Colonial Discourse

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Colonial Discourse
This paper discusses various issues that are brought by colonization. In particular, the paper focuses on the Battle of Algiers, which involved the French and the FLN. The paper discusses the term colonization and thus helps one understand the battle in question. It also discusses the ways the occupation of the Algiers by French troops affected it people. The three main ways that are discussed include the effect of arrest and torture, limitation of movement, and the lack of access to social amenities. The paper also continues to discuss cultural framing. This section of the paper helps the reader to understand the way in which the public’s perspective on political events and endemic economic problems was molded. The paper will also discuss the possible solutions to the problems discussed. This paper provides an in-depth understanding of the events surrounding the colonization of Algeria, thus allows the reader to determine a definite conclusion of the effects of the colonization.
Colonization refers to the occupation of an imperial power country into a country that may be considered less civilized. This is the systematic process of a large population of individuals from a more civilized country physically moving to another country with the aim of occupying it. The new occupants of the new country assume leadership rules while implementing political, social, and economic structures of their parent country.

For the process of colonization to be successful, the people occupying the new country maintain a connection with their parent country. This affords them machinery especially the military apparatus that is required to occupy forcefully a country. There are different types of colonization that include pre-modern world colonization and modern colonization. However, since the paper will focus on the colonization of Algeria, the pre-modern colonization takes center stage. This took place in the years between eighteen thirty-nine and nineteen sixty-two. However, the French faced opposition from locals who used guerilla tactics. The Battle of Algiers is the most acclaimed battle during the up rise that resulted to the suffering of locals.
One of the main ways the colonization of Algeria affected the lives of the locals includes the arrest and torture rebel leaders. However, it has been found that more people who were not necessarily involved in the guerilla warfare were also arrested. Most of the arrests used to take place in the late nights. Many families reported losing their family members after they mysteriously disappeared in the hands of the French military. Most of the arrests were conducted with the intention of identifying individuals who participated in the uprising against the local government. The Army was the essential arm of the government that was used in undertaking the arrests. This was after the police failed to contain the situation. To bolster the army, more police recruits were brought in. The intelligence collected from arrested individuals would normally result in the arrest of accomplices or suspects. The tactics used to obtain information from the arrested information was particularly painful. This is because the army was known for beating up their prisoners. Close to half the population of men in the country had been arrested by the army by the end of the colonization.
Limitation of movement between different parts of the country was also another way the people of Algeria were negatively affected by colonization. The reason behind this was that the government saw the need to reduce effects of the rebels. When the police of Algeria seemed unable to handle the rebellion, the army was brought in to contain the rebellion. The strategies put in place include the introduction of curfews, and limiting the movement of people from different regions. This was meant to ensure that the rebels were not able to share gain access to resources and information. However, it also limited contact between family members from different regions. It also hampered cultural and economic interaction between different communities in Algeria. The result of these effects was that the people lacked the necessary connection with different people that would allow them to prosper as a country. The effects of limited physical movement only served to push more people to support the rebellion. This is because the strategy negatively affected both the rebels and those who did not participate in the rebellion. Increased violence from the people involved in the rebellion resulted in the Battle of Algiers. This battle resulted in the death of very many young men. This can directly be attributed to the initial occupation of Algeria by the French.
Another way the colonization affected the locals was that it resulted in people lacking social amenities. The introduction of civilization to the people of Algeria meant that the population grew around major towns and thus increased the need for social amenities. These included government services, hospitals, clean water, and accommodation. However, during the colonization period, it was common knowledge that such services were only available to the elite. In this case, the elite included the local leaders and the French. The lack of access to these essential facilities and services resulted in a sense of discontent among the people. It was also common for the people to face nighttime curfews. This was meant to limit the activities of guerillas during this period. The problem here is that people who were faced with emergencies at night would not find help. This opened up the people to many other issues. For instance, a woman who went into labor at night would have to deliver in her home instead of doing so in a hospital. The lack of access to social amenities for the locals eventual aggravated the situation in Algeria.
Cultural framing refers to the strategies used by the governing bodies in order to change the perception of a society with regards to a certain reality. Some governing bodies use the said strategies with the aim of highlighting an impressive society that is probably having bad circumstances. Governing bodies have been known to use mass media in the manipulation of the public’s perspective on various issues ranging from politics to social issues. The French government had a problem of guerilla warfare from rebels within the local population. This led the government taking tough steps to clamp down on the menace. For instance, of the leaders of the rebel groups was killed during interrogation by the army. To cover up for this heinous act, the army provided a public statement hat stated that the leader hanged himself with a shirt while in prison. The main relationship between the cultural framing of political views and endemic economic problems is the need for power. France needed the Algiers in order to enhance their territories, which would provide their motherland with foreign income. However, the locals would soon realize that they were being tricked which led to the aggravation of the situation on Algeria.
As it has been mentioned earlier, one of the leaders of the rebellion was killed while being interrogated. This was Ben M’hidi, who was one of the main leaders of the FLN rebellion in Algeria. While the interrogations were going on, Ben died. This was because the torture tactics that were used were extreme, to which Ben’s body gave in. The cultural framing that was used in this incidence was to provide a public statement that Ben took his life by hanging himself with a shirt. The effects of the framing to the community were almost immediate. This is because the community could not buy that one of their own would kill himself. The result of the framing was a short period of calm. However, word got round that the French had murdered Ben. While most people were gripped with fear, many other decided to join the rebellion. This eventually made matters worse for the French government. The best solution for this situation was for the government to grant freedom and independence to the people of Algeria. However, if the French wanted to remain in Algeria, they should have incorporated the Algerian in the governance of their own country.
This paper has determined that the colonization of Algeria ultimately resulted in the Battle of Algiers. The lack of democracy in governing Algeria led to the situation. While the French saw this as an economic opportunity, the locals saw this as an outsider taking advantage of them. This was mainly because the French, as did many other colonizers, enjoyed certain privileges that the Africans did not enjoy. This created bitter emotions among the Algerians. They could not understand why they could not live a life of comfort in their own land. This resulted in the discussed effects of colonization. It also resulted in the need for cultural framing on the part of the government.