The scenario in this infobox is probably not realistic, but I thought it would make an interesting scenario and kinda threw it together in an evening.
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French Algeria (French: Alger to 1839, then Algérie since) is one of the 19 regions of France, and is one of two not to be part of the mainland, the other being Corsica. It is geographically the largest region of France, almost two and a half times the size of the next largest, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, and its prefecture and largest city is Algiers.
The region was originally colonised by the French in the 19th century, and was made an integral part of France in 1848, organised into départements and governed under many of the same laws as Metropolitan France. However, this was mostly true for the European immigrants, colloquially known as the Pieds-Noirs, and later the indigenous Jewish population that made up minorities of the region’s population, while the indigenous Muslim majority were subject to colonial laws, which led to considerable racial tensions.
By the end of the Second World War, this dissatisfaction had led the Muslim population to call for independence from France and the right to majority rule. In response, in a fashion similar in some ways to the British division of Ireland, the government of the French Fourth Republic chose to give voting rights to the Muslim population (albeit in the college for colonial voters rather than French citizens) while dividing the region. The three coastal départements that had existed since 1848, Oran, Alger and Constantine, were made governmentally identical to the rest of France’s départements, while the Sahara to the south was départementalised and what the French government called the ‘Saharan settlement campaign’ (French: Campagne de colonisation saharienne) was organised. Effectively, this was done to resettle Muslims in the Sahara desert and create a non-Muslim majority in the ‘French’ region of the country to reduce dissent.
While this largely placated the Pieds-Noirs, it caused massive conflict with Algerian Muslims due to the inhospitable conditions they faced, with modern historians comparing it to the Trail of Tears in the US. Along with much of the rest of the former French empire, southern Algeria voted to become independent in 1960 and the north was excluded from both the referendum and the process of separation from France; it would be organised into the region of French Algeria in the 1960s.
Today, French Algeria is majority non-Muslim, but there remains a large Muslim minority which has been subject to continued social inequality. The French Algerian regional government has been accused of practices such as gerrymandering to limit the electoral influence of Muslims in the region and of failing to provide appropriate funding to services for Muslims, while French Algerian Muslims are frequently victim to hate crimes, particularly by Pieds-Noirs. These have proven major problems with French-Algerian relations, with the independent Algerian government describing the situation in French Algeria as ‘apartheid’ and terrorist attacks by groups such as the ALN (National Liberation Army) often taking place in French Algerian cities.
The marginalisation of Muslims in French Algeria has led to an active civil rights campaign, particularly since the 1970s, to improve their civil liberties and work towards justice for their long-term mistreatment as colonial subjects in ways such as making Arabic a second language for the region along with French. Many Muslim activists have vocally disclaimed terrorism, though others have expressed sympathy towards the cause of these groups while condemning their violence.
In turn, this has led to a conflicted relationship with the Pieds-Noirs, with some vocally supporting more cooperative relations (most famously the philosopher Albert Camus, who advocated for reconciliation between Muslims and non-Muslims in the region) while others see the civil rights movement as a front for Algerian separatism despite limited evidence for this. Pied-Noir voters are known for generally being some of the most right-wing in France, providing a plurality of support for FN and RN candidates in the first round of every presidential election since 1995.
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French Algeria (French: Alger to 1839, then Algérie since) is one of the 19 regions of France, and is one of two not to be part of the mainland, the other being Corsica. It is geographically the largest region of France, almost two and a half times the size of the next largest, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, and its prefecture and largest city is Algiers.
The region was originally colonised by the French in the 19th century, and was made an integral part of France in 1848, organised into départements and governed under many of the same laws as Metropolitan France. However, this was mostly true for the European immigrants, colloquially known as the Pieds-Noirs, and later the indigenous Jewish population that made up minorities of the region’s population, while the indigenous Muslim majority were subject to colonial laws, which led to considerable racial tensions.
By the end of the Second World War, this dissatisfaction had led the Muslim population to call for independence from France and the right to majority rule. In response, in a fashion similar in some ways to the British division of Ireland, the government of the French Fourth Republic chose to give voting rights to the Muslim population (albeit in the college for colonial voters rather than French citizens) while dividing the region. The three coastal départements that had existed since 1848, Oran, Alger and Constantine, were made governmentally identical to the rest of France’s départements, while the Sahara to the south was départementalised and what the French government called the ‘Saharan settlement campaign’ (French: Campagne de colonisation saharienne) was organised. Effectively, this was done to resettle Muslims in the Sahara desert and create a non-Muslim majority in the ‘French’ region of the country to reduce dissent.
While this largely placated the Pieds-Noirs, it caused massive conflict with Algerian Muslims due to the inhospitable conditions they faced, with modern historians comparing it to the Trail of Tears in the US. Along with much of the rest of the former French empire, southern Algeria voted to become independent in 1960 and the north was excluded from both the referendum and the process of separation from France; it would be organised into the region of French Algeria in the 1960s.
Today, French Algeria is majority non-Muslim, but there remains a large Muslim minority which has been subject to continued social inequality. The French Algerian regional government has been accused of practices such as gerrymandering to limit the electoral influence of Muslims in the region and of failing to provide appropriate funding to services for Muslims, while French Algerian Muslims are frequently victim to hate crimes, particularly by Pieds-Noirs. These have proven major problems with French-Algerian relations, with the independent Algerian government describing the situation in French Algeria as ‘apartheid’ and terrorist attacks by groups such as the ALN (National Liberation Army) often taking place in French Algerian cities.
The marginalisation of Muslims in French Algeria has led to an active civil rights campaign, particularly since the 1970s, to improve their civil liberties and work towards justice for their long-term mistreatment as colonial subjects in ways such as making Arabic a second language for the region along with French. Many Muslim activists have vocally disclaimed terrorism, though others have expressed sympathy towards the cause of these groups while condemning their violence.
In turn, this has led to a conflicted relationship with the Pieds-Noirs, with some vocally supporting more cooperative relations (most famously the philosopher Albert Camus, who advocated for reconciliation between Muslims and non-Muslims in the region) while others see the civil rights movement as a front for Algerian separatism despite limited evidence for this. Pied-Noir voters are known for generally being some of the most right-wing in France, providing a plurality of support for FN and RN candidates in the first round of every presidential election since 1995.
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