Disgruntled police stage protest rally in Algeria

ALGIERS, March 7 (Reuters) - More than 2,000 members of a security body that had helped fight an Islamist insurgency in Algeria staged a protest rally on Monday, presenting a new challenge to a government fearing Egypt-style unrest.

Municipal guards held the rally at Martyrs' Square in the center of Algiers and then marched to the parliament building to submit demands including wage rises and early retirement.

Their body was set up as an auxiliary police force in the early 1990s when Islamist militants launched a rebellion in which about 200,000 people were killed. The violence eased after authorities cracked down on insurgents and offered an amnesty.

The government has considered dissolving the municipal police by redeploying its officers to other bodies including the army. But officers have rejected that, demanding a salary rise with retroactive effect as of 2008 or early retirement.

The government mobilized a huge number of riot police to contain Monday's protest.

Weekly protests by opposition supporters have taking place in Algiers to demand more political freedom and better living standards, but the demonstrators have failed to strike a chord with most ordinary people.

The government has taken steps to appease tension, including lifting a 19-year-old state of emergency and other measures aimed at reducing unemployment and easing an acute housing shortage. (Reporting by Maghreb newsroom; Editing by Louise Ireland)

Source: Reuters.
Link: http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFAHM74909920110307.