In an absurd attempt to harm the writer Kamel Daoud, the Algerian regime seeks to draw him into a controversy through a complaint that is as improbable as it is suspicious. This complaint, filed by a certain Sada Araouane, alleges that Daoud and his wife, a psychiatrist, exploited confidential medical information resulting from his psychological treatment to fuel his novel Houris. But behind this accusation lies a clear desire to silence an intellectual who disturbs with his critical spirit and his independence.
The affair seems to be one more maneuver, orchestrated to tarnish the image of the writer while his notoriety, reinforced by the 2024 Goncourt Prize, becomes a threat to those in power. It begins with a complaint filed by Sada Araouane against Kamel Daoud and his wife, a psychiatrist, for allegedly using confidential information for literary purposes in the novel Houris.
The motive? Personal elements relating to Ms. Araouane’s mental health, which she alleges were exploited to model a character in the Houris novel. A surprising accusation to say the least when we know the nature of the work in question, a story about the Algerian civil war, and the multiple layers of imagination that compose it. But what seems particularly unusual about this affair is the speed with which it was publicized and the suspicious timing with which it emerged, just after the writer won the Goncourt prize and above all, in a context where criticism of the Algerian regime is becoming increasingly difficult to make heard.
It must be admitted that Algeria, under the current regime, seems to have an unfortunate tendency to destroy those who dare to shake up the codes. Kamel Daoud, who wrote a work which subtly denounces the suffering of the past and the hypocrisy of Algerian society, has always been a target for an authoritarian power which prefers censorship to freedom of expression. This is not the first time that the writer has been the subject of intimidation attempts. When Meursault, contre-investigation, his first novel, was published, he had already been warned by the Algerian authorities against criticizing official history.
In reality, the intention of the current attack seems clear: to damage the image of an author whose books reach well beyond the Algerian borders and highlight a deeply disturbing truth. As shown by the lack of tangible basis in the complaint, it appears obvious that this episode is more a maneuver to silence a dissenting voice than a real legal process.
Kamel Daoud could, rightly, see this complaint as a badge of honor, further proof that he is hitting where it hurts. But the Algerian authorities, for their part, should probably remember that attempts at public intimidation are rarely effective in the long term. It seems that, in this specific case, the writer will emerge not only unscathed, but even more emblematic for those who believe in freedom of thought.
