Emmanuel Macron must allow access to confidential national defense documents from more than 50 years ago, covering France’s war in Algeria and other files previously considered to contain state secrets.
The Elisha said that the measure, a week after the admission that French troops tortured and killed Algerian independence activist Ali Boumendjel in 1957, sought to balance “historical truth” with legitimate “national defense issues”.
A recommendation to abandon the secret defenif the classification of documents relating to the years up to 1970, particularly those relating to French colonization and the Algerian conflict, was a key element in a recent report by historian Benjamin Stora commissioned by the president.
Stora highlighted the need for France to “face its history” and also suggested the creation of a “truth and memory” commission to reconcile “the two shores of the Mediterranean”.
The disqualification, which must be turned into legislation that must pass before the summer, was also welcomed by families of passengers who died on board an Air France flight from Ajaccio in Corsica to Nice on September 11, 1968.
Activists believe that a French navy ship accidentally shot down the Caravelle plane over the Mediterranean during a military exercise. However, all attempts to obtain official documents of the time were thwarted by the secret defenif classification.
In 2019, on the 51st anniversary of the accident, Margaret O’Connor, whose father, Arthur, was among 94 people who died, said the tragedy haunts her family every year. “It’s like a splinter that never goes away,” she said. “We think we know it anyway, but we need to hear it. We don’t understand how they can keep it a secret after 51 years. “
Matthew Paoli, 76, one of three brothers who were orphaned when they lost their mother, Toussainte, 59, and their father, Ange-Marie, 60, in the accident, said on Wednesday that he hopes the disclosure of confidential documents will finally clear up the incident. He said Macron’s initiative could “respond to the torment that has haunted us for decades”.
“It was a long wait,” said Paoli. “We understand that the Caravelle file must be among those being declassified, but we will have to see if all the information is actually in the documents and if they have not been edited. I hope it is good news and that we know the truth in time for this year’s birthday. Otherwise, we have to continue the fight, ”he said.
Lawyers for the Carvavelle families said opening the files was good news. “For years, the two investigating judges responsible for the case have struggled in vain to obtain documents that were probably classified as defense secrets,” said Paul Sollano, a lawyer for the families’ campaign association. “It is possible that we can also discover elements that we did not know previously.”
In an open letter to Le Monde two months ago, a group of French archivists and historians complained about the “systematic application” of refusals to their requests for official documents on the grounds that they were classified as national defense.
“Having access to documents blocked in this way for months, sometimes years, has prevented work in some of the most sensitive episodes of our recent past, be it the occupation, colonial wars or the history of the fourth republic and the beginning of the fifth”, wrote.
A petition calling for an end to the “unacceptable restrictions” imposed on access to the archives was signed by 18,000 people. The activists said that the criteria for deciding whether a document should be declassified are vague and “pave the way for arbitrary management of access to national archives”.
A statement from Eliseu announcing the declassification of archives over 50 years old said: “It is the responsibility of the State to articulate in a balanced way the freedom of access to archives and the just protection of the nation’s superior interests through national defense secrecy.
“Determined to promote respect for historical truth, the president of the republic listened to the demands of the academic community to facilitate access to classified archives over 50 years old.”