Algeria's Hirak: An Introduction

1. Protest Subgroups

1.1. Youth/Students: The students' main protest day occurs every Tuesday

1.2. Women: While women have shown up to protests in full force, they have also received some backlash from more socially conservative elements accusing them of "dividing the movement"

1.3. Berbers: Berber groups in Algeria have attended the protests in large numbers

1.3.1. The minority Mozabite community has been particularly active following the death in captivity of a human rights activist for Mozabites, Kamel Eddine Fekhar

2. Background

2.1. February 22, 2019: First protests begin in major cities against Bouteflika's candidacy for his 5th mandate as president

2.2. March 8, 2019: Biggest protests of the Hirak to this point; Bouteflika has yet to rescind his candidacy

2.3. March 26, 2019: Gaid Salah, Chief of the Army, calls for Bouteflika to withdraw from the candidacy

2.4. April 1, 2019: Bouteflika officially resigns

2.5. June 2, 2019: Elections scheduled for July 4 were called off due to pressure from protesters

2.6. June 2019: Protesters continue to demand an overhaul of "le systeme"

3. Further Resources

3.1. Glossary of Hirak terms published by Muriam Haleh Davis, Hiyem Cheurfa, and Thomas Serres: A Hirak Glossary: Terms from Algeria and Morocco

3.2. Interview in French with Karim Tabbou on France 24: L'Entretien - Karim Tabbou : "Le chef de l’armée doit répondre aux demandes du peuple algérien"

3.3. Mozabite protesters on May 31, 2019: Les mozabites en force à Alger, "Khawa khawa, zkara fel doula"

3.4. Article with analysis on female protesters in Algeria and their aims: After protests, Algerian women reconquer the public space | Hamid Zanaz | AW

3.5. Song in support of the protests in Algeria by Algerian rapper Soolking: Soolking feat. Ouled El Bahdja - Liberté [Clip Officiel] Prod by Katakuree

4. Key Terms

4.1. Hirak: "movement"; used in Algerian and Moroccan contexts

4.2. Karama: "dignity"; characterizes desire by the protesters for a government that prioritizes dignity and freedom of expression

4.3. Maranach habssin: "We Will Not Stop"; slogan popularized in May 2019 protests

4.4. Le pouvoir: "the power"; refers to the established government which included Bouteflika and others

4.5. Silmiyya: "peaceful"; characterizes the peaceful nature of the protests since their outbreak

5. Unofficial Leadership Figures

5.1. Karim Tabbou: Young, charismatic former politician and outspoken supporter of the Hirak

5.1.1. ALGÉRIE. Karim Tabou(2) envahit par la foule du hirak 16e Vendredi #alger #elhirak #karimTabou

5.2. Moustapha Bouchachi: Lawyer, human rights activist popular among protesters

5.2.1. https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/5c8a915a2400006b054c0286.jpeg?cache=92d0hfYoG2&ops=scalefit_630_noupscale