Algerian minister of justice answer questions of the opposition

The head of Algerian government, Ahmed Ouyahia, selected Mohamed Adami, the minister of justice, who is characterized by some as having a harsh tone and strong views, to answer questions directed at the government by opposition deputies about the forgery of the local elections.

At the autumn session of the deputies council, different political parties choose to express their dissatisfaction with the government move by different means. Twenty of the 380 members decided to leave the session just as representatives of the leftist forces have already done.

In answer to the deputies' accusations against the government, the minister of justice said that the government should be congratulated for its success in coordinating the local elections and continuing the establishment of democratic institutions. Yet the deputies had previously judged the government's answer to be unconvincing and insufficient.

It is expected that the government and Abd El-Kader Ben Saleh, the head of the National Democratic Association and the head of deputies, will redouble their efforts to resolve this matter.

The minister of justice insisted on the probes as being conducted with "an attitude of mature democratic practice."