Wo! R L D O UTLOOK
"ALGERIA SCORES GAINS IN DEEENSE AGAINST MOROCCAN ATTACK
PARIS, Oct. 27 _- While the fighting in the border area between | Morocco’ and Aigeria remains inconclusive at the moment, in other fields the Ben Bella government has made great progress,
Egypt has come to the aid of Algeria with important military help, Throughout the: Arab world, sympathy is heavily on Algeria's side and a number of diplomatic moves have been made to demonstrate that in Africa, Hassan II is ‘becoming more and more isolated.
‘Most important of all, however, ‘the conflict had the ‘effect of gal~ vanizing public opinion on an immense scale in Algeria, The scenes again are reminiscent of those in Cuba at moments when the counterrevolution struck at the Castro government, ' Each attack, when it was met head on and with: explanations of the issues, aroused the population to greater enthusi-~ asm for the revolution and to greater alertness in defending it and readi-= ness to sacrifice to the utmost to preserve” it.
A larger and larger number of Algerians are baking to the streets to express their sentiments, whether in immense crowds for rallies called to hear speakers, or.in: long. lines. to. volunteer | for active combat, This is a most significant sign of the fervor that is catching up the population.
Its effect on the armed uprising in Kabylie has been’ spectacular, Instead of spreading, the counterrevolutionary | attempt was localized and. then -began to shrink. Now the formation appears to have split with a ~ decisive group of leaders headed by Mohand Ou El Hadj seeking to make their ‘peace with the government and to participate in the armed defense of the “country,
The Ben Bella government has wisely welcomed this move -- indeed it followed an active policy from the beginning -of. leaving the bridge open for such a development.
And the nationalizations are continuing. The latest ones included a modern paper and carton plant at El Harrach, and eleven establishments at Skikda (formerly Philippeville),.
The slogans appearing on banners and in the newspapers display the. mood of the people: "Hundreds of Thousands of Volunteers to Defend the Socialist Revolution," "Forward for the Defense of the Revolution."
The crowds shout violent slogans against the Moroccan king: "Hassan, Assassin! We Will Wint" "Hassan, Assassin}! Socialism or Death!"
To the astonishment of correspondents, the women of Algeria, most of them still wearing their traditional veils, have been among the most active in mobilizing sentiment in defense of the revolution. Many of them lined up to volunteer for the fighting, despite the rejection of their offers by Algerian men who are still rather backward on this question. A crowd. of women in Algiers carried a great banner through the streets reading, “Down with the monarchy, cancer of the Peoples!" * “The line of the government is well represented by a proclamation issued by the Political Commissariat of the National Popular Army:
"Through your struggle, the Moroccan people will perceive the light of which they have. been deprived so long and will liberate themselves from the retrogressive regime and all its vestiges." .
The proclamation concludes: “Your efforts will “break the yoke borne by your Moroccan brothers, ‘Free your brothers as you. have freed your | _country. Fight the reactionary, opportunist regime, The battle which you are undertaking is the final one for driving back colonialism and its traitors of North Africa, The cause of justice which you are defending will never be vanquished by oppression and colonialism,"
The capitalist newspaper Paris-presse ltintransigeant October 17 viewed the’ essence of the struggle as follows:
"The frontier conflict in which Ben Bella and Hassan now confront each othér is above all the clash of a Castroist revolution which appears contagious. and a monarchy that is turning more and more toward the West.
"The key to this crisis is to be found in the declaration made only a month ago by Colonel Boumedienne: 'To win, the Algerian socialist revolution must be extended,'" _.... In New York, the Herald Tribune, a daily that has good connections on “Wall Street and should know what it is talking about, admitted editorially October 17: ‘
"The Algerians, before and after winning their independence, promised to negotiate a settlement with Morocco, but then procrastinated,
"The Moroccans, tired of waiting and thirsting for the rich mineral and oil resources in the region, real or fancied, evidently decided to force the issue,"
a Oe
By forcing the issue, however, Hassan II, without intending it, has given a great fresh impulse to the socialist trend of the Algerian Revolution.
NATIONAL CONGRESS OF