Bearing Responsibility at 20! Bearing Witness Today...

The author has assembled, through a vivid, alert and precise narrative, the chronological account of his conscription — 26 months in total, 15 of them in Algeria. The sections and chapters are clearly identified; those concerning Petite Kabylie form the backbone and principal theme of the work. The other sections highlight the author's determination to speak lastingly about his military life — from active reserve to civilian engagement — through his sustained and consistent commitment. The presentation has been carefully crafted, with a concern for aligning the lived sequences with the major events that unfolded at the same time. The narrative is stripped back and often eloquent. There are no photographs or documents for show. There are no uniforms worn day to day either. The author's only luggage was a military kit bag containing the soldier's bare essential kit. After fifty years of silence, the sense of a duty to speak prevailed — to say that the Algerian War was a tragedy that has not dissolved with time. To have lived such an experience at the age of 20, compounded by the weight of responsible accompaniment, leaves an indelible mark. To think of it still today, despite the distance of time, is painful. To set it down as testimony is intended as an act of remembrance for the future. The manuscript, an animated, engaging and deeply moving life journey, reveals a genuine passion for Algeria and for the harkis, whose fate is well known. Faced with such intensity and authenticity, one cannot remain indifferent…