Scientific event

1- Rim Nouari , University of Djilali Bounaama Khemis Miliana
Dark Tourism in Algeria: Between National Memory and Sustainble Develpment

Dark tourism is a modern form of tourism that involves visiting sites associated with human and natural tragedies, such as battlefields, prisons, and mass graves. It focuses on commemorative and educational dimensions rather than recreational purposes, aiming to preserve collective memory and reflect on the lessons of the past.

In Algeria, dark tourism has strong potential due to the country’s rich and painful history, particularly the period of French colonization (1830–1962), which left behind numerous sites that bear witness to resistance and sacrifice, such as torture prisons, major battlefields, mass graves, and martyrs’ memorials. It can also include natural disaster sites such as earthquakes and floods that form part of the national memory.

Dark tourism contributes significantly to sustainable development through its three main dimensions:
- Economically: by diversifying the tourism offer and attracting visitors interested in history and memory.
- Socially and culturally: by reviving national memory, strengthening identity, and promoting reconciliation with the past.
- Environmentally: by rehabilitating and preserving historical sites within sustainable projects that respect environmental standards.

However, despite these potentials, dark tourism in Algeria still suffers from weak institutional attention, limited marketing, and a lack of specialized programs that preserve the ethical and human dimensions of these sites.

In conclusion, dark tourism represents a real opportunity for Algeria to transform its national memory into a sustainable development resource, provided it is managed through an integrated approach that respects historical values, ethical considerations, and the goals of sustainable development.

2- ANISSA ECHIKR, Uinversity Blida 2
Media and national memory: a communicative approach in documenting the French nuclear tests, Burgan

Dark tourism is considered one of the modern branches of the field of tourism, and it focuses on visiting sites associated with tragedies or painful historical events that carry the collective memory of humanity. In Algeria, the French nuclear test site in Reggane (southern Algeria) represents a prominent example of this tourism, as it still has profound environmental, health and humanitarian impacts since the bombings of the 1960s.

The media and communications play an essential role in introducing these sites and conveying their truth to the world, through documentary programs, press coverage, and digital platforms that highlight the suffering of the local population and the ongoing environmental impacts, in addition to highlighting the human and historical dimension of the place. Digital media and social media also contribute to spreading tourism and historical awareness, and directing the attention of young people, researchers and visitors towards this purposeful tourism, On the other hand, this media coverage contributes to raising, which combines collective memory and the human dimension.

On the other hand, this media coverage contributes to raising international awareness about the necessity of compensating those affected and protecting the environment, as well as supporting the efforts of the Algerian state to transform these areas into national and tourist memory sites that remind us of events and call for peace and the rejection of wars.

Therefore, employing the media in various traditional and modern ways can transform Reagan's experience from a forgotten tragedy into a destination for contemplation, learning, and a reminder of human responsibility. However, this role requires a thoughtful media strategy, based on careful documentation, an ethical approach, and attention to the tourism and development dimension of these sites.

3- Naima GHENIM, Oran2 University / Aicha SENOUCI, Oran2 University
The Visitor's Voice: Deconstructing the Tourist Gaze at Algerian Dark Tourism Sites through Online Reviews

Sites where shadows of the past meet the visitors’ gaze bring into being whole new interpretations. While official narratives shape the presentation of dark tourism sites, meanings of these sites are ultimately co-constructed by tourists themselves. The burgeoning phenomenon of dark tourism, also referred to as thanatourism, is relevantly linked to nations’ continuous negotiation with their hostile pasts. Algeria, with its unique post-colonial dynamic, is considered a fertile land for this type of tourism where visitors can contemplate both triumph and trauma. This small-scale research investigates the "tourist gaze" as applied to Algeria's sites of trauma through the analysis of user-generated online reviews. Concentrating specifically on the Martyr’s Memorial in Algiers, a significant homage to liberation warriors, this study employs qualitative content analysis to parse a sample of TripAdvisor reviews (a go-to platform for travelers to research and book their trips.) The research aims to identify the prevailing themes, emotional registers, and interpretive approaches used by international tourists to make sense of their visit. Through scrutiny and evaluation of reviews, this research seeks to expose how visitors communicate their experiences and reconcile the historical weight of the site with its contemporary context. The findings will reveal how a complicated and painful history is assimilated, interpreted, and translated into personal narratives by a global audience, offering critical insights into the reception and impact of dark tourism beyond official or local oversight.