 | Paris Maghreb book fair pays tribute to "suitcase carriers" Jeanson and Curiel |
| Paris Maghreb book fair pays tribute to "suitcase carriers" Jeanson and Curiel |
 [Aps 7/2/10] PARIS (France)- A tribute to Francis Jeanson and Henry Curiel, two anti-colonial activists and "suitcase carriers," was paid Saturday night in the French capital Paris at the "Maghreb des Livres" (Maghreb book fair). Anne Beaumanoir, author of "Le feu de la mémoire, la résistance, le communisme et l'Algérie (1940-1963)" and René Galissot who recently published "Henry Curiel, le mythe mesuré à l'histoire," have each talked about these two historical figures who, in France, have provided help and support to the Algerian Revolution. Anne Beaumanoir was a key agent in the Jeanson network of "suitcase carriers." This former Communist, who left the Communist Party to protest against its "deviations," said it was normal for her to support the Algerian cause."I lived through the occupation of my country by Nazi Germany and I was part of the resistance to liberate my country. I thought it was normal to contribute to the liberation of other peoples and the independence of Algeria," she said. "At no time have I felt a traitor to my country. I felt that I was moving with history and I knew that the independence of Algeria was necessary and inevitable. It was a question of time only," she pointed out. Since 1955, she added, after the vote by the special powers, 3,000 militants have left the French Communist Party (PCF). "Many were those who joined the networks of suitcase carriers, even though it is difficult to give any reliable figures because it was an illegal work and the networks were close," she explained. Rene Galissot, a historian specializing in the Maghreb, touched on the personality of Henri Curiel, who was assassinated in Paris in the 1970s by a far right commando. He told the audience about the difference between the two activists. "Jeanson was the secretary of Jean-Paul Sartre and spokesman of the existentialist movement with a background of struggle against fascism and colonialism. He was a supporter of the strategy of resistance to the resistance. Henri Curiel presented the paradox of being a Communist Gaullist. He was among those who believe that national liberation movements should be part of a world revolution." The debate focused on the conditions that led the French to be part of the networks of suitcase carriers, their "working" conditions, their relations with French Federation of the National Liberation Front (FLN) and the controversies raised in the French media by the second FLN-ALN (National Liberation Army) a front in France. Anne Beaumanoir has not failed to mention the personality of Mohammed Boudia, an activist of all causes, from that of his people to the Palestinian resistance, and Algerian playwright, murdered in 1973 in Paris in a car bomb attack sponsored by Israel. "He was a man of action and thought," she said. | |||
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