The files cover the cases of French police and military personnel during the 1954-1962 independence war.
The French government says it will soon open to the public the archeological sites of Algeria in the Algerian independence war, highlighting some of the darkest themes in French history of the 20th century.
Between 1954 and 1962, France waged a war against the independent monarchy that was then under its control. Hundreds of thousands of Algerians were killed, and French troops and their proxies tortured protesters, according to historians.
The war in Algeria disrupted France and left President Charles de Gaulle unable to overthrow French rule. Nearly 60 years later, the conflict remains a hotly contested and divisive issue in France.
“We need to be brave to look at history,” French cultural minister Roselyne Bachelot said in a statement on Friday.
The declassification is an important step in gaining a better understanding of the war, as well as the development of some deadly deaths that have not yet been described, according to Benjamin Stora, a prominent French historian in Algeria.
“You can tell which people were being monitored, tracked down, arrested,” Stora told Reuters. “It’s a whole series that leads to oppressive methods that can be exposed.”
Algeria remained under French rule for 132 years until it won the independence war in 1962.
“We have things to do with Algeria. They are just rebuilding the truth,” Bachelot told BFMTV.
“I want this question – which is troubling, enriching, and in which historical liars are at work – and I want us to look it up. We cannot build a national story on a whim.”
Asked about the possibility that torture cases would be unveiled in the museum, Bachelot said: “It is patriotic for the country to be recognized.
“We need not fear the truth. We need to put it in perspective. ”
The announcement came two days after a visit to Algiers by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. He held talks with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, which aimed to revive dialogue between the two sides.
Relations deteriorated in October after French President Emmanel Macron criticized the “Algerian military” for re-recording history and inciting “hatred for France”. Speaking to the descendants of Le Monde, Macron also questioned whether Algeria existed before the invasion of France in the 19th century.
The comments, which came a month after Paris decided to significantly reduce visas for citizens of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, sparked outrage in Algeria. removed his ambassador and the banning of French warplanes from its airspace.
Tebboune also boycotted the November general conference in Paris on neighboring Algeria, which has been affected by the war in Libya, and said his country would “do nothing” to improve relations.
