SHOAA for Human Rights has taken note of the statements made by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune during his visit to Germany on Wednesday, 15 July 2026, in which he welcomed the opposition and affirmed the right of Algerians to criticize the authorities.
However, the human rights and political situation in Algeria presents a very different reality. Judicial prosecutions continue to target activists, politicians, journalists, and human rights defenders solely for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of opinion and expression. Ordinary citizens have also faced prosecution simply for criticizing the government’s economic and social policies, while elected representatives and members of legislative institutions have been prosecuted because of their political positions or for carrying out their parliamentary oversight responsibilities.
Pressure on the domestic opposition continues through arrests, arbitrary travel bans, restrictions imposed on political parties, associations, and trade unions, as well as the exclusion of independent voices from the media, effectively stripping political pluralism of its substance. According to SHOAA’s database, more than 200 prisoners of conscience remain detained solely for the peaceful exercise of their fundamental rights.
As for Algerians living abroad, a number of opposition figures and activists have been convicted because of their opinions or peaceful activities. SHOAA also recalls its statement of 14 October 2025, documenting intimidation and pressure exercised through certain Algerian consular services against members of the Algerian diaspora because of their political opinions or human rights activities.
SHOAA considers that the so-called “National Reconciliation” initiative (“Lam El-Chamel”), followed by the regularization measures adopted by the Council of Ministers in January 2026, which required beneficiaries to commit not to repeat the acts that had led to legal proceedings against them, did not constitute initiatives based on respect for human rights and the rule of law. Instead, returning to Algeria or obtaining consular services and official documents—including passports—became linked to undertakings or conditions affecting freedom of opinion and expression, without genuine legal guarantees ensuring that individuals could exercise their rights and freedoms without fear of prosecution.
SHOAA further recalls that the human rights situation in Algeria has been the subject of repeated communications by United Nations Special Rapporteurs concerning freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of association, arbitrary detention, and the situation of human rights defenders. These communications call for meaningful action and genuine reforms rather than political rhetoric.
SHOAA stresses that welcoming the opposition cannot be measured by public statements, but by genuine political will reflected in the release of prisoners of conscience, an end to politically motivated prosecutions, the lifting of restrictions on political parties, civil society organizations, and independent media, respect for judicial independence, an end to the use of consular services and administrative documents as tools of pressure or coercion, and the guarantee that all Algerians—both inside and outside the country—can freely exercise their rights and return to their homeland without discrimination.
Accordingly, SHOAA considers that the President’s statements regarding welcoming the opposition will remain devoid of credibility unless they are accompanied by genuine political and human rights reforms that reopen civic space, end the repression of peaceful opposition, and uphold the rule of law, human rights, and fundamental freedoms.
