This December 17, thousands of people took to the streets in Tunisia to commemorate the eleventh anniversary of the Arab Spring and to protest against the Government of Kaïs Said. 11 years after the start of the historic uprisings, the country continues to face economic stagnation and political instability, after Said’s authoritarian drift with the dissolution of Parliament five months ago and the decree of a state of emergency.
As a vague reminder of the historical event that the country experienced 11 years ago, Tunisia celebrated the anniversary of the Arab Spring this December 17 amid protests. Thousands of people took to the streets of the Mediterranean nation to demonstrate against the president, Kaïs Said, amid growing opposition around his figure.
Shouting “get off Said”, thousands gathered on Habib Bourguiba avenue to demand the resignation of the current president. An act that responds to the call of the collective “Citizens against the Coup”, which brings together groups of different origins in the political spectrum.
The protest was called mainly on the occasion of the anniversary of the Arab Spring, which began on December 17, 2010, when the young street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi blew himself up in the city of Sidi Bouzid to denounce social injustice. His death prompted thousands of people to come out to protest en masse against the nation’s poor living conditions, shortly after forcing the departure of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who ruled authoritatively for more than 20 years.
But, with the pressing political and social crisis, together with the dissolution of Parliament by Kaïs decision five months ago, social discontent was another of the main issues of the demonstration on December 17, 2021.
“Where are the corrupt people who stole the people’s money and who were going to be judged regardless of their status, their political orientation and their ideology? We have not seen a war against corruption but against people who have published on social networks, against freedom of expression, “Mounir Makhlouf, one of the current critics of the government, told EFE news agency, but who voted for Said in the 2019 elections.
Like Makhlouf, thousands of Tunisians are disappointed with the Said government, which once enjoyed great consensus and was considered as one of the hopes to get out of the deep economic crisis after the transition period of the African country, which began with the riots of the Arab Spring.
Although not all citizens in Tunisia are against the president. This was shown by his followers, who also decided to go out and demonstrate on his behalf. “We are all Kais Said”, was one of the slogans displayed on their banners by the nearly 200 supporters of the current leader.
“I hope that his decisions will be correct. He is a man of law and wants to improve his country, he does not do it to seize power. We felt drowned and now we can breathe,” said Basma, who was mobilized to go to the call from the city of Grombelia, 40 kilometers from Tunis.
As part of the protests, three opposition political parties accused the police of preventing the protesters, who were at one end of Habib Bourguiba avenue, from entering the street, a symbolic scene for having hosted major demonstrations in the last decades.
Issam Chebbi, secretary general of the Republican Party, pointed out that, on the contrary, supporters of the president were allowed to pass. In defense of the Executive, the Interior Minister, Tawfiq Sharaf El-Din, declared on the Jawahara FM radio station that “the security forces had treated everyone equally.”
Accusations of “coup” and discontent over the economic crisis in Tunisia
On July 25, the Kaïs Said decreed a state of exception under the argument of “restoring social peace.” The strategy gave him full powers and resulted in the removal of Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi; the suspension of the Assembly of People’s Representatives indefinitely and the paralysis of the 2014 Constitution almost completely.
A movement that many parties called a “coup”, while others consider it to be a “rectification” of the revolution that led to the fall of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.
“This is not a roadmap to get out of the crisis, but to perpetuate it,” said protester Jawhar Ben Mubarak, a constitutional law expert and member of the “Citizens Against the Coup” coalition.
A political instability to which is added a stagnant economy that has only grown an average of 0.8% per year in this decade. In addition, the effects of the pandemic in a country that depends mainly on tourism, have caused the economy to contract by 8.8% in 2020 and inflation to rise to 6.3% in October of this year.
Problems in which hundreds of unemployed took refuge. “Work, freedom, dignity, patriotism”, a motto of the also known as the Jasmine Revolution and that several chanted during the demonstrations on December 17.
However, despite this authoritarian drift and what the demonstrations may denote, polls still give 80% of the population’s support to Kaïs Said.
Along these lines, to appease the generalized discontent, the president announced a constitutional referendum next July and parliamentary elections for the end of 2022, on December 17 – coinciding with the upcoming celebration of the anniversary of the Arab Spring. Something that will define the road map of the country that started one of the most important Arab revolts in all of history.
With EFE, Reuters, AP and local media
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