ALGERIAN, FRENCH, REFUGEES, REPATRIATES, IMMIGRANTS? HARKI CITIZENS IN POST ...

444 Pages·2012·18.37 MB·English

by  Jeannette Miller

The Pennsylvania State University

The Graduate School

College of the Liberal Arts
ALGERIAN, FRENCH, REFUGEES, REPATRIATES, IMMIGRANTS?
HARKI CITIZENS IN POST-IMPERIAL FRANCE (1962-2005)
A Dissertation in

French

by

Jeannette E. Miller
© 2012 Jeannette E. Miller
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements
for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

May 2012
The dissertation of Jeannette E. Miller was reviewed and approved* by the following:

Willa Z. Silverman
Professor of French and Jewish Studies
Dissertation Adviser
Chair of Committee

Jennifer A. Boittin
Associate Professor of French, Francophone Studies, and History

Tobias A. Brinkmann
Malvin and Lea Bank Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and History

Thomas A. Hale
Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of African, French, and Comparative Literature

Sophie de Schaepdrijver
Associate Professor of History

Patrick Weil
Directeur de recherche, CNRS/Université de Paris-I
Special Member

Jean-Claude Vuillemin
Professor of French
Head of the Department of French and Francophone Studies

*Signatures are on file in the Graduate School.

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ABSTRACT
Through an analysis of the national creation and the local implementation of French government
policies toward the harki population, “Algerian, French, Refugees, Repatriates, Immigrants? Harki
Citizens in Post-Imperial France (1962-2005)” examines this group’s post-imperial citizenship. To
escape the violence in Algeria, 20,000 of these native Algerians who fought for France during the
1954-1962 Algerian War migrated to France with their family members (totaling 100,000 people)
during the 1960s. The government placed half of the “repatriated” population in camps, choosing to
hide from public view these reminders of the end of France’s colonial dominance. Using two local
case studies—the Rivesaltes camp near Perpignan and a rural housing development in the Provencal
forest—this dissertation focuses on harki citizens’ nationality, exile, integration, protests, and
memorialization. The post-imperial French state, indelibly marked by colonial methods of
governance and the loss of French Algeria, marginalized harki citizens from both French society and
access to some rights accorded other citizens. Government officials enacted policies that prolonged
the colonial Algerian practice of differentiating populations based on ethnicity and attributed to the
harkis an unclear status, which questioned their belonging on French soil. Grounded in documents
from twenty different national and local public archives and private archival collections, my study is
balanced with interviews of harki population members and government officials, memoirs,
periodical articles, and judicial texts.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vi
LIST OF FIGURES viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS x
Introduction Harki Citizens: Between Algeria and France, Between the Colonial and Postcolonial 1
Harki Citizens: A Contradiction 5
Ethnic Soldiering and the Harkis 10
Algeria, France, and Harki Citizens 15
The Colonial, the Postcolonial, and Harki Citizens 21
Writing about the Harki Population: From Actors to Observers 26
A Note on Sources 32
Overview 36
Section 1 Introduction: The Harkis’ Nationality Amidst a Franco-French War 38
Chapter 1 Algerians? The Harkis’ Deeply “Rooted” Colonial Status 44
The “Nationalité Dénaturée” of Algerian Muslims 48
The “Nationalité Dénaturée” of the Harkis 52
The Harkis’ Future in an “Algerian Algeria” 56
The Harkis’ Future in Post-Imperial France 61
Conclusion: Algerians in a Franco-French War 68

Chapter 2 French? Movements of Post-Imperial Citizens 70

Distancing Harki Soldiers from France 77
Violence and “Repatriation” 81
“Harkis” as “Rapatriés”? 94
The OAS, the Harkis, and “Repatriating” the Franco-French War 104
“Security” over Movements of (Post) Empire 111
Violence and Nationality 118
Becoming “French” Citizens 131
Conclusion: Harki Citizens 141

Section 2 Introduction: Harki Citizens’ Exile in France 144

Chapter 3 Refugees? The Harkis’ “Univers Concentrationnaire” at the Rivesaltes Camp 161

A Camp for “Foreigners” 166
Tents and Barracks 173
The Power of Encadrement 194
Community of Exile: An Isolated Population 207
Social Advancement: Toward the Reclassement of the Harkis 218
Conclusion: Leaving the Rivesaltes “Univers Concentrationnaire” 225
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Chapter 4 Repatriates? The Post-Imperial Government’s Forest Hamlet “Integration” Policy 228

The First Phase: Developing the Government’s Contradictory Forest Hamlet Policy 236
The Second Phase: Evaluating and “Extend[ing] the Forest Hamlet Experiment” 248
Envisioning Permanent Forest Hamlets & Ending the Ministry of Repatriates’ Mission 267
Shifting Responsibilities and a Permanent Forest Hamlet Policy 273
Conclusion: Failed Integration Policy for the Harki “Repatriates” 288

Chapter 5 Immigrants? Isolation in Rural Southern France 293

Fuveau’s “Foreigners”: From Miners to Harkis 299
The First Decade in Fuveau: Isolation and Encadrement 309
The First Decade in Fuveau: Isolation and Integration 319

Chapter 6 Refugees, Repatriates, and Immigrants. The “Harki Problem” 337

Reevaluating Government Policies 340
Protests and Revising Government Policies 350
The Failure of Revised Policies in Fuveau 361
Conclusion: Refugees, Repatriates, Immigrants? 369

Conclusion Harki Citizens. Remembering a Forgotten Population 373

From 1975 to 1991: Protests, Status Quo, and More Protests 377
Harki Citizens and Commemoration 385
From Algeria to France, From the Colonial to Postcolonial 391

Appendix A Interview with Monsieur le Chancelier de l’Institut Pierrre Messmer 400

Appendix B “Annexes relatant les principales exactions connues” 407

Appendix C “Audition du nommé AA” 410

Appendix D List of Forest Hamlets in France 413

Appendix E Population of Forest Hamlets 416

Appendix F “Règlement intérieur concernant l’hébergement dans les hameaux forestiers” 417

BIBLIOGRAPHY 418

v
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

ACF: Archives Communales de Fuveau
ACR: Archives Communales de Rivesaltes
ACRA: Archives Communales de la Roque d’Antheron
ACNMF: Archives du Comité national pour les Musulmans Français
ADAF: Amicale des Algériens en France
ADBR: Archives Départementales des Bouches-du-Rhône (Marseille)
ADPO: Archives Départementales des Pyrénées-Orientales (Perpignan)
ADV: Archives Départementales du Var (Draguignan)
AFN: Afrique du nord
ALN: Armée de Libération Nationale
AN: Centre Historique des Archives Nationales (Paris)
ANP: Armée nationale populaire (d’Algérie)
AONACBR: Archives du Service Départemental de l’Office national des Anciens Combattants et Victimes
de Guerre des Bouches-du-Rhône (Marseille)
AONFBR: Archives de l’Office National des Forêts, Département des Bouches-du-Rhône (Aix-en-
Provence)
ASRBR: Archives du Service des Rapatriés des Bouches-du-Rhône (Marseille)
ASANHLMM: Archives de la Société Anonyme Nouvelle d’HLM de Marseille
ASSRA: Assistante sanitaire et sociale rurale auxiliaire
ATOM: Aide aux travailleurs d’Outremer
BIAC: Bureaux d’information, d’aide administrative et de conseils pour les Français musulmans
CAA: Corps d’Armée d’Alger
CAC: Centre des Archives Contemporaines (Fontainebleau)
CAC: Corps d’Armée de Constantine
CAO: Corps d’Armée d’Oran
CARA: Cité d’Accueil des Rapatriés Algériens (Bias)
CEMJ: Centre d’Entraînement des Monitrices de la Jeunesse Algérienne (Nantes)
CIC: Certificat d’Initiation de Construction
CIMADE: Service œcuménique d’entraide, formerly Comité Inter-Mouvements auprès des Evacués
CFMRAA: Confédération des Français musulmans rapatriés d’Algérie et leurs amis
CFPA: Centre de Formation Professionnelle Accélérée (Rivesaltes)
CMFP: Centre Militaire de Formation Professionnelle (Rivesaltes, Fontenay-le-Comte)
CNMF: Comité nationale pour les Musulmans Français
CRA: Centre de Rétention Administrative
CSFA: Commandant Supérieur des Forces en Algérie
EMAT: Etat-major de l’Armée de Terre
EMI: Etat-major Interarmées
FAFA: Forces Armées Françaises en Algérie
FFFLN: Fédération française du front de libération nationale
FLN: Front de libération nationale
FMA: Français musulman d’Algérie
FMR: Français musulman rapatrié
FNRFCI: Front National des Rapatriés Français de Confession Islamique
FPA: Force de police auxiliaire
FSNA: Français de souche nord-africaine
FSE: Français de souche européen
GAD: Groupe d’autodéfense
GMPR: Groupe mobile de protection rurale
GMS: Groupe mobile de sécurité
GPRA: Gouvernement Provisoire de la République Algérienne
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HLM: Habitation à loyer modéré
IGAME: Inspecteur Général de l’Administration en Mission extraordinaire
INA: Institut national de l’audiovisuel
INSEE: Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques
JORF: Journal Officiel de la République Française
MADRMAN: Le Mouvement d’assistance et de défense des rapatriés musulmans d’Afrique du Nord
MAE: Archives du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères (La Corneuve, formerly in Paris)
MRP: Mouvement Républicain Populaire
OAS: Organisation de l’Armée Secrète
ONAC: Office national des Anciens Combattants et Victimes de Guerre
ONF: Office national des forêts
PCF: Parti Communiste Français
PSU: Parti Socialiste Unifié
RONA: Rapatriés d’origine nord-africaine
RPF: Rassemblement pour la France
SANHLMM: Société Anonyme Nouvelle d’HLM de Marseille
SAS: Sections administratives sociales
SCINA: Service de coordination et d’information nord-africaine
SEAA: Secrétariat d’Etat chargé des Affaires algériennes
SFIM: Service d’accueil et de reclassement des Français d’Indochine et des Français musulmans
SHAT: Service Historique de l’Armée de Terre (Vincennes)
SONACOTRA: Société nationale de construction pour les travailleurs
SPDP: Sciences Po Dossiers de Presse (Paris)
UN: United Nations

v ii
LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: “L’Algérie de demain” pamphlet 66

Figure 2: Map of northern Algeria 71

Figure 3: Refugee camps on the northern coast of Algeria 89

Figure 4: The Bourg-Lastic and Larzac transit camps located in rural southern France 108

Figure 5: Harkis arriving in Marseille on June 12, 1962 109

Figure 6: Harki families waiting in the Marseille harbor to be transported to the Bourg-Lastic 109
camp June 23, 1962

Figure 7: Harki families residing in canvas military tents at the Bourg-Lastic camp in 112
summer 1962

Figure 8: Makeshift courtroom set up for nationality ceremonies at the Rivesaltes camp 133

Figure 9: A harki in front of the magistrate during a nationality ceremony in summer 1963 133

Figure 10: Copy of Mohamed M.’s nationality declaration 135

Figure 11: Present-day map of Fuveau 150

Figure 12: Ferhat K. preparing kesra 152

Figure 13: Geographical location of Rivesaltes 167

Figure 14: Image of the CMFP Nº1 from a pamphlet issued by the Ministry of Labor 171

Figure 15: Harkis arriving in Rivesaltes from Bourg-Lastic on September 16, 1962 175

Figure 16: Monthly population statistics of the harkis residing at the Rivesaltes camp 178

Figure 17: Housing of harkis at the Rivesaltes camp in tents versus buildings 180

Figure 18: Sketch of the Rivesaltes camp in the fall of 1962 182

Figure 19: Hollowed out barrack at the Rivesaltes camp 187

Figure 20: The dimensions and layout of the barracks, as captured in July 1963 188

Figure 21: Outhouses with Turkish toilets on the Rivesaltes camp grounds 189

Figure 22: Carnet familial de rapatrié of M’hamed H. 205

Figure 23: Number of weekly arrivals and departures of harkis to and from the Rivesaltes camp 209

Figure 24: Percentage of reclassement by number of jobs 248

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Figure 25: Percentage of reclassement by number of people 248

Figure 26: Number of forest hamlets per department 260

Figure 27: Number of forest hamlet inhabitants from December 15, 1962 to January 1, 1965 272

Figure 28: The town of Fuveau 295

Figure 29: Satellite image of Fuveau in 2011 301

Figure 30: Map of Fuveau in 1974 303

Figure 31: Standardized architectural drawing of the “type A” forest hamlet buildings 306

Figure 32: Officials welcoming harkis and their families to the sylvan surroundings in Fuveau 310

Figure 33: A harki and his family walking to their new home in the Fuveau forest hamlet 321

Figure 34: Children of harkis blocking the entrance to the Saint-Maurice-l’Ardoise camp in 1975 355

Figure 35: Masked harki sons bearing rifles and dynamite on the balcony of the Saint-Laurent- 356
des-Arbres town hall

Figure 36: Riot police outside of the Bias camp on August 18, 1975 358

Figure 37: Blueprint of the Fuveau forest hamlet 362

Figure 38: Ali H. pictured in front of one of the original forest hamlet buildings in 1996 with a 364
former GMS soldier who resides in Fuveau

Figure 39: Row of four reconstructed residences at the Fuveau forest hamlet 366

Figure 40: Protest at the Fuveau forest hamlet, July 1, 1991 382

Figure 41: Peaceful march led by harkis and their families on July 13, 1991 385

Figure 42: Aissa B. and Abdelkader B. in front of le monument aux morts in Fuveau on September 398
25, 2009

ix
LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Number of auxiliary soldiers serving in the French Army (January 1957-March 1962) 14

Table 2: Population of European descent in Algeria from 1833 to 1926 95

Table 3: Harkis age eighteen and older requesting, granted, and refused French nationality from 130
1962 to 1970

Table 4: List of forest hamlets in France 252

Table 5: Forest hamlets and forestry worksites open from December 1962 to December 1975 267

Table 6: Population of the Fuveau forest hamlet from 1964 to 1976 335

Table 7: Size and number of the thirty-one new houses in the Fuveau forest hamlet 364

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