She has just been sentenced by the court in Mostaganem (western Algeria) to eighteen months in prison, a verdict that again tarnishes the image of an institution blindly subject to power. Dalila Touat, a 45-year-old physics teacher, is accused of “contempt of body” and “publications undermining public order”. Fallacious statements to hide the unspeakable repression of the spokesperson for the unemployed in the city, standing against all odds for more than a decade.
“She is a woman who has devoted all of her time to fighting for human rights, especially those at work, democratic change and independent justice. Since I have known her, and this goes back several years, she has not stopped denouncing the high cost of living, fighting the hogra (contempt – Editor’s note) “, said one of her loyal defenders, Farid Khemisti.
In preventive detention since January 3, Dalila is on a hunger strike. His condition and the injustice of his conviction arouse indignation. Public opinion questions more than ever the credibility of President Tebboune, who promises “New AlgeriaWhile striving to suppress the slightest breath of free expression. The authorities are unleashed, taking advantage of the silence of the hirak imposed by the pandemic. According to the National Committee for the Liberation of Prisoners (CNLD), nearly 80 people vegetate in prison for having expressed opinions and ideas. An infamy.
