger that uses the language that resonates with the situation made familiar in Egypt as the truth.

The news of demonstrations in Algeria as reported by Al Jazeera already foregrounds comments made by individuals who have sought to capitalize on the people's grievances against their government for political gain. For example, the RCD party (Gathering for Culture and Democracy), which is quoted by Al Jazeera without any qualification, represents only itself and cannot speak in the name of the Algerian population. It is an ethnically based party that has been extreme in its political views in the past.

Without minimizing the importance of people's frustrations and the problems they encounter daily, it is important to remember that Algeria (unlike Egypt) has had several governments in the past 20 years. It also experienced a grueling civil war that lasted nearly ten years. Unlike Egypt or Tunisia, criticizing the government in Algeria is a pastime. In this context, to call Algeria a "police state" is not accurate. Change in Algeria will not necessarily proceed along the same path as in Egypt whose future is still uncertain. Al Jazeera, of all the media, ought to be mindful of the specificity of each country in its coverage.

It should have become clear by now that Western countries preferred a dictatorial rather than a democratic Egypt (and Arab world) in spite of the rhetoric that Arab countries needed to be democratized at the barrel of a gun when necessary.

The notion that the head of a ruthless security apparatus, Omar Suleiman,who presided over systematic torture would be entrusted with a transition government is a slap in the face of the brave women and men who have stunned the world at Tahrir Square with their courage and determination. How could the US and its allies talk about orderly transition and stability when they have financed and actively supported the repression of the popular will not only in Egypt but also in Jordan and Tunisia. Let us not forget that Egypt as well as Jordan are RENDITION states that torture their people and those remanded to them by the CIA.

Is Suleiman going to put an end to torture? What will he do with the pro-democracy people once the uprising ends?

Why is the West willing to look the other way while paying lip service to democratic values such as "human rights." Read Merkel's latest call about not compromising on human rights. At the same time, she sounds off about patience, time and peaceful transition in Egypt. How will she make sure that the "transition" from Mubarak to Suleiman (which is similar to a transition from Mubarak to Mubarak) will be democratic, orderly and free of torture? By making such wishy washy statements, Western leaders are essentially encouraging the Mubarak establishment to remain in place. They cannot live without it. It kept the lid on for them and allowed them to sleep well. Time has come for all to wake up.