Speech by the Ambassador of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria to the Republic of Kazakhstan on the commemoration of 17 October 1961
Speech by the Ambassador of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria to the Republic of Kazakhstan on the commemoration of 17 October 1961
بسم الله الرّحمن الرّحيم
Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Colleagues,
We meet today to commemorate the 17th of October, a memory that holds in the hearts of Algerians a bloody page of the history of colonialism, a day when the members of the Algerian community in Paris proved their adherence to their legitimate right to freedom, despite the unprecedented oppression and unparalleled injustice they faced, at a time when colonialism refused to recognize the will of the people to refuse humiliation and reject injustice, no matter how long it took and how expensive it was.
Thousands of Algerians took to the streets in peaceful and civilized demonstrations to assure the world that the Glorious November Revolution was not, as colonial propaganda claimed, the initiative of a handful of outlaws lacking a social base and a political vision, but rather the revolution of an entire people united around one goal: independence.
However, the response to those peaceful demonstrations was a bloody repression, which killed hundreds of Algerians who were thrown into the Seine River, in one of the darkest pages in the history of colonialism. Those events were further proof that colonialism, fed up with the will of the Algerians, had nothing but violence, while Algerians found in their peacefulness a moral force that revealed to the world the truth of what was happening.
Colleagues,
The commemoration of this anniversary is a pause to remind us that the Algerian struggle was not only in the mountains, but also extended to the streets of the cities, inside and outside the country, and that the Algerian community in Paris was an integral part of this national path, and that its sacrifices were a natural extension of the glorious November Revolution.
In conclusion, we humbly have mercy on the souls of the martyrs of October 17 and all the martyrs of Algeria, praying to God Almighty to reward them with the best of rewards, to protect our homeland from all evil, and to perpetuate the blessing of security, unity and stability on it.
Long live Algeria, glory and eternity to the righteous martyrs.
Thank you for your kind listening.