Over 60 Amazigh activists detained by the government for taking part in protests over the last 18 months were released on August 5. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika granted a special amnesty to the detainees, in apparent response to demands for their freedom by Amazigh leaders during protests held during the last two weeks. Protestors and security forces clashed on July 26 and July 29 in Tizi Ouzou, the capital of the predominantly Amazigh Kabylie region. The pro-Amazigh opposition party, the Socialist Forces Front, had demanded the release of the activists as a condition for their participation in local elections on October 10. Tribal elders may still call for a boycott of the elections.
