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Clubs and Associations

Introduction

The Algerian cultural field went through some critical activity, as its contexts and activities were diversified, the number of associations and clubs increased. It was clear that Algerian people had a tendency to create this type of cultural associations and clubs in general to give a legal context to their activities, through exposing their theater plays and conferences, and taking part in the cultural and intellectual life stimulation. 

 First: Associations:

The colonial administration tried to frenchify the Algerian people through schools and history classes that glorified France. However, after its failure it switched its attention to associations that worked to divert young Algerians to greater temptations. After its continuous attention set on the centers, the uprooting of the Algerians from their Islamic Arab identity easily happened, and slowly turning it towards the French identity. Since the mosques and schools were limited to a particular class, Algerian reformers and renovators’ goal, was to expand their activity through the creation of clubs and cultural associations that could transmit the greatest number of reformist ideas, especially to the youngsters. and among the associations that have played a major role in expanding the cultural circle we mention:

1. The Rachidia Association:

It is a Widadi association of the former pupils of the Arabic schools, French of Algiers. It was created in 1902, under the guardianship of  the French people who empathized with the Algerians. Since there were former school students in this association, its objectives were focused on taking care of this category, giving its objectives a political perspective. They tried through the association's activities to make Algerians discover the French culture to be able to integrate them into the French environment. The third element of its goals was the requirement to organize courses and conferences so that the students could learn the French language and glorify the French ideology.

However, this does not mean that the Arabic language was excluded, the conferences were usually given in the 2 languages. Among the goals, according to Robert Agieron, helping people was included and it is according to his words:  “We want the poor and neglected Muslim community to be a community that works towards financial development freedom to be able to deliver them from fear and the anguish, and allow them to think and give the new generations opportunities for development."

The association also cared for the social aspect, that by helping the poor and needy. The association mostly allocated a part of their income as financial aids, like buying clothes, school items, and would distribute meals during periods of study.

These associations were receptive to the trend. This is demonstrated through the lecture subjects. These lectures covered a wide range of topics (literature, law, politics, and science), varied in their encouragement of learning and receptivity to languages and sciences, and introduced a few arts, political, and legal systems, among other things.

Several topics that concerned Algerian and French public opinion were covered in the lectures given, including Dr. Ben Brihamat's talk on "The History of Arab Medicine." Additionally, Mr. Fattah gave a talk titled "The Knowledgeable." Dr. Ben Tami spoke on the subject of "tuberculosis". Also presented were other lectures on Islamic civilization, the most significant of which were "Islam and Foreign Languages" by Ben Zakri, "History of Islamic Literature" by Ben Samaya, and "France, Freedom, Equality" by Al-Hafnawi.  The association attempted to include all facets of peoples' daily lives, which was lacking prior to this time. From this, the elite came to try to catch the Algerian people and society up with the civilization and advancements that the rest of the world was going through at the time through their activities.

As a result, the association succeeded in playing important roles, and the absence of organizations like it in other Algerian towns may have contributed to its success in Algiers. In the year 1910, the group increased its activity and opened several branches.

 

2. Tawfiqiya Association:

Founded in 1908 in Algiers by Algerian intellectuals and some French liberals, it was directed by one of the young Algerians, Dr. Ben Al Touhami.

Its goal was to bring together Algerians who wanted to educate themselves and develop their thoughts. The fundamental legislation requires them to keep out of politics, any participant in the political process is susceptible to expulsion in order to guarantee its continuation, because entering politics implies obstructing the French administration's work. This explains how agile and smart the owners are and the extent of their political vision.

This association concluded its activity for a while and was resurrected on November 10, 1911 by the elite.

The Association recorded a wide range of cultural activities, which had a significant impact on the elite and society, as well as its various conferences and cultural activities, including: Invitation of Professor Pliti Peltiev, who gave a conference entitled "Advantages of Arif" in which he identified how to become familiar, namely the scientific composition of a convergence between the Algerian and French society, and also gave a conference entitled “Public Islamic Law.” a conference entitled "Features of the Contemporary Human World" was delivered by Swaleh Mohammed in an attempt to demonstrate the relationship between the Islamic East and the Christian West, during which scientific conferences were held in 1911 through which the interests of the reformers were reflected, which revolved around the business of renewal, follow the spirit of the times and the revival of the Arab-Islamic heritage. 

The Association has helped develop Arab culture among Algerian youth by introducing them to its Islamic civilization. It has also proven the relevance of Algerian history through its interests and perseverance. They tried to bring Algerians and French closer together. It has aided and improved the poor students. The end of its activities occurred in 1913 as a result of the admission of the majority of its active members into the French army.

 

3. Sidiqiya Association :

Founded in 1913 by Mr. Abbas Ben Hamana and Chiekh Hadj Bakir Al Anq, the Association aims at promoting Islamic education, disseminating Arabic education, undertaking social reforms, reviving the Arabic language and culturally enlightening the society through lectures and recreational activities.

The Sidiqiya Association established a modern and free Quranic school in Tebessa in 1913 where it appointed qualified teachers from Tunisia here: Ahmed Ben Saleh, Mahmoud Ben Mohammed, first to teach Arabic and the second to teach French, and its educational programs were in line with the times and responding to the imperatives of the society, the dedication of those involved in the work, the good conduct and care of its administration had an effective impact on achieving impressive results in the scientific field. The occupation authorities, fearing reform activity, had dissolved the association and guarded its school gates from students, and the teachers had been exiled.

 

4. Widadi Association of North African Muslim Students:

The post-war period was characterized by the emergence of a political consciousness and a political movement demanding rights. In the difficult circumstances experienced by Algerian students, these conditions consisted of a policy of arbitrariness and marginalization by the administration, which granted rights only to the children of the aging. Not only was the policy arbitrary on the administrative side, but it extended to distinction between French students, who had always expelled Algerian students from their student organizations. The association, founded in 1918, established its own organization that met their material and pedagogical requirements and ensured their educational and professional future. While Bouazir hails the beginnings of this society in 1920, historian Charles Robert Agirón states in his book L'histoire de l'Algérie contemporaine that the year of origin is 1919 and is referred to as the Association des Étudiants Autochtones by others.

According to the basic law of this Association, it refrains from engaging in political issues and its objectives were to serve the issues of students and deal with their material and moral problems and their educational issues and through the conferences of its programs and meetings tried to create a cultural atmosphere by discussing cultural and intellectual issues, in 1927, it released a publication highlighting the milestones of the life of the organization from its founding to that time. In 1930, the student's magazine was established, which dealt with cultural and reform issues and involved many independent political writers such as Tawfik Al Madani.

5. The Algerian Brotherhood Association:

Founded in Algiers in 1922 by El Amir Khaled on June 23rd 1922 when he became its president and Ibn Tuhami’s associate.The goal behind the creation of this association was to find ways to defend and improve the state of Algerian society financially, politically, intellectually, economically and emotionally.

And according to its objectives, this association’s program was based on :

-       - The full application of the February 4, 1914 law.

-       - Parliamentary representation of the Algerian Muslim who didn’t have the French nationality

-       - Enforcing equality and fair representation of Muslims in Algerian assemblies

-       - The definitive cancellation of the indigenous law

-       - Popularizing education

Two months after the creation of the association El Emir Abdelkader took the initiative to spread his political ideology to the popular class through the establishment of a gathering which was attended by famous people, and the steps of the party were covered by the newspaper "al iqdam" which described it as a “spark of hope”

Emir Khaled's goal in establishing the group is to foster fraternal relationships among Algerians, because unity is the foundation of any successful national building. The goal of its actions was to conserve Algerian characters, and this group was recognized as a political party by Algerian society. The French administration was concerned about this organization's operations, as evidenced by a covert communication made by a military officer, the chief of the military attaché in Laghouat, to the military commander, Tangera Ghardaia, and others. As a result, the government began to make false and flimsy excuses until it exiled the Emir and halted the association's activity by exiling the Emir to Alexandria.

 

Second: Clubs:

As for the clubs that had an important role in uplifting the cultural life, we mention:

1. Saleh Bay Club:

Mr. Aribe, Vice-President of the Constantine Prefecture Council at the time and afterwards Secretary General of the same post, formed the club in Constantine in 1907. In addition, Governor-General Gunnar has consented to serve as the honorary president of the Saleh Bey Club in recognition of the significance he places on such cultural and social institutions.

And therefore this club is the very first introduction for Algerian youth in this sector, and it was in the shape of a popular institution, with a vast curriculum funded by the French and Algerian supporters. As consultants, a group of educated Algerian elite, including Ibn al-Mawwab, Ibn al-Abed, and Mustafa Bachtarzi, took part.

This club served as a discussion platform for literary, scientific, economic, and social studies, as well as a venue for lectures and classes. Its founding manifesto encouraged students to collaborate and develop together: "Therefore, we appeal to your graciousness, fervor, and generosity in the name of religion, to engage with Muslims in Islam's homeland and to perform a general random act of kindness. Because in Constantine I established a committee called the Saleh Bey Club, that famous man who founded the Sidi El Kettani mosque, his school, and others."

In terms of the purposes of this club, we discover that, in addition to its principal goal, which is to propagate knowledge and educate Algerian Muslims on economic principles, it also attempted to educate them, assist the poor, console the weak and sick, build libraries for reading, enable Muslims to acquire public loans, and safeguard the rights of employees among them.

In addition to these objectives, the club was advocating for regeneration and against the stagnation and deviations in which Algerian youth were mired. In this club, Ben Al-Mawhib contributed by providing a series of lectures on social and literary themes.

Because the club's founding committee indicated claimed it had nothing to do with political or religious affairs, it was illegal to debate these topics in its club.

This club had over 1,700 members in 1908, and it had affiliates in several regions throughout Algeria.

2. Algerian Youth Club:

It was founded in the city of Karara in 1911, heralding the arrival of the youth movement on the scene. Its goals are to establish an atmosphere of entertainment and discussion regarding important topics such as  social prospects, education, and core issues.

The club has been noted for a variety of cultural events, such as literary, scientific, and economic talks in 1912. One of most notable of these lectures are:  Taleb Abdel Salam's talk to the youth on the reformation of the causes of Algerian society's collapse. Professor Ismail Mohamed delivered a presentation titled Cooperation and its Benefits in which he emphasised the importance of cooperation and solidarity in all areas.

3. Iqbal Club:

An exclusive group of young people founded this club in Jijel after the Second World War in 1919. "Khalaf Abd al-Rahman" was its honorary president, and Bourbon Farhat was his deputy. Ben Yahya Omar was the actual president of the club, with Khalaf Mokhtar serving as his deputy.

The majority of the club's managers appear to be from the bourgeoisie and elites of French culture. This club was devoted to France, as demonstrated by the Iqbal Club's inaugural meeting in 1919, which closed with the French hymn and the chant "Viva la France."

However, this does not mean that the club did not contribute to the national awaren ess with its lectures and follow-up on happenings in the outside world, which helped to relieve Algerians' isolation. The organization helped to educate the public by allowing them to adopt the current ideas that emerged as a result of the Great War. The laws governing this club, like those governing other clubs and societies, prohibited political discussions, and its creator attempted to emphasize his primary position in the club, as well as the school's role in promoting education and society.

We can conclude from this, as well as what has previously been stated about the associations, clubs, and roles that they played, that they opened the ground for the creation of political parties. Although one of the most important rules on which associations and clubs were founded was not to engage in political concerns, this is in accordance with Law 1901, which states that political participation within associations and clubs is prohibited. In addition to its work in the political field, it also contributed to the creation and training of an Algerian-Arab press, and in spreading the spirit of renaissance and introducing new ideas by holding lectures and reading newspapers acquired from abroad.

These clubs and associations also functioned as a forum for the educated class to exchange ideas and debate contemporary issues, as well as a way for Algerian youth to disseminate their ideas and promote their programs before being able to issue their own press.

However, the publishing of this press does not indicate that these organizations and clubs have abandoned their goal, as it was a platform for current ideas and the propagation of national awareness in the hearts of Algerians. As a result, we discover that these associations and clubs played a significant role during the pre-war period (1900-1914), making an effective contribution to the awakening of Algerians, and that is through the focus of its leaders on education, progress, and liberation, and their attempt to develop Algerian society, and to make it a modern and enlightened society rather than an old and traditional one.

The European concepts that we cannot overwrite since they too contributed and had a prominent role. This role which was notably embodied in the concept of clubs, as the latter helped establish the renaissance inside Algerian society.

1. Introduction:

Scouts appeared in Algeria after World War I created by the French, whose purpose was to nurture their children as an image of the scouts in France, despite the participation of some Algerian teenagers in its ranks due to their adoration for the discipline, scouting discipline, and uniform. However, the centennial of the occupation and the associated provocative exhibitions in which the scouts took part, spurred the Algerians to resign from its ranks and work towards forming an Algerian Islamic Scout.

2- its foundation:

The Algerian Islamic Scouts had its beginnings in the 1930s, when a scout regiment was created in the city of Miliana under the name: The Ibn Khaldoun group, led by Sadiq al-Ghoul, and shortly afterwards a second group was established in the capital by Mohamed Bouras under the name of the Falah group in 1935, and it obtained official accreditation in June 1936. Then the scout groups expanded to the rest of the Algerian cities, so the Raja group and the Sabah group appeared in Constantine (1936). The Fallah group in Mostaganem (1936), the Iqbal group in Blida (1936), the Kotb group in the capital (1937), the Hayat group in Setif (1938), the Hilal group in Tizi Ouzou (1938), the Raja group in Batna (1938) and the Najm group in Guelma (1938).

In response to the increased number of scouting regiments, Mohamed Bouras proposed creating the Algerian Islamic Scout University, which the Popular Front administration accepted. The founding conference was held at El Harrach, Algeria, under the honorary chair of Sheikh Abdel Hamid Ben Badis, with the motto "Islam is our faith, Arabic is our language, and Algeria is our homeland."

3- Its role in the National Movement:

The scout movement's activities expanded, and regiments spread throughout Algerian cities, and the movement received considerable notoriety among the citizens, — particularly after it had been sponsored by the reform academics who managed this same scouting gatherings. Ibn Badis in Constantine, Al-Tayeb Al-Uqbi in the capital, and Al-Bashir Al-Ibrahimi in Tlemcen. And it became a real school, instilling young people with patriotic ideas, Islamic principles, and the Arabic language, as well as spread of “independence” thoughts through scout camps, demonstrates plays which convey the dismal reality of Algerians under occupation, chanting national anthems, and instilling in the youth a sense of national belonging. The Algerian Islamic Scouts' strong activity left them exposed to persecution by French authorities, who tried all in their power to disrupt their operations. The death of Moahmed Bouras on the dubious charge of "espionage for the Nazis" on May 27, 1941 is perhaps the greatest essay on this subject. Regardless of the challenges, the scouts maintained their national tasks with:

- Distribution of national party publications, such as the publications of the People's Party and the publications of the Ahbab al-Bayan movement.

- Holding training meetings in militants’ homes.

- Participation in protests, most notably scout participation in the May 8, 1945 rallies, and the first martyred was scout Bouzid Chaal, who carried the national flag.

- Use of scouting headquarters as hideouts for militants pursued by French police.

4- Its role in the National Movement:

As the Algerian Islamic scouts hurried to join the Moujahideen at the outset of the liberation struggle, they established a great numbers of soldiers ready to carry out military action. Moreover, it declared its dissolution in response to the National Liberation Front's demand to help the National Liberation Army with trained young talents who have a strong sense of discipline and commitment to the motherland. The scouts were aware elements, trained on discipline, work, and order, ready to sacrifice for the benefit of the country with absolute conviction.

The chiefs of the scouting units helped train soldiers for the National Liberation Army. The National Liberation Army's health units also benefited from the best scouting elements in the fields of nursing and first aid, as well as from some of the most notable scout leaders who held positions of power throughout the revolution. The role of scouts during the revolution was not restricted to the interior of the nation, but also to the outside, where Algerian scout teams were created in Tunisia and Morocco and engaged in many scouting events in Rabat, Tunisia, Germany, and China in the name of Algeria. Finally, the Algerian revolution found the right balance of men among the scouts who had the honor of sacrifice and martyrdom for the Algerian revolution.