The Wire

The French Government have just passed a law that will effectively rewrite the history books. The law will force schools to present France’s colonial history in a favourable light, especially in Algeria – where hundreds of thousands were killed in the fight for independence. Not surprisingly there’s been strong opposition to the law, with critics arguing the law imposed an official lie about past crimes and massacres. Dr Karis Muller from the Australian National University explained the real history of the French in Algeria. The vice-president of the Australian History teachers association Nick Ewbank says the teaching of history involves both the good and the bad.