ILO Scrutinizes Algeria’s Anti-Terrorism Law After Union Submissions on Article 87 bis

🗓️ Published on: 12/03/2026

The situation of trade union freedoms and freedom of expression in Algeria has reached a significant development at the international level after the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations of the International Labour Organization issued a formal request to the Algerian government concerning the implementation of Article 87 bis of the Penal Code.

This request was made within the framework of the supervision of the implementation of ILO Convention No. 105 on the Abolition of Forced Labour, which Algeria ratified in 1969.

This step is particularly important because it effectively signals the opening of an international supervisory examination into whether certain legal provisions are being used to penalize the peaceful expression of political opinions or civic activities.

The result of three years of work and follow-up

This development did not occur by chance, but rather as the outcome of sustained efforts carried out by the Trade Union Confederation of Productive Forces (COSYFOP) over the past three years.

During this period , the Confederation submitted a series of legal observations and reports to the International Labour Organization under Article 22 of the ILO Constitution, the mechanism that allows workers’ organizations to inform international supervisory bodies of potential violations of conventions ratified by member states.

These observations highlighted the risks associated with the broad wording of Article 87 bis of the Algerian Penal Code, which defines terrorist or subversive acts in terms that may allow the criminalization of peaceful activities such as protests or political expression.

The Confederation also supported its submissions before the ILO supervisory bodies with documented international sources, including the 2024 report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, which noted that the definition of terrorism under Article 87 bis is overly broad and vague and has in certain instances been used to prosecute individuals exercising their right to peaceful assembly.

What did the Committee of Experts request from the Algerian government?

In its direct request, the Committee of Experts did not merely note the legal concerns but also asked the Algerian government to provide precise and detailed information on how these provisions are applied in practice.

More specifically, the Committee requested information on the number of prosecutions initiated under Article 87 bis of the Penal Code, the judgments delivered by the courts in such cases, the types of penalties imposed on those concerned, and the factual circumstances that led to these prosecutions.

The aim of this request is to enable the Committee to assess whether these legal provisions are being used to sanction the peaceful expression of political views or forms of ideological dissent.

Questions about the criminalization of peaceful expression

In its observations, the Committee of Experts noted that certain counter-terrorism laws, when drafted in broad or vague terms, may be used to restrict fundamental freedoms such as freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly, and freedom of association.

The Committee also emphasized that ILO Convention No. 105 prohibits the use of imprisonment involving compulsory labour as a punishment for the expression of political opinions or opposition to the established political, social, or economic order.

The significance of this development

This development is important for several reasons.

First, the issue of Article 87 bis has now become subject to formal monitoring within the international supervisory system of the International Labour Organization.

Second, the Algerian government is now expected to provide detailed explanations and statistical data concerning the application of this provision.

Third, the debate surrounding these legal provisions has moved beyond the political and media sphere to an international legal level subject to scrutiny by independent experts.

The role of the Trade Union Confederation of Productive Forces

The inclusion of this issue within international monitoring mechanisms also reflects the role played by the Trade Union Confederation of Productive Forces in documenting violations affecting trade union freedoms, bringing these concerns to the attention of international institutions, and advocating for respect of the international conventions ratified by Algeria.

The Confederation’s submissions are officially recorded in the ILO NORMLEX database, which documents observations submitted by workers’ and employers’ organizations regarding the application of international labour standards.

This development demonstrates that sustained trade union work grounded in legal documentation can effectively bring substantive issues before international supervisory bodies.

This was reaffirmed by the President of the Trade Union Confederation of Productive Forces.