STEPS FORWARD. IN THE ALGERIAN REVOLUTION
‘By Livio Maitan
ALGIERS, Oct. 5 =~ Ben Bella's two recent speeches - -- at, the | inauguration of the gas liquefaction plant at Argew.and the opening. . at Laghouat of construction of an Algerian pipe line -- showed better than anything else up to now the orientation of the Algerian government on the oil question,.. The speeches thus understandably attracted public attention in Algeria as well as abroad.
“For a whole series of rather obvious reasons, the. Algerian government has been unable to pase for the present the perspective of a‘radical solution through outright expropriation of foreign. capital, which, as is known, plays a preponderant role in this sector. It is necessary to add that the supple and prudent attitude of the French government, ‘which seems. to have taken into account the catastrophic experience of the United States in the case of Cuba, has not been of a nature: to push the Algerians into precipitating things.
Nevertheless, ‘the Algerians should not forget or underestim-._ ate the serious consequences | involved in maintenance of.the status quo which can be summarized. as. follows: Lome
(1) Algeria's resources in energy are being exploited to the almost exclusive advantage of international companies that con-_ stitute veritable economic. enclaves in | Algerian territory.
(2) The profits of the companies are taken out. of ‘the country without exercising any stimulating effect on Algerian economy as a whole,
(3) ‘Fiseal benefits for the Algerian government are not greatest - ,
(4) The companies seek to. exelude Algeria from participation in processing, transporting: and | selling the products,
(5) The top personnel ‘and technicians are almost all ‘foreigners, The status of Algerian workers. (wages, etc.) is Kept much be-= low -the scale for. the foreigners. oo
In the face of this situation, Ben Bella endeavored in his two speeches to present a well worked-out line, formulating among
*at Laghouat. Ben Bella gave, the following figures: “If you take the case of 1963, for production of around 23,000,000 tons of crude oil, sold at an average price of 7,700 old francs. $15. 40] a ton, the ~ over-all receipts rung up by the companies - were almost 180 billion old francs [$360, 000,000] while the income | roceived by Algeria as oil revenue was only 30 billion [ $60, 000,000] .'
other things the principles pertinent for other underdeveloped countries at loggerheads with the international companies.
"In the particular case of gas," the Algerian president said at Arzew, “our position is clear and cannot be mistaken by anyone; Algerian gas, a completely national resource, is the property of the state which will give priority to using it and processing it in Algeria, Next in priority will be its export to foreign countries that prefer long-time contracts with Algeria in order to guarantee a stable supply. Companies with concessions in the gas fields will be granted a just return on their investments in prospecting opera-~ tions and development work but they should not seek to divide up with the state the income from discoveries of a raw material in our subsoil as essential as this to the economic activities of a modern country. The distinction between normal returns linked to industrial activities and income resulting from a gift of nature is fundamental to understanding the abuses committed by concessionary companies in the division of revenues with the conceding state. If it is normal for companies to gain a remuneration from their activities called profit, which like all remuneration must be subject to taxation, the income from the soil does not belong to them,"
‘Thus what is involved is a new orientation with regard to specification of basic economic concepts, including, so to speak, . the legal level. First of all, it is quite evident that this orientation involves rejection of any claim whatsoever to extraterritor~ > iality by the companies; secondly, it constitutes an anticipatory argument utilizable when the solution of radical expropriation is adopted; finally, in the immediate future, it aims at limiting the income of the international companies to the benefit of the Algerian state.
This represents an unquestionable step forward, all the more so since it does not at all represent an isolated position.
As a matter of fact, as Ben Bella himself pointed out, a recent decision of the Algerian government requires the oil companies to utilize half their turnover in Algeria. In addition, the building of the liquefaction plant at Arzew will be followed -- on top of the pipe line mentioned above -- by construction of a government refinery (likewise in the Arzew center); while a government company to handle transportation and sales of hydrocarbons will assure sales abroad for Algeria of the natural gas in the Sahara fields. And a new company (with foreign participation) will be set up to extend prospecting operations. At the same time the Centre Africain des Hydrocarbures has been established in Algiers thanks to Soviet aid. It will handle the training of Algerian personnel (as will another center of the same kind which has been projected with French aid).
This problem -- known as the Algerianization of personnel -was raised again by Ben Bella in another speech given at the congress of the oil workers union which ended yesterday in Algiers. After
voicing his Support to the orientation of the oil workers union in” favor of a "management trade unionism"; i.e., of fostering to an | ever increasing degree the participation of workers "in the mana ge-~ ment of certain services in the enterprises,"* the Algerian president returned to the theme of the "shocking inequalities," declaring among other things:
"T will say clearly to the companies: you have the choice of immediately Algerianizing these posts [workers, helpers, technicians], after short. training stages; or of lowering the wages of these so-called technical assistants to the level of Algerian wages, or of raising Algerian wages to the level paid their European com-= rades. . . The brother Minister of Labor and Social Questions has been charged by me to draft a law to end all disparities in the wages of laborers, helpers and skilled workers on the basis of the distinetion: Algerians -- foreigners, "x
It could be argued that all these measures will not resolve : the fundamental problem since they do not deprive foreign capital of. the possibility of profiting at the expense of the Algerian people. | Certainly, while disputing the right of the companies to monopolize revenues, Ben Bella did not place in question profit as such and he even talked about the desirability of extending the participation of foreign capital to other sectors of the country's economy. However what is important at this stage is not to let the status quo become crystallized, to constantly bring into question the positions acquired by the companies, to proceed in such a way that: each new compromise operates to the increasing advantage of the Algerian side.
On October 1 the Algerian government made another important: decision. It decided to put into force a law adopted July 8, 1963 -- which had been deferred long enough -- concerning the confiscation of the holdings of all the traitors and collaborators of the colonialist regime, s+ A number of agricultural holdings --
* REPAL, a mixed company, in which the Algerian state holds forty per cent of the shares, has placed the workers in charge of managing the personnel training service and’ has included two representatives of the enterprise committee in the board of directors.
%% In case the companies choose the third alternative, Ben Bella stated, the increase must be applied to investment funds aimed at | accelerating professional training and the promotion of Algerian . personnel. x
#%% Among other things the text of the July 8 law states:
“Article 1 -- All the goods, buildings and lands, seized, sequestered or confiscated for the benefit of the caids, aghas, bachagans or any other agents of the colonial period, or common . holdings, are declared to be state property; ve
amounting in certain regions to a total of some tens of thousands of hectares -- were immediately confiscated and their owners were simply kicked out.
Naturally it will only be after the operation is completed that a balance sheet can be drawn up and an evaluation made as to what degree land ownership by Algerians has been affected. The dimensions of this ownership are quite considerable, as Ben Bella himself indicated in his report to the FLN [Front de Libération Nationale] congress last April. in any case what was most significant was that in his official radio speech, the president spoke of the opening of "the third phase of our agrarian revolution,"
This point, we stress, could prove to be of crucial importance. The extension of the agrarian reform is at this stage a matter of primary importance for the Algerian Revolution which needs in this way to strike at the main ramparts of conservatism as well as assure a concrete acquisition for the very wide layers of poor peasants who have received no direct advantages from the preceding reforms (because of their limitation to the most advanced sector of agriculture).
In recent months, manifest hesitation has been displayed on this front, provoked no doubt by the fear of arousing hostility among the sectors of the. national bourgeoisie who would be hit. These bids in the direction of the so-called progressive national bourgeoisie have not stopped-in reality and the new editor of Révolution Africaine has played a significant role in this respect through his editorials..° Moreover, in the commentaries on the October 1 decision, the writers preferred to center the attack against the feudalistic elements. ‘
Events in the coming weeks and months will make clearer the significance of the recent expropriations, indicating whether we are now on the eve of a new radical agrarian reform or whether this is only a limited, although « significant, measure.
It is. clear in any case from the announcement of the new positions taken on the question of hydrocarbons and the blows struck at certain sectors of the reactionary classes that the Algerian situation is again in movement. This will have a positive effect on the cadres and militants who fell into a certain demoralization and passivity due to the wavering and difficulties :of-récent months,
"article 2 -- Where the properties were the object of a regular transaction before September 1, 1954, the third purchaser will be indemnified in accordance with. the’ expropriation procedures in force;
"article 3 -- The « ‘properties. specified in Article 1.shall be -managed in conformity with the provisions. of the decree of ‘March 28, *,1963."
[See-World Outlook May 22.] At the same time a stronger accent was given to the role of the state, including its role in economics, and. on Destourian "socialism," Especially since a "plot" was uncovered two years ago, the regimes has tried to establish better ties with the masses, notably through wider and more regular mobilization of the Néo-Destour party.
Without doubt the regime will run into new difficulties in the coming period, The discontent aroused by the devaluation is very real, If the bourgeois layers have been invited to practice austerity, it is certain that the popular masses are already paying the cost of the increase in the cost of, living due to the devaluation. Certain petty~bourgeois layers have also been hit, particularly by the increase in the prices of hard consumer goods (from abroad). Ferment is inevitable on the political level, too, and the congress of the Néo-Destour party scheduled for mid October may provide some. interesting indications on this.
In fact cadres and militants of the party are already beginning to take advantage of the relative loosening up of the apparatus to express their criticisms and aspirations. The objective situation could spur them increasingly to develop a semisocialist,.or even, outright socialist orientation that could only come into conflict. wi th. the official socialism. Of the latter, Bourguiba himself in his last speech offered the following characterization: “Socialism _ demands of each of us good management of his funds, his landed property or his factory."
This is a rather odd socialism that has no long road before... it no matter how firm the grip of the Bourguibist regime on the | masses may still be at the present stage.
GERMAN SOCIAL DEMOCRATS