Bouteflika calls for vast Algerian participation in referendum

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has called on the Algerian community residing in France to widely take part in the referendum to be held on September 16 on a law providing for "national reconciliation" in Algeria.

In a message he addressed to the Algerian community in France, President Bouteflika said that the rights of the Algerians "cannot be defended better, nor will their positions improve without having a strong and prosperous Algeria."

In the same context, the secretary general of the Algerian peasants union called on peasants to cast their votes at the balloting centers to vote " yes" for that law. He added, "No Algerian citizen who has reason will refuse peace, which is the basis for attaining stability in Algeria."