Algeria: 'Disappearances' Commission Needs Broader Powers, According to Human Rights Watch

Algeria's commission on "disappearances" needs greater investigative powers and a broader mandate if it is to be credible and effective, Human Rights Watch says in a new report. The 32-page report, "Truth and Justice on Hold: The New State Commission on 'Disappearances,'" examines the "disappearances" commission announced in September by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. After years of stonewalling on the issue, the Algerian government established the commission to clarify the fate of the more than 7,000 persons who "disappeared"-mostly at the hands of security forces-during the civil conflict of the 1990s.