News from Algeria

Oil

Sonatrach, the national oil company, is building a new headquarters in Oran; and it’s an impressive building. Americans and Chinese are involved in the process.

Algeria lowered its oil production on October 31 in conformity with recommendations made at the last meeting of OPEC. Algeria will produce 59,000 barrels of oil a day (Le Quotidien d’Oran, 31 October 2006, p. 3).

Terrorism

Another concern in the country is the continuation of terrorist activity. Sunday night, October 29, two truck bombs exploded within ten minutes of each other in two suburbs (Reghaïa and Dergana) of Algiers. Algiers had not seen this type of attack for seven years. Some fear a return to the violence of the dark decade of the 1990s. Others think it is the last throes of the GSPC (Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat), largely confined to the mountains of Kabylia, the only terrorist group that did not accept conciliatory provisions of the Charter for Peace and Reconciliation (implemented February 28, 2006). These attacks occurred just before November 1, a national holiday and symbolic date for Algerians (the beginning of the rebellion against the French). It was on November 1, 1954, that the first uprisings against French colonialism began. A rise in terrorist activity took place during Ramadan and as a significant deadline is approaching, the end of a six-month grace period during which armed groups can turn in their weapons and benefit from conditions of amnesty (Le Quotidien d’Oran, 31 October 2006, p. 3).

Tourism

Algeria claims to be trying to develop a tourism industry; but visas are still hard to get for visitors from Europe or the United States. On information for Oran, tourism is listed as one of the city’s primary industries. Yet, I couldn’t find a map of the city.

The number of international visitors to Algeria has grown only ten percent since 2000, according to Le Quotidien d’Oran. The percentage grows to over 20 percent, if the number of expatriate Algerians is taken into consideration. Professionalization and better facilities are needed to improve the tourism industry. Most of the businesspersons expressing an interest in Algerian tourism are from Arab countries (Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Tunisia) and the West (Germany, Italy, France, and the United States). When the executive committee of the International Organization of Tourism meets in Algeria next November (2007), Algeria will promote the Sahara as a popular tourist destination.

In terms of the management of tourist facilities, 103 (in 20 wilayas with 5,000 beds) hotels have been closed for not meeting the necessary standards. They have one year to improve conditions, when they will again be inspected. In an effort to create skilled staff and reduce unemployment in the hotel business, tourist agencies will be able to get loans form the National Treasury (Caisse) for Unemployment Insurance. So far, 17 establishments offering training in the hotel business have been set up in southern Algeria (Le Quotidien d’Oran, 31 October 2006, p. 3).

Divorce

Compared to 2005, the number of divorced persons, with or without children, rose considerably in 2006 in Annaba, an eastern Algerian city. Housing, promiscuity, and unemployment head the list of motives for divorce. Many women with children find themselves homeless after divorce. Many find refuge in the Sidi Belaïd Center in the old city of Annaba. Twelve women, separated from their children, also live a life of uncertainty at the center, infested with rodents. While it provides shelter, cleanliness and a healthy atmosphere are inadequate at the house. Algerian Women for Development, headed by Beya Haddad, has proposed the building of a new center, which would welcome divorced and single women in distress. Work has been started. Benefits have been held; but more funds are necessary to complete the project. The El Hana Association, led by Bouchhit Nadia, works to reduce in what ways it can the difficulties of the residents of the center (El Watan, 30 October 2006 [No. 4853], p. 23).

Begging

For the most part, no official statistics have been gathered; but the newspaper, El Watan, reports the growing numbers of beggars who are appearing in Algeria’s large cities. It is a complex situation. Some women, street children, old persons, are truly in need. Others find they can make more on the street in a prime place (especially in a market area) than they can with certain of labor. Others seem to have made a profession of it, tyrannizing the young to work for them and transporting people in vans to work certain areas. Some mothers rent their children to professional beggars. During Ramadan, unattended adolescent boys and girls may go from door to door in the large apartment buildings asking for alms. This year, the zakat (alms tax) was set at 70 dinars (I US dollar). There is thus a distinction between the truly poor and those who fake it. Some of the latter even take to aggression, trickery, and other ruses to extract money from their targets.

One 2006 study of 189 street children (132 boys, 57 girls) in four large wilayas of Algeria found that 33 percent had received no education, 54 percent a primary education, and 13 percent a middle level education. Some of the very young were accompanied by a parent, who also lived on the street. 17 percent of the children were orphans; 44 percent had broken all contact with their parents. 61 percent said they lived from begging, 15 percent from stealing, and 2 percent from prostitution. 20 percent they made their living through paid work. Biskra especially attracts beggars, due to the mildness of its climate, the hospitality of its population, the relative security of the south (El Watan, 20 October 2006 [No. 4853], p. 6).

Education

A report, Education for All 2007, published by UNESCO, points out that the Arab countries have been slow to provide protection for children less than three years of age and assure them an education. UNESCO sets 2015 as a target date to provide education for all the world’s children in this group. The report also indicates that every year in the developing world, more than 10 million children die before the age of five years of illnesses, which could be avoided. Programs combining nutrition, vaccination, health, hygiene, protection, and education could change the situation and contribute to educational success. However, children who have the most need are also those who have the least chance of receiving assistance. Only 16 percent of the Arab states offer pre-school education. Another study shows that the a higher level of pre-school education leads to less repetition of levels in schools and a rise in scholastic achievement. Pre-school protection and education is even more important given the rising number of women entering the work force. In the Arab states, growth in primary education grew only 6 percent, compared to 27 % (1999-2004) in sub-Saharan Africa and 19% (1999-2004) in South Asia. Nearly two-thirds of 181 countries have attained parity for boys and girls in primary education. Disparities to the detriment of girls remain in many countries. Several countries have very low levels of female education (Afghanistan, Chad, Pakistan, Niger, Yemen). Only a third of the 181 countries have attained female-male parity in secondary education. Regarding illiteracy, the rate of illiterate adult remains below 70% in the Arab states, in South and Southwest Asia, and in sub-Saharan Africa. In the world, in general one adult in five is still unable to read or write (El Watan, 27-28 October 2006 [No. 4851], p. 3).

The picture is of the traditional-style Arab home, where I stayed in Marrakech.

Fun in Oran

Oran’s Heritage

I arrived in Oran, while a colloquium was taking place at CRASC (Centre de la Recherche en Anthropologie Sociale et Culturelle) on Mediterranean Inheritances and Identities. Therefore, I was invited to a buffet dinner, Saturday evening (October 28), on by birthday–what luck, as well as to lunch and a tour of the city the next day. The fish soup at the luncheon was delicious. The tour was supposed to be of the old city; but we actually saw more of the new city (Place of 1st November, with its pillar in tribute to Amir Abdelkader, the Opera House, and the Hotel de Ville–bronze lions out-front), the city wall built by the Spanish, the neo-Moorish style train station, an indoor (covered) market, the corniche along the water front, and other squares and popular quarters of the city. The exterior of a synagogue remains, although it has been converted into a mosque. The country’s Jewish population, along with the pieds noirs (French colonial settlers), left with independence in 1962.

The reason we didn’t see many of the old buildings is that, for the most part, they are in a state of disrepair due to governmental neglect. In the old city, we drove by a former Prefecture building (French colonial style) and spent a lot of time visiting a foundation dedicated to Sidi El Houari. His tomb and sanctuary itself, very popular with Algerians, we could only see through an alleyway, as we drove by on a nearby street. Algerians are still very sensitive about their religious beliefs; we couldn’t visit. The foundation itself consists of recovered Turkish baths and a French colonial hospital, which young people are restoring to provide educational facilities and a community center for Oran. We also didn’t see the Mosque of the Pasha, or the Palace of the Dey, or Spanish Door. Some apartment buildings in the district have collapsed. A church near the Sidi El Houari Foundation and overlooking the port, the Cathedral of Saint Louis, is in bad condition. Through some exploration we were able to enter. First, light shone through a rusted metal door, so we tried to enter here. This eventually turned out to be the entry to a side chapel, where the members of the guardian’s family had made their sparsely furnished home. It was partitioned off from the rest of the structure with reused doors and boards. After much pounding, we tried another entrance a few feet to the right, which finally led into the building. The guardian was absent. His wife, three children, and another older woman were present. They seemed shocked and startled that someone would want to visit their dwelling place on a Sunday evening. Paint is peeling from the walls; the infrastructure is slowly crumbling. I looked up into the nave and vaulted walls, feeling a sense of awe at the sheer size of the structure. On the way out light shines through the shapes of a window, which might, at one time, have been filled with stained glass. Today, only reflected light from their empty spaces reflects on the nearby wall. Nothing of any value, and almost literally nothing else, remains in the church. As we were leaving, the wife, clothed in long pink bathrobe and scarf, wound around and tied don the top of her head (Berber style), seemed to be assuring the youngest child, a little girl, that things could finally now calm down again.

I thought about where Algeria is today and where it might be going. What vision do Algeria's leaders have? They seem focused on emerging from the years of terrorism, maintaining authority, and developing the country’s hydrocarbons. Preserving the country’s historical and cultural legacy (occurring at a few places, like the Citadel in Algiers), or a progressive vision of cultural diversity and religious tolerance, seems far a field. Moreover, such goals may be overoptimistic, given the low educational levels of the population. Algerians can view the world outside through access to satellite television (dishes are everywhere). Yet, probably few beyond the elite understand the philosophy behind the ideas of freedom of the press and democracy they may see on French television. Beyond the Middle East, Europe is the point of reference here, especially France, since hardly anyone speaks English. The major international currency is the euro. Many also can’t understand classical or modern standard Arabic. News in such languages would reflect an authoritarian outlook and a consideration of tolerance within the framework of Islam.

Night on the Town in Oran

After some touring, we stopped to walk about in the old city. The guys headed for a bistro. I assume they found only nonalcoholic beer outside the hotels. I noticed a Titanic Restaurant; the movie was popular around the world. The intricately beaded and jeweled loafers in pastel blue, rose, black, or beige on display in one shop window caught my eye. An outdoor food market was finishing up in a major street. Some in the group purchased dates to take back to France and Italy. Eventually, it was back to the hotel.

I had the opportunity to use the library at CRASC on Saturday. It has 20,000 volumes. I had some articles photocopied.

More on Oran

A Little History

Spanish Influence: Nestled in an extension of the Atlas Mountains, Oran descends in a natural amphitheater toward the sea. The city sits on a coastal strip in Northwest Algeria, where a dominant rocky massive, the Murdjadjo, looks out on miles of sea, bordered with beautiful beaches and inlets. Muslim Andalusians founded the city in 902 AD. Almohads and Zianides came soon afterwards. Oran was already a prosperous port during this time and engaged in commercial relations with many countries around the Mediterranean. Reconquered by the Spanish in 1509, Bey Mustapha Ben Youssef accomplished its liberation in 1708. Falling again under Spanish domination in 1732, decisive freedom from Spanish rule came only 1792. Given this history, vestiges of Spanish rule are plentiful in and around the city: the Fort of Santa Cruz (on Mount Murdjadjo), the walls of the Casbah, the Fort of El Mers El Kabir, cathedrals, as well as other monuments and buildings. In 1795,

Turkish and French Rule: Beys from the west took over Oran and prospered from the geostrategic importance of the city’s port. On December 10, 1830, Oran fell under French occupation. Currently, Oran has three industrial zones: Arzew (hydrocarbons), Hassi Ameru (construction), and Es Senia (port support services). Special assistance is provided for fishing, especially to fishermen using traditional fishing methods. It also has a scientific, technical university and a research center.

Personal Observations

This morning, great clouds hung over Santa Cruz Fort and Mount Murdjadjo, giving a mysterious cast to the sea and city. The first of the winter rains began, providing relief to land and greenery scorched by the summer heat. Today is Friday, so no shops of any importance are open, only a few superettes and newspaper stands, although no newspapers are printed on Fridays. I went to Ben M’Hidi Street to see if I could find any bookstores open, since I have run out of reading material, but will have to return another day. I did see a Stalingrad Café (Ahmed, the taxi driver, said there is also a street by the name), which seems bizarre in this day and age. The city in Russia has been renamed. Probably, the designation stems from colonial days, when the Soviet Union was considered a model of independent, successful development by countries in the developing world. Also, a communist party took over a local government in the city for a while. Ahmed pointed out that the streets are in the process of being given Arabic names.

A large, working class apartment building in light-blue prefab, set just behind the roadway along the waterfront with a 21-floor section, dominates the skyline along the corniche (coastal walkway). Clothes are hung out from the windows to dry–a familiar sight throughout the city. On the highway side, a lone, prominent sign in red lettering on white background, reads “SAGE FEMME (literally wise woman),” advertising to motorists as it hangs below a window. Ahmed defined the term, which would then translate into English as “midwife. “ Here’s an occupation where women are no doubt doing well!

Oran

Raï is not the only modern cultural expression associated with Oran. Nobel prize winner Albert Camus was born here, and he located many of his stories to Oran. The plague in his The Plague is probably inspired by the cholera epidemic of 1849. The intense heat plays a role in some of Camus' writings; but the weather here today is in the 70s and overcast.

Sites

The beach on the city's edge isn't so good; but there are great ones just outside. This picture of me is at Les Andalouses, popular with tourists in the summer. Santa Cruz, a large fort built by the Spanish in the 16th century, is atop Mount Murdjadjo and dominates the city. Notre dame de Santa Cruz, a cathedral just below the fort, offers a great view, as the fort is closed for restoration. The Spanish ruled here at various times for about three centuries; and the city was founded by Andalousian traders in the 10th century. Sacred Heart Cathedral near the city center is now a public library. The Great Mosque of the Pasha was built in 1796 by Muhammad El Kabir. Nonmuslims can't enter it at the present time. Another interesting site is the Kouba (mausoleum, dating from 1793)) of Marabout Sidi el Houari, the patron saint of the city. It seemed to be a site of particular religious devotion. Many women were sitting on the floor in the interior and a number of beggars were seated outside asking for alms. I wasn't encouraged to visit or take pictures. Women and children seem to be its primary visitors. November First Square had a large pillar-type monument, with stone portraits of Oran's early nationalist hero, Amir Abdelkader, just above the base, topped by a statue of La Victoire Ailée (Winged Victory). The Hotel de Ville (city government) and Opera House face the square, decorated with a fountain, greenery, walkways. Carriage rides are on offer in the square.

Oran is the second largest city after Algiers (abjout 800,000), growing from a metropolis of only 4,000, when the French arrived in 1831. More women wear jellabahs than in the capital. The hectic traffic of Algiers is not to be seen. From that perspective, the city seems more liveable, if not as prosperous. More poverty is evident from the shantytown complexes and debris, which have grown up around the city's edge. The city squares could be cleaner; and much of the over-40 population looks like it could use better health care. Oran has a more popular, industrial, and commercial atmosphere than the capital and much of it dates from more recent years. It has a university and an important research center, CRASC (Centre de Recherche en Antropologie Sociale et Culturelle), where I'll set up my office, Saturday, October 28. Nouria Remaoun, the Director, is my sponsor as a Fulbright Senior Regional Research Scholar in Algeria. Tourism is not a big industry (at least compared to Morocco and Tunisia), so the average person doesn't know much about the cultural and historical heritage of the city.

The Banal v. The Creative

I'm enjoying my time in the economic capital of the west and the great views over the Mediterranean. Camus saw Oran as a treeless, barren city, set against the rocks and the sea. The sun, the heat, the wind, and the changing seasons, as seen in The Plague, reflect the various stages of the plague. The people of Oran are much like people everywhere, with their narrow visions and their bourgeois values. Camus stresses the banal aspect of the city and its life. I think this could be true of any city, if one didn't work to change it. Some in the overdeveloped world have far more material advantages. Whether they're taking advantage of the opportunity is another question. It was Sinclair Lewis, who wrote Main Street, a satire of small-town America, where young Carol Kennicott goes to Gopher Prairie, Minnesota, and dreams of transforming the provincial town into a place of beauty and culture. However, she runs into a wall of bigotry, hypocrisy and complacency.

Aïd El Fitr

The Aïd El Fitr is a three-day feast, which marks the end of Ramadan. In Algeria, it began Tuesday, October 24, since the National Commission of Observation for the Lunar Crescent, meeting in the office of the Ministry for Religious Affairs and Foundations (Waqfs), did not see the new moon Monday night. The commission is made up of five sheikhs and a representative of the Center for Astronomical, Astrophysical, and Geophysical Research. This new moon also marks the beginning of the month of Shawwal 1447 and the start of the Muslim new year.

Class Differences Overlooked in Gloss of Ramadan Solidarity

La Tribune, in an editorial, points out that, while Ramadan and the following Aïd are a great source of solidarity, always an important factor for a nation which fought over 130 years for its independence, Algeria shouldn’t overlook the fact that many are struggling to survive on limited salaries (pensioners, low income families, the young in underpaid jobs) and don’t have enough to assuage their hunger pangs. Retailers, nonetheless, whet one’s appetites by advertising cheap holiday clothes for children, reaching for whatever might be squeezed from an already overstretched budget. No one need die from hunger in Algeria due to state and individual beneficence; yet while some are lost in indecisiveness over which type of bread to buy, overindulging to the point of having to throw away extra food–with garbage cans overflowing, others must resort to rifling through rotted food piles and stealing a baguette at the front door of a boulangerie (bakery) to feed themselves or their families another day. Bonne fête quand même (Happy Holidays just the same)! the paper says (23 October 2006, p. 6).

Foreign Religious Preachers Want to Influence Algerian Mosques

Another interesting activity is that of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which is moving to monitor the religious content offered by the 15,000 mosques in Algeria. This movement stems from the discovery of incendiary foreign tracts with fatwas (religious rulings), which do not contribute to proper religious instruction and inspiration, in five mosques in eastern Algiers. The Ministry did not say from which countries the fatwas originated. Seeking to avoid a return to the anarchy and terror of the 1990s, the Ministry will now seek to oversee library materials in mosques, standardize the calls to prayer, and forbid cutting, flagellation, and other fanatical practices in religious observance. The Ministry will also systematically oversee the importation of all works, CDs, and cassettes at ports, airports, and borders.

The tracts sought to incite violence in mosques with a previous history of fanaticism. The tract authors linked earthquakes of recent years to divine punishment for an impious people. To counter such thinking, a commission of religious and scientific figures presented the example of a CD, which suggested that the deformed, decomposed body of a dead person was due to a life lived outside the precepts of Islam. The commission issued its own fatwa, stating that such decomposition was scientifically impossible without the use of chemical products.

A ministry official says that a rapid response will be made to the discovery of any inappropriate materials (those not suitable to the religious mission) in mosques. Since the mosque is a public place, open to all, any judge, soldier, police officer, or citizen (the article didn’t mention that non-Muslims, however, are not allowed) can report what they consider improper activity. Eventually, all mosques must meet the same supervisory requirements as schools and have a director, who will be the ranking imam. Moreover, 22,000 agents, permanent, contractual, and volunteer presentlly have oversight over religious institutions. The goal is to have 75,000 permanent supervisors, so that each mosque will have five permanent administrative agents. At present, there is a deficit of 53,000 supervisors. When the Ministry arrives at the control of mosques at the everyday level and to run them as one would schools, then it will have solved its problems, it believes. Now, the situation is under control but not adequately regulated (Liberté, 23 October 2006, p. 2).

Americans concerned about fanatical teaching in mosques and madrassas (Islamic schools) will be glad that action is being taken to counter such activity. However, in Algeria this is being done with basically no concern for freedom of speech or religion, an example of how solving problems in one are may contribute to creating them in another.

Abdelkader: Early Algerian Freedom Fighter

Born in 1807 in the vicinity of Mascara, his father’s side of the family traced descent from the family of the Prophet, as did other relatives. His father was an influential Sufi saint. Abdelkader showed an affinity for education at an early age, studying the Qur’an, the Arabic language, history, and geography. At the age of 18, he traveled in Tunisia, Egypt, while making the pilgrimage to Mecca. Upon the arrival of the French, he fought to defend Oran. The tribes of the west proclaimed him emir, with his father’s encouragement and backing, in 1832. In 1834, he signed a treaty with General Desmichels (at Oran, where I’m going October 24). Desmichels accorded him the title Commander of the Faithful (Emir El Mumineen), along with other designations. These names allowed him to project his influence as far west as Algiers. He organized his territory into khalifas (Mascara, Médéa, Miliana, Tlemcen) and called upon Muslims to fight the infidels. He succeeded in uniting a number of tribes, inflicting several defeats on the French, most notably at Tafna. By signing the treaty of Tafna on May 30, 1837, Emir Abdelkader obtained the acknowledgment of his authority over several territories, instituted aspects of a state with taxes, courts, education, and commercial activity, and reinforced his army. He built arms factories at Mascara, Médéa, and Miliana. His resistance served to provoke a crisis of consciousness among the Algerian people, contributing to insurrections of the Zaåtcha (1844), the Ouled Sidi El Sheik (1864), of El Mokrani, of Boumezreg, and Sheikh el Haddad (1871), Bouamama (1881), of Boumaza, of Boubaghla, and of Fathma N’Smour. The emir died in Damascus on May 26, 1883. He fought against the French for over 15 years, compelled the French to recognize his authority (at one time over as much as two-thirds of Algeria), endured imprisonment at Pau and Amboise in France, met with Louis Napoléon, and suffered multiple betrayals by the King of Morocco, which finally forced his capitulation to the French. I just read his memoirs, which are short and rambling, but as the testimonial of one of Algeria’s heroes in the fight against colonialism, an important primary source.

Why Steal During Ramadan?

Citizens of Algiers are complaining at the growing insecurity in their city. In cities outside the capital, inhabitants are shocked at the rule of young hooligans who infest their quarters, especially during the month of Ramadan. Popular objects to steal are cell phones, jewelry, cameras, handbags, and wallets. One city vendor thinks that pickpockets and other thieves see more opportunities during Ramadan, as families with low energy levels do more window-shopping, buying and spending, and are less vigilant in looking after their personal effects. Security has been stepped up; but many citizens see it as ineffectual in comparison to the tenacity of the robbers. They have perfected their techniques and are determined to accomplish their task. These burglars don’t steal from merchants forced to sell junk merchandise made in China on the street. These vendors are quick to point out that, while the cops harass them, at least they make their living through hard work; and if their condition worsens, they may end up in a life of crime, given the lack of alternative work.

Many thieves steal out of boredom, unemployment, bad company, or opportunity. And they’re picky; they want something of value for their efforts. Traffic jams, common in Algiers and other large cities, offer an ideal circumstance for their trade. Some approach motorists to point out a flat tire or other problem with their vehicle. Others do damage to the vehicle themselves or cause an accident to catch a driver off guard in order to rob him/her or steal the vehicle. Criminal activity takes place in all parts of Algiers, no matter what part of the city. This has lead some to say that it is just basically an unsafe city. Given all the adolescent boys and young men without jobs, with time on their hands to develop who knows how many tricks of the trade, the probability that any one individual will be a victim (pigeon) is high. Going with a police officer to the Casbah is a possibility; policemen are available for that purpose. But most people can’t afford a personal security guard to be ever-present in their routine activity.

Of course, Algiers isn’t the only big city, which suffers from crime. Most tourists to Europe have a story or two to tell about their experience as victims of robbery or other mishaps during their travels. In Algeria’s large cities of the north, it may be present on a somewhat large scale due to recent years of lawlessness, unemployment, low levels of education, corruption, and inadequate training of security officers. Or you can go south, Tamanrasset and the cities of the Mzab are safe and pleasant places to visit.

One last note: The Muslim world cannot agree on when Ramadan ends. The new moon must be seen with the naked eye; and the Muslim community (umma) is much larger than it was during Muhammad's lifetime. Also, a lunar month cannot be over 30 days; but authorities in Saudi Arabia mistook Mercury for the moon beginning the month, according to an Algerian paper, and began Ramadan on September 23. Thus, the Gulf states, must end it on Monday, October 23. Algerians have not as yet resorted to science and are waiting to see if officials can see the new moon with the naked eye tonight (10/22). If they do, the end of Ramadan is tomorrow; and the Aid El Fitr can begin.

Last Days of Ramadan

Circumcision Ceremonies Sponsored on the Night of Power

On the 27th day of Ramadan (October 20), known as Leilat El Qadr, when Muhammad received the first revelations of the Qur’an, organizations in many Algerian cities annually hold circumcision ceremonies for underprivileged children. In Tizi Ouzou (72 miles east of Algiers), for instance, the local government (la mairie) sponsored circumcision ceremonies and parties with well-known performers, complete with presents and new clothes, for 74 needy children from the surrounding commune. As of 2006, the surgical procedure must take place (usually the next day) in a hospital. The local committee of the Red Crescent also held a circumcision ceremony for 50 children (Liberté, 21 October 2006, p. 15). These are but two examples of the spirit of giving displayed during Ramadan and the efforts made to make sure all are able to meet the requirements of the faith, of which circumcision is one. Of course, for Muslims the importance of fasting is to direct their thoughts to the spiritual; and giving, especially to the less fortunate, is an important part of that.

Other Benevolent Acts of the Red Crescent

The Red Crescent provides many charitable programs to the poor, although still insufficient due to the increasing number of disadvantaged families, during the month of Ramadan. In the Tizi Ouzou area, known as the “hit parade” of unemployment and poverty, 1) the organization provided 31,000 meals at 12 sites in different communes of the wilaya in the first fifteen days of Ramadan. In addition, 15,000 meals were picked up by families and 14,000 served at soup kitchens. The latter are meant to serve transients; but due to the rise in poverty, many of these meals are taken home to needy families. 2) A second program provides packages of foodstuffs to hungry families, with the assistance of the national petroleum society, Sonatrach. 3) The third program is that involving circumcision, mentioned above. 4) Lastly, the Red Crescent organizes volunteers to visit the hospitalized, especially children, on the day of Aïd El Fitr. These visits provide support and comfort for the sick, whose relatives live far away and are not able to visit. Hospitalized children receive presents provided by benefactors on the day of the Aïd (La Tribune, 21 October 2006, p. 4).

Ramadanesque Nights/The Last 15 Days

Probably all you can compare the last days of Ramadan to in the West is Christmas. Excitement, the anticipation of the Aïd, overspending, the pull of children’s demands, the fever of last minute shopping, and the enjoyment of the season burst forth with more energy than at any other time of the year. And according to the newspaper, La Tribune, the lights of Algiers are burning brighter than they have for some time, signifying that most citizens have not been cowed by recent violent skirmishes tarnishing the image of the national pact of peace and reconciliation–at least not during the last ten to fifteen days of the month of Ramadan. Hardly has the sun set, the day of fasting come to a close, and the evening prayer (taraouih) ended, but the city streets are packed with people–succumbing to shopping fever in anticipation of the Aïd. Beginning about 8:30 PM, traffic jams are starting to develop near the city center. Families are emerging from their households, some for preconceived destinations, others to take a walk to digest the evening meal of the f’tour, usually substantial. One popular event is the Arab-Asian Exhibition held at the Expositions Palace of the Pins Maritimes. Here 50 exhibitors, representing 13 countries, are selling their wares, both affordable and exorbitant. At one stand, a crowd has gathered around Mourad Khan, the star of “Hidden Camera,” shown every day on ENTV (the national television station). After viewing the stands, visitors can buy a Syrian sandwich or falafels, prepared by skillful chefs on the spot. Oriental cakes are also for sale at a hefty price.

From the fair, strollers can head outside to wander Martyrs Square and Ben M’hidi Street. People are out strolling. The cafés are open. The aroma of mint tea and other delicacies tantalize your nostrils. The stores are crammed, with barely a space to work your way in. There are lines merely to request the price of an article. Children, not the parents, are choosing their outfits for the Aïd!

The imposing structure, the Grande Poste (Main Post Office, is luminous. Directly across from it is a sort-of outdoor cinema, actually a large screen mounted on the top of a truck, funded by Event Diffusion. I can see it parked in the square from my hotel window. Used from time to time for the last three years, this expedient allowed Algerians to view the last World Cup games, when ENTV lost the right to broadcast them. During Ramadan it’s usually the homeless and drifters who have time to watch its transmissions. Saturday, October 14, the Battle of Algiers was featured in homage to its Italian director, Gillo Pontecorvo, who had died the night before.

Couples leisurely walk on the prominent thoroughfare, Didouche Mourad. It’s one of the streets of Algiers with teahouses, where young lovers can meet or adolescent girls have a night out with their friends. Even there, the stores are packed. Children’s outfits are on display in almost every shop window. Some department stores have been converted to offer children’s clothing, just for the season. Entire outfits are now the fashion: jean suits, suede slacks with a pullover and matching vest, skirts and tops. Purchasing the outfit, the parents have then to buy shoes to go with it. The average price for a child’s outfit is $50.

From Didouche Mourad to Draria, passing by El Biar, the capital remains full of life. At 11:00 PM, grilled chicken and brochettes are available at small restaurants for purchase, with few takers. Wives are walking arm-in-arm with their husbands, window-shopping. Arridj Shop, a three-story department store, which opened a year ago in Draria, attracts many. Well planned, shoppers can buy almost everything they need in one stop: outfits for men, women, and children; shoes; kitchen utensils; bathroom supplies; toys. Its prices must be within reason, given the numerous families who depart laden with sacks filled with goods.

Then it’s midnight. The heart of the capital is about the only place that stays up late. In chic areas of the city, one may find tented orchestral presentations (kheima), which don’t lower their curtains until the morning prayer (s’hour). However, activity takes place within the walls of the pavilion. In the popular quarters of Bab El Oued, families are heading toward home and shops have closed their doors, although sales continue–on the sidewalks. Everything from cakes, to breads, fruits, toys, clothes, and cell phones (portables) is for sale on the street. By El Kettani, bumper cars and other fairground entertainment continue to offer amusement to children. On the way to Aïn Benian, fisherman are out, looking for a few moments of solitude. Finding solace in the night, they won’t give up their fishing poles until morning.

As you drive progressively away from the capital, the silence of the night assumes its privileges. Streets are deserted. Lights have gone out. Out here, Algiers has already gone to sleep (La Tribune, 21 October 2006, p. 9).

Mzab: Home of Desert Puritans

The Mzab

The cities of the Mzab valley (five walled ones) are exquisite apparitions in what one would think is an ungrateful, barren desert area. It is an amazing story of religious belief leading to the survival of a community and to a style of architecture marked by pastel rose, blue, and yellow quadrangular houses in concentric circles on hills, capped by an unadorned minaret sloping gradually inward toward the sky, rising from the uneven curves and arches of a simply styled mosque. The mosque is always at the center, on the highest place of a city–with an adjoining storehouse, armory, and fortress. The building materials are ochreous stones and lime (chaux), mixed with water to make a smooth finish. The old parts of these cities have a mysterious, otherworldly, calm, and orderly ambiance, held together by the pleasing sensation of the architecture, against which the people–women in their white shrouds (called haïks, only the left eye open to the outside if married), men in their pleated, baggy pantalons or long robes with hats or turbans–contribute to a pleasing artistic whole.

Ghardaia

Ghardaia is the principal settlement of the wilaya (province) of the name nowadays, where people have created cities and gardens in the midst of a labyrinth of stones and hills with minimal vegetation, through the astute management of water resources. The history of the region is linked to Kharijism, particularly the Ibadite sect. Emigrants to the Mzab following the collapse of the Rustamid state of Tahert, these puritans of the desert constitute today an important religious confederation. The Ibadites founded the city of Ghardaia after that of El Ateuf and Melika in the 11th century (1053). Located in the Mzab valley, the majority of the terrain is arid, traversed by ravines, and rocky. The climate is dry, with extremes of temperature between day and night, and between winter and summer.
The heat of the summer is immense, making it one of the hottest areas of the world. Due to persecution in past centuries, the Mozabites retreated to this difficult, uncultivated and inhospitable area of the Sahara desert, where they developed a number of oasis towns (the five ksur [walled villages]), which became collectively known as the Mzab region. The economy is dependent on agriculture and the raising of livestock, although Ghardaia is also a center of commerce and Saharan industry, such as those related to oil, water, and construction. Independent and resistant to outside interference in their affairs, the Mozabites have come to be skillful, enterprising, well-organized businessmen. As refugees finding shelter in undesirable places, the Mozabite community seems to have the ingenuity and ability to prosper wherever it goes. Networks of Mozabites in other Algerian cities as well as those around the globe provide support to fellow travelers.

Berbers of the Beni Mzab (who speak Tumzabt, a branch of the Zenati group of Berber languages), agriculturalists and herders, arrived in the region at the beginning of the 11th century. As Ibadites, they were fleeing religious persecution and sought refuge in the hostile environment of what is presently known as the Mzab. The Ibadites are the disciples of Imam Djabir ibn Zaid, who fled the region of present-day Iraq after the murder of Ali in 661 AD and settled in Tunisia. In 777 AD, Ibn Rustam founded the Rustamid state at Tahert (also known as Tiaret). At the beginning of the 900s, threatened, they found refuge in the south and founded Sedrata, the new capital of Ouargla. In 1072 AD, Sedrata was completely razed by the forces of El Mansour, a Hammadite of Bejaia; and the survivors chose to settle in the Mzab, a defensible location and an undesirable area to their persecuters.

The Mozabites built walls and ramparts around three prominent hills, crowned the mounts with a mosque, and finally constructed houses, creating the cities of El Ateuf (1012 AD), Bou Noura (1046 AD) and Ghardaia (1048 AD). Two cities were founded later: Beni Isguen (1347 AD) and Melika (1350 AD). Each city is built on a hill, high enough to escape the infrequent but violent inundations of rainwater. Six centuries later, the Mozabites established Guerrara (1631 AD) and then Berriane (1690 AD). The mixture of the functionalist purity and simplicity of the Ibadi faith with the oasian way of life led to a strict organization of land and space. Each stronghold has a fortress-like mosque, whose minaret serves as watchtower, although at least one city has a separate watchtower. Houses of uniform size and type were constructed in concentric circles around the mosque. The architecture of the Mzab settlements was designed for egalitarian communal living, with respect for family privacy. Each house has a cellar and two stories, with a center opening, exposed or covered with a window to the sky. In the summer Mozabites migrate to summer homes centered around palm grove oases, watered by specially devised irrigation, or water-sharing, systems. One of the major oasis groups of the Sahara desert, the Mzab valley is surrounded by arid country known as chebka, crossed by dry river beds.

The Ibadites have a strict code of ethics, preserved for centuries, which they seek to live by. The women wear a long white cloak, which covers most of their body, with the right eye also being covered by the cloak. A married woman who goes out in the street must be totally hidden, with only her left eye peeping through a small hole. Girls adopt the haïk at the age of 13, but can show their face until married. The men also have a distinctive traditional dress, baggy, multiple-pleated beige or navy trousers, worn with a long shirt sometimes. They will often wear a red or white cap, or sometimes a turban.

The insular nature of the Ibadites has preserved the integrity and identity of the community. They are tolerant but closed to people of other cultures, while very dependent on their own culture. One of the strongest ties that unites the group is language. Children learn the Mozabite dialect at home, study Arabic at school, and may learn some French for business reasons. Strong social control is valued; and family units (qabail) safeguard their separate identities. The qabail are strong tribal-like groups. Each one elects a magistrate or kebir and one or two sheriffs (muqaddemin). These family groupings live together in designated areas. There are strict regulations concerning the interaction of family members. A man is not permitted to see the face of his sister-in-law. Women are kept inside the houses; and a woman might not even be allowed to show her face to anyone but her husband. The women socialize on rooftops and relate only to close family members. Some women do go out to take their children to school, make small purchases, or take public transport to visit family members in another area. Women hardly ever leave the community. When men have to be away, there are women guardians who watch over the house concerned, usually the mother-in-law. There are also women clergy. Women have been taught not to raise their voices in laughter, conversation, or calling some one. They are forbidden to speak rooftop to rooftop. In shops, they do not show the palms of their hands. Men in conversation on the streets are usually in conversation with one or more men from their people group. Mozabites socialize together, but will not as a rule open their home to non-Mzab people, not even fellow Algerians.

The Ibadi Azzaba (Council of Religious Affairs) continues to dominate the social life of each city of the area. Alcohol is forbidden. The head of the Azzaba has the power to excommunicate those who infringe the moral and religious laws in the community. The Ghasilaat is the women’s form of Azzaba; this body supervises the women and settles private disputes in the community. A federal council, Majlis Ammi Said, unites representatives of the seven cities as well as Ouargla, an ancient town 120 miles southeast of the Mzab valley. This council forms a federative body for religious and social matters and represents an Islamic government unique today. All older sections of these cities require a guide for visitation; and pictures can be taken of buildings but not of people. This council rules numerous details of Ibadite social life, such as the weight of gold given as a dowry to a woman and the length and type of wedding celebrations (3-days, communal). This Islamic government rules all the details of the Ibadites’ daily life. Infringement of the rules is punished under the tabriya, which ranges from a kind of quarantine to exile. With economic, social, and political integration to Algeria, sanctions are less effective than previously and tend to have more impact on women. Ibadites no longer live in virtual isolation. Dramatic change has occurred since oil was discovered in Hassi Messaoud in 1958 and gas in Hassi R’mel in 1980. A Chinese engineer currently staying at the Djonoub Hotel (Hotel of the South) is exploring for additional oil resources. So far none have been found. With the discovery of oil and gas came outsiders with new values. The small cities of the Mzab are now commercial centers at the crossroads of southern Algeria. Thousands of Bedouin and Algerians from the north have settled outside the ramparts and between Beni Isguen, Ghardaia, and Melika. Many young men from Kabylia, for example, have come south to work in the hotel and restaurant business. As cement and iron are taking the place of the traditional building materials of Mzabite architecture, so the moral values of the Ibadites, especially the emphasis on social equality, are being eroded by the conviction that everything, which represents progress, power, art, and culture, can come only from the West. Ibadites are thus exposed to many new temptations to break the old rules. Moreover, they can today find refuge in the “foreign” community, which today makes up almost half the population of the Mzab.

Beni Izguen

Situated on the right bank of the Mzab valley, Beni Izguen is called the religious and the secret, surrounded by ramparts with only two doors for entry. Certain of its quarters are forbidden to foreigners or outsiders. Its streets are narrow, ascending up to the quarter of Toblas, where inhabitants learn the religious laws and politics of the city. The market place of traditional crafts is picturesque, closed during Ramadan, and the watch tour offers a superb view of the other Mozabite cities. This city is supposed to be the least touched by the forces of assimilation with wider Algerian society. The city’s council of religious affairs (halka assaba) includes 12 key men of the community, the same number who sought refuge in the wadi almost 1,000 years ago. These men are the imam, the muezzin, the fuqqara (who teach in the madrassa and in the mahat [lycée]), the five men who wash the dead, and two treasurers. The council of social affairs (halka doman) includes a representative of each clan (ashira) and deals with the mundane affairs of a community, which attaches great significance to the knowledge of family trees. In Beni Isguen, the oldest clan, settled at the highest point in the city, near the watchtower, comes from a Berber family from Tafilet. Other clams claim they descend from Persian families. In Ibadite society, women are completely separated from men, spending most of their lives in their houses, while men virtually live in their shops. The main markets are the domain of men; and not many Mozabite women are seen in these areas. The women have their own council, which includes the timsiridines, the women who wash the dead.

Melika

Given the name of queen due to the purity of its architectural lines and its uniformly pink color. The Ksar, the mosque, and the cemetery of Sheikh Sidi Aissa and his family, the Palmerie with its streamlets and refreshing gardens are the attractions of the city. Most families traditionally had a house in the old city and one in the Palmerie, where they spent the hot summer months.

El Ateuf

The first city founded in the Mzab valley, it has inspired numerous architects, such as Corbusier. Its history is obvious in the carefully maintained oases and plantings of palm trees. It’s a thousand year old city, composed of rings of pastel rose, blue, and yellow quadrangular houses inclining toward the hilltop, with mosques of striking simplicity, whose unadorned but captivating minarets reach toward the sky lending to the dignity of the city. The mosque of Sidi Brahim consists of an ensemble of uneven arcades, open to the outside. It is over 7 centuries old.


Authoritarianism is the oldest and simplest form of government. Totalitarianism, as demonstrated by Ibadi rule in the Mzab, may also help a community survive. The question is whether survival is the highest of society’s goals? Community and conformity are valued over individualism and self-expression. Absolute truth is valued over diversity of opinion, essential according to J.S. Mill, since no one individual can know the entire truth about any one thing.

Ahmed, my tour manager, kept asking me why I had come during Ramadan. I tried to tell him I was bored, since everyone was observing Ramadan and not much was going on. However, the explanation didn’t seem to soak in. Work slows down and some services are not available that might be otherwise during la karême (the holy month). However, on the tour in Tamanrasset, this was no problem. The four-days in the desert took place as if Ramadan did not exist–for us. Mustafa, my Mzabi driver, however, made a statement that some people live only for Ramadan. All I could think of is that both he and Ahmed were from Beni Isguen (a small city, maybe 10,000 today), the least changed city of the Mzab region; and religion was indeed permeating all of their lives. Beni Isguen is a theocracy; and the requirements and duties of the faith and community come foremost and nothing else. Or it’s such a distraction that it’s hard to focus on two things at once, fasting (not to mention the revelry that follows) and work. Ahmed runs a tourism agency. Nonetheless, making money and providing services, were not at the top of the list– although I was treated in a most friendly way. For Muslims and Mzabis, fasting is required. Five prayers a day are also necessary plus the additional prayers and Qur’anic reading following the f’tour, breaking of the fast. Then the evening comes to life as shops open between 9:30 and 10:00 PM and may stay open to midnight or later. In the city squares, young boys are playing soccer and other games. Young and older men are socializing over tea or soft drinks in the plein-air cafés. People are out shopping and visiting family perhaps until 2-3:00 in the morning. In the Ghardaia area, everyone knows everyone else. Now, is the time to enjoy oneself before another round of fasting sets in. But people are feeling its effects. The guards at the hotel lobby entrance are dozing off. The taxi driver returned me to my hotel, driving and staring straight ahead into the night through the windshield, focused solely on the line in the road or traffic ahead in a sort of trance. My big piece of luggage was too heavy for him to hoist alone; yet the bellhops were off tending to post-f’tour and prayer events. The only ones who seem to be thriving on Ramadan are the young for whom it is going all too fast.

I’m a bit bewildered by it all. Religious duties may be important; but from a modern perspective, Ramadan causes a lot of economic and academic disruption as people move into slow gear during the daylight hours. But that doesn’t seem to enter into anyone’s consciousness here. Islam is part of the country’s heritage. It’s obligations are sacred. The pull of the collective is what calls and no more strongly than in the Mzab. During Ramadan, Muslims get up later, walk and move more slowly, perform their duties less energetically, for less time, or not at all. A whole society locks into gear around a religious belief and generally believes that the majority should rule and others should follow suit. Foreigners can get meals in hotels or try to live their lives in what they consider an interesting way. Yet, except for a few other outsiders, not yet too common in Algeria, or a few more liberal Algerians, or a few tour guides who perform beyond the call of duty, you are largely left on your own. Surprisingly, OPEC decided to curb supplies of oil before the end of Ramadan.

The last two pictures of the mosque are where the women sit. The one prior to that shows part of the men's area.

Tamanrasset

Just back from four days in the desert south of Tamranrasset, a city of over 140,000 in the extreme south of Algeria. It's in the midst of an area called the Al Hoggar, an intriguing region of mountains, sand dunes, stony, gravelly,plateaus, pictographs, and isolated rocky massifs. Around Tamanrasset, most of the people are from the Al Haggar tribe. I went camping with tents, sleeping bags, cooking gear in large metal trunks, and a 4x4 vehicle with a couple from Bogota, Columbia (Eduardo and Nora), a young French man (Pierre), and two guides (Slimane and Lili)in Tuareg clothing, their accustomed dress. Eduardo and Nora think they may be the first people from Columbia, who have been to Tamanrasset. The climate is characteristic of the Sahara; yet, altitute and tropical forces serve to moderate the heat of the day. It's still warm! The sprawling, Saharan-oasien style city itself isn't much over 100 years old, owing its growth to French colonial administration and the development of tourism. Before that, the area was principally a crossroads between northern and southern African countries and the terrain of the Al Haggar tribe, which enthroned its first Amenokal (leader) in 1750 AD. The Almoravids (a southern African dynasty)established an outpost in the 13th century about 60 miles west of present-day Tamanrasset. In spite of heat, typical of desert climates, the area receives some rain annually, often in torrents, which gush through wide wadis (dry riverbeds) sweeping along whatever might be in their way. After visiting the Artisans' and African market, we started out on our first leg of the trip. In the midst of a vast plateau with a panoramic view of a massive pinnacle protruding from a mountainous base, we slept the first night under the stars, sheltered by the Milky Way and other not-so-other familiar constellations. I grew sleepy looking for the Big Dipper. The moon rose from behind the massif. The only other aura came from the direction of Tamanrasset; the glow of city lights, a remaining vestige of civilization, was still visible in the distance. Day two was the day of the dunes and views of needle rocks, sculpted arches, and other rocky protrusions, peaks, and cliffs carved by natures's volcanic eruptions, wind, and water. The stars that night had no competition in reflecting their luster. There was nothing I liked so much on the trip as lying down on the mats surrounding our carpet (which doubled as evening salon and table) at the end of the day and waiting for the first stars to come out, and then gazing up into the darkness, past the stars, and feeling a sense of infinity. An occasional meteor would make a short trajectory across the sky. Here I was seeking an escape from civilization and the urban masses; yet, even in my sense of private, personal perpetuity, others were striving with every effort to be the first humans there in that area up and beyond the earth. At the base of a great dune, patterned with soothing, smooth, diagonal ripples of sand, and in sight of mounds of sand heaped between massive, flat-surfaced stone protrusions, and beneath the geological wonder of the two kissing camels, I eventually went to sleep, with a cooling breeze blowing through the net door of the tent. While lunch had taken place in the shade of a lone acacia tree, here vegetation was absent. The cool desert nights, even with a bit of cold requiring a shelter and cover, were indeed welcome. Day three was out on the plains, walking out to the reduced capacity of a lake, over the fractured, desiccated mud layer, which crackled beneath your feet, and crunching the dried, dusty round pomegranate casings, dropped by trees when the rains were greater. Night was in the ambiance of another dune. A sizeable, one-dimensional reptile, the art of a bygone people, decorated the façade of a mineral cliff, as we passed by on day four of our excursion. Our guides prepared lunch on the edge of a wadi, while we explored the upper reaches of a stream, which overflows its course and sends waters on their wild journey through the broad, flat-bottomed wadi during periods of rain. The stream, originating in rocky high ground, had worn the rocks on its edges smooth and polished. It was a challenge to climb the rocks, keep from slipping, and navigate the sandy, porous, bottom of the watercourse. Nora and I surprised Pierre taking a shower, seeking cleanliness and refreshment in the cool waters of the stream's cascade. We had truly been camping-no bathrooms or washing facilities, other than bottles of mineral water. On the way down, I left my shoes on, since I thought this would provide protection to the feet; and shoes were awkward for me to carry. However, walking in the midst of the streambed, one foot sank into the squishy sand up to knee level. I succeeded in recovering my balance, but had lost a shoe. Removing my watch, wading in as water rose even over the level of my rolled-up slacks,I worked busily and hurriedly to recover the mate to my remaining walking shoe. Nonetheless, it filled with sand and wouldn't budge from its newfound place of immersion, as I continued to labor ever so energetically to retrieve it. Fortunately, Pierre had the strength to grasp the shoe and pull it up from the stream's soggy depths. We sat in the shade among granite boulders and petrified wood, as we awaited our lunch or tuna and rice surrounded by cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, and olives. After refueling the vehicle from tanks that had been stored overhead and using the upper half of a bottled-water container as a funnel (gas in Algeria costs 15 cents a liter [.22 gallons]), we departed. As we got closer to the city, a few wandering camels, adults and offspring, appeared from time to time. Finally, we were back in Tamanrasset and to our hotels, where we could take a shower and rest a bit. Then, we had dinner at Slimane's house and met his children. The women do not make an appearance, when male non-family members are present. The youngest, three years, jostled with Pierre and rode her tricycle around the kitchen. Asma, now ten years, showed us a picture of herself in a red satin dress with embroidered gold trim and reams of gold jewelry-bracelets, necklace, earrings, a nose-piece. She will certainly make a delightful bride. Rarwa, the son and eldest, in army-colored cropped pants and shirt helped his father. Education is available for all children in the city; boys and girls to to school together. We had been treated in style and eaten well, even while our guides and their families were observing Ramadan.

The Importance of Retreat

Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), probably the greatest Arab historian, knew the importance of retreat for the purposes of reflection and scholarly work. In fact, he took his two periods of retreat in the area that is now known as the country of Algeria. While actively involved in political life and adept in the thorny infighting and intrigue surrounding a sultan's court (although he did serve two years in prison), Ibn Khaldun treasured the opportunity to escape from the fracas of worldly affairs and dedicate himself to study-for as long as one would leave him alone. His first occasion for seclusion came when he went to stay at the convent (ribat: combination fortress and spiritual retreat) of Sheikh Abu Medin near Tlemcen. His intention was to renounce the world. He also began to teach younger students at the institution. However, this first attempt at seclusion would not last nearly long enough. A new sultan soon called him back to work in 1370 AD. Returning later to Tlemcen (1374 AD), he went to live in the Qalaat (palace) ben Selama, the fortress of an Arab ruler, named Abu Bakr ben Arif, who had built it several years before. It still stands today at Taghzut, in the environs of Frenda on the desert side of the Atlas Mountains. He was able to live there four years, completely free from the worry ofbusiness and politics. Here, he began the composition of his great historical work, the Muqaddimah (Prolegomena). The Prolegomena deals with the science of history in general, with the two forms of civilization: the nomadic life and the sedentary life, with the characteristics which distinguish these two ways of life, and with the institutions, sciences and arts, which develop-be it in one of these states or the other. An entirely original work, Ibn Khaldun used the best of an immense accumulation of documents. Following this period of labor, he felt the need to consult certain treatises and collections, which were only available in big cities. So, he eventually set out (1378 AD) for the city of his birth, Tunis. I just finished reading his work on the history of the Berbers of North Africa. Lately, I've been involved in meeting the leaders of women's organizations in Algiers and visiting the sites and museums of the city. My room, however, is on the ninth floor of a hotel, surrounded by gardens, tennis courts, and a swimming pool, and looking out over the port of Algiers towards the Mediterranean in one direction and mountains in the other. All I see of the city from my balconey are its large white buildings, its great edifices like the Grande Poste, the New Mosque, the Lighthouse of the Admiralty, and the green areas in the middle of Muhammad Khemisti Boulevard. After the sounding horns, jerky rides, and bumper to bumper traffic of the city streets, I can look out on Algiers and feel calm, that the world is not such a bad place, and that I do have a sense of myself. Tonight, the moon is full. It's the middle of Ramadan. Nacera, the assistant in the Business Center, didn't come to work until about 11 AM, when she was supposed to arrive at 9 AM. After all, it is a Friday too, the second day of the Algerian weekend, when the shops are actually closed. Perhaps, an incentive for busy and fasting workers to find a little more rest themselves. The prayers, echoing from the mosques' minarets from 8-10 PM, give a sort of benediction to the closing day.

The picture of the statute of Ibn Khaldun was taken in Tunis, where a street is also named after him.

Tizi Ouzou/Capital of Kabylia

I wanted to see aspects of Algeria's regional cultures, so thought I'd start by going to the capital of Kabylia, an area adjacent to Algiers. Good news and bad news. The good news is that modernity has hit the larger cities in and northwards of Algeria's mountains. Construction of new apartments and villas is proceeding apace. The young are rejecting traditional dress in favor of jeans, the head scarf, or casual business attire. Tizi Ouzou (72 miles east of Algiers)looks like a lower middle class community, with quite a bit of litter. Agriculture with little mechanization is the major economic activity along with light industry. Cement factories are doing well. The bad news is that not much remains of Berber culture outside of remote mountain villages, which are off limits due to terrorism. A few women wear the vertically striped wrap over embroidered pantaloons, topped by an embroidered blouse in the vibrant orange, yellow, green, and white colors typical of Kabylia, but not that many. You can find these garments in boutiques along with jewelry from the region. However, they are also available in shops in Algiers. What I mostly saw was the messy, homogenizing urban sprawl, traffic, and environmental stress, characteristic of countries in the process of development, with a medium-sized mountain range as backdrop. Algeria, with its petrol, is definitely a nation caught up in the process of change. Tizi Ouzou is not the place to look for dramatic examples of Algeria's cultural heritage. Nonetheless, I saw people hard at work, living in large new apartment complexes, some still in the process of being built, pushing their country forward in the middle zone of development. I took in the mountainous terrain and rich agricultural productivity of Kabylia. Stands with yellow melons lined roadsides; vineyards, wheat fields, and orchards covered the hills. What is not so clear so whether economic growth and its distribution are matching people's expectations or are in harmony with the religious perspective most still have of the world. The fragility of Algeria's recent years of peace would seem to indicate that work is still to be done in this area.

The picture is from the Al Hoggar area not Tizi Ouzou, which is in the north and surrounded by mountains.

Ramadan/Day 10

A scorching, seasonal heat wave has hit Algiers. Yesterday, the temperature was 36°C (95°F). Such temperatures, already lasting for three days, will continue through tomorrow. Fires in the mountains, sparked by dry conditions, convey smoke northwards, which covers the city. A few days of summer in the exact middle of autumn, accompanied by atmospheric hawe and fumes-the resulty of warm air originating in regions of the Sahara. The heat is that much more difficult because it comes in the midst of Ramadan. People perspire, limit their activities, and search for any small piece of shade, especially one associated with a bit of breeze. They look tired and struggle to keep up their work and endeavors, although most comes to a halt by 1 PM. Dawiya, my hotel chambermaid, always so vivacious, admits to tiredness-the weather, the traffic, the transit between air-conditioned areas and those not so, the family holiday preparations, and late nights. All takes its toll; and it's only day 10 of Ramadan! As usual, older persons feel the effects of the heat the most. They are stretched to the limit but exert every effort to hold on. They won't even think of breaking the fast, to even mention the subject is a sacrilege. To prevent dehydration, children are allowed to drink water. Others seek to kill time by pacing back and forth, perhaps catching a nap. It's not so much the heat even, but the fatigue and thirst. Yet, frenzied shopping for the post-sunset meals barely slows. Moreover, relief is on the horizon. In another day, atmospheric disturbances are supposed to bring thunderstorms, gusts of wind, and a 10° fall in temperatures. Allah may test people but not beyond endurance.