Abdelaziz Bouteflika, former Algerian president in power for more than 20 years, died on Friday, 17 September. Back to his life.
April 2, 2019 marks the last appearance of Abdelaziz Bouteflika on Algerian television, the day of his resignation as president of Algeria. Expelled from power by numerous popular demonstrations, he announced that he did not want to run for the fifth consecutive term after 20 years at the helm of the country. Sick and weakened, he has become nearly invisible since his stroke in 2013, which confined him to a wheelchair.
“We have a good heart. We cannot speak ill of the dead, besides, he protected the country”, witnesses a young man in his twenties on the streets of Algiers. Abdelaziz Bouteflika has been present on the Algerian political scene since 1962, the year of the declaration of independence. Minister of Sports at 25, he took over as head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for 16 years. First elected president in 1999 and re-elected three times, his fourth term was certainly too much. Shot down by the army and booed in the street, the one who has made the longest reign at the head of Algeria leaves the history of his country through the back door.