Ben Ali, 21 Years and Counting
November 10th, 2008 by Jason
On the 21st anniversary of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s bloodless coup in Tunisia, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls for an end to his government’s repressive media tactics. The CPJ notes that “through years of harassment, censorship, and imprisonment of journalists,” Ben Ali has “largely eradicated independent journalism in the country.” A recent CPJ report on Tunisia’s human rights record concludes that “Tunisia wants you to believe it is a progressive nation that protects human rights. It is, in fact, a police state that aggressively silences anyone who challenges President Ben Ali.”
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Tunisia | Comment »
Press Freedom Under Attack (literally)
September 24th, 2008 by Jason
At Babylon and Beyond, Borzou Daragahi laments U.S. silence in the face of increased violence against journalists in the Middle East. He tells the story of a Tunisian web journalist stuffed in a car and threatened with death for criticizing the president last week; Also last week, a Saudi cleric issued a fatwa declaring that all writers who challenge religious leaders should be fired from their jobs, flogged, and jailed.
“The U.S. gets all hot and bothered about human rights abuses and suppression of speech in places such as Iran or Syria. But it has remained relatively silent about an apparent uptick in repression of journalists among its allies in the Arab world, like the staunchly pro-American Tunisia or Saudi Arabia.”
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia | Comment »
‘Islamic Democracy’ in the Arab World
September 12th, 2008 by Jason
Der Spiegel has an in-depth look at the current state of democracy in the Arab world. The 7-part series surveys Kuwait, Turkey, Tunisia, Jordan, and the Gulf, as well as analyzes the history of the fusion between Islam and democracy.
The authors reject the notion that democracy is somehow incompatible with Islam or Arab culture, and they conclude that “giving the peoples of the Islamic world a voice in shaping their own destinies will help make their lives easier, the region more predictable, and the West more secure.”
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Gulf, Islam and Democracy, Jordan, Kuwait, Political Islam, Tunisia, Turkey | Comment »
Stability vs. Democracy: Sec. Rice in North Africa
September 9th, 2008 by Jason
Secretary Rice continued her tour of North Africa with visits to Algeria and Tunisia. Her meetings with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and President Zine Abidine Ben Ali, respectively, focused on counterterrorism cooperation. Though she said she raised the issue of democratic reform in private meetings. “We talked about internal matters here in Tunisia and about the course of reform,” Rice said. “We have been very clear that we would hope that Tunisia would do more.”
In Algeria, Rice called President Bouteflika “truly one of the wise men” of the region. No word on who else makes the secretary’s “wise men” short list.
Bret Stephens in the WSJ argues that Rice’s rapprochment with Libya represents the final “triumph of the stability agenda over the freedom one.”
Posted in Algeria, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Human Rights, Libya, Tunisia | 1 Comment »
Cracking Down on Internet Freedoms in Tunisia
August 20th, 2008 by Adam
Sami Ben Gharbia at Global Voices (Hat Tip: The Skeptic) has an excellent look at the nature of Tunisia’s censorship of the internet. Tunisia’s internet repression goes beyond blocking blogs, YouTube, and Facebook, and includes arresting online activists in order to create a state of fear. Global Voices also suggests that the government is involved in hacking opposition blogs and filtering e-mail.
Posted in Technology, Tunisia | Comment »
Tunisia’s Wise Dictator
July 28th, 2008 by Adam
Frank Smyth at The Hill’s Congress Blog, writes about the trip to Tunisia taken earlier this month by Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-MN). According to a report by Tunisia’s state news agency, McCollum, co-Chair of the bipartisan Tunisia Caucus, told the nation’s foreign minister that, “Tunisia holds a strategic position between Europe, Africa and the Middle East and it represents the voice of moderation and wisdom in the world, a voice we must listen to.” Smyth criticizes McCollum and the Caucus for not bringing up the human rights record of Tunisian President Ben Ali, who he refers to as “…a dictator who has monopolized power for no less than 21 years.”
To read more about the human rights situation in Tunisia under the nation’s “moderate” leader, click here.
Posted in Human Rights, Tunisia, US foreign policy | Comment »
Carnegie’s Arab Reform Bulletin for April
April 3rd, 2008 by Amanda
Be sure to check out the April issue of the Arab Reform Bulletin from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. This month’s edition features a fascinating interview with three key female political actors from the Gulf on women’s political participation: Rola Dashti (Kuwait), Fatin Bundagi (Saudi Arabia), and Munira Fakhro (Bahrain).
Also included are a critical look at next week’s municipal elections in Egypt by Khalil al-Anani, an examination of the fairness of Morocco’s electoral system by Michael Meyer-Resende, and an article on President Bush’s budget request for fiscal year 2009 and what it means for democracy in the Arab world, by POMED’s Stephen McInerney.
Their news roundup also covers many fascinating developments such as the opening of the first church in Qatar, a constitutional amendment in Tunisia that should make it possible for more candidates to run in the presidential election next year, and labor unrest in the UAE.
Posted in Arab media, Bahrain, Egypt, Elections, Freedom, Gulf, Journalism, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, UAE, US foreign policy | Comment »
Dissent and Reform in the Arab World
March 6th, 2008 by Sharlina
Michael Rubin, Danielle Pletka, and Jeffrey Azarva at the American Enterprise Institute’s “Dissent and Reform in the Arab World” project have released a report that analyzes how to empower democrats in the region. A collection of essays touches on the Bahraini government’s control of the media, some positive steps in Jordan, and efforts to mobilize the opposition in Syria. A collection of editorials from the Arab press touches on issues ranging from oppressive silence in Tunisia to challenges for change in Iraq.
Posted in Arab media, Bahrain, Democracy Promotion, Iraq, Jordan, Reform, Syria, Tunisia | Comment »
Carnegie’s Arab Reform Bulletin for March
March 6th, 2008 by Sharlina
A highly recommended read, the Arab Reform Bulletin of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is now available in its March edition. The issue contains an analysis of the the latest efforts by Arab leaders to stifle Arab media, an examination of Morocco’s Party of Justice and Development (PJD)’s attempts at inclusion, and a look at Fatah’s future prospects of survival.
In its news roundup, the Bulletin features coverage of the delay in Presidential elections in Lebanon, abolition of Libyan ministries, and efforts by many to release prisoners in Bahrain, Morocco, and Tunisia.
Posted in Arab media, Bahrain, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Publications, Tunisia | Comment »
Tunisia’s President Promises More Democracy
December 11th, 2007 by Celest
Federica Narancio, in the Middle East Times, reports that Tunisia’s President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali announced a series of measures to promote democracy and human rights in the country including granting more funding to the opposition parties and their press, abolishing administrative control over publications and books, and reforming the electoral and judiciary system to improve the representativeness and transparency of the government. Even though Tunisia is considered to be one of the most progressive Arab countries, experts say the Tunisian president has made such promises in the past and the government is in fact a “one-party dictatorship.”
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Tunisia | Comment »
Tunisian Freelance Journalist Arrested
November 28th, 2007 by Amanda
AllAfrica.com and the Committee to Protect Journalists highlight the arrest of freelance journalist Slim Boukhdir “known for his published criticism of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and members of the first family.”
“The journalist is a correspondent for the pan-Arab London-based newspaper al Quds al Arabi and the website of the satellite television station al-Arabiya as well as contributing to several websites, including Tunisnews and Kantara.”
Supporters of Boukhdir say, “We urge the Tunisian authorities to stop hounding Slim Boukhdir who has been harassed for years…He has suffered financial and official pressure, physical attack and now arrest.”
Posted in Arab media, Freedom, Journalism, Tunisia | Comment »
POMED Notes: Tunisia: A Model of Middle East Stability or an Incubator of Extremism?
November 16th, 2007 by Sean
A number of human rights NGOs held an all day conference on Tunisia on Tuesday at Georgetown University Law Center. In a variety of panels, Tunisian scholars, activists, and a member of the Tunisian parliament reflected on the past two decades of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali’s rule and spoke of the country’s future prospects for human rights and political reform.
Professor Clement Henry argued that Tunisia is now the “best situated among all the Middle Eastern countries” for democratic reform, despite the current ‘police state’ created by Ben Ali.
Moncef Marzouki, former President of the Tunisian League of Human Rights, argued that “we have a mock democracy” in a Tunisia that is “looking more and more like an appendage of the West.” In contrast, Tunisian MP Enma Ben Arab stated that “we in Tunisia have adopted a consensual democracy… because we cannot afford a turbulent, violent democratization” fomented by Islamists.
Khadija Cherif spoke on the regime’s ‘confiscation’ of the issue of women’s rights, Mokhtar Trifi discussed the oldest human rights organization in the Arab world, Omar Mestiri and Radhia Nasraoui discussed the legal framework of torture in Tunisia, and Naziha Rjiba spoke on the state of press freedom in the country.
The panel concluded with CPJ’s Frank Smyth, HRW’s Sarah Leah Whitson, Rohan Jayasekera of IFEX, and Claire Tixiere of the International Federation for Human Rights speaking on the role of the international community in protecting human rights in Tunisia.
For POMED’s notes on the event, and the often heated Q & A sessions, click here.
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Judiciary, Terrorism, Tunisia | Comment »
Twenty Years of Ben Ali
November 6th, 2007 by Sean
Amid predictions of President Zine al Abidine Ben Ali’s continued rule, Tunisia marks the 20th anniversary tomorrow of the coup that brought him to power. Vivienne Walt in Time reviews both Tunisia’s economic success and its stalled process of political reform.
Also looking back on Tunisia’s past twenty years, Reporters Without Borders released yesterday a report on the current state of press freedom, and Amnesty International has issued a press briefing on the regime’s human rights record.
Posted in Human Rights, Journalism, Tunisia | Comment »
Tunisia’s Young People Agitate for Greater Political Openness
October 10th, 2007 by Amanda
Jill Carroll in The Christian Science Monitor writes that after more than 20 years of facing harsh government crackdowns, a new Islamic movement appears to be taking shape and bubbling up in universities and among young people who are attempting to challenge “Tunisia’s brand of enforced secularism and agitate for greater political openness.” Analysts say “cutting off all political avenues is leading to the radicalization of some young people.”
Posted in Political Islam, Tunisia | Comment »
Democracy Development in Tunisia
October 2nd, 2007 by Celest
Larry Luxner, in an article in the Washington Diplomat, discusses the development of democracy and pluralism in Tunisia and its fight against terrorism and extremism.
Posted in Reform, Tunisia | Comment »
US Efforts to Spread Democracy in Tunisia Are Met with Resistance
September 12th, 2007 by Amanda
Jill Carroll of the Christian Science Monitor reports that US-funded democracy building projects in Tunisia, like a university newspaper produced by Tunisians and a program of roundtable discussions, are “complicated by popular anger over US policy” and consequently “some governments in the region are worried US efforts to stoke democratic reforms will destabilize their regimes.”
Posted in Democracy Promotion, North Africa, Reform, Tunisia | Comment »
POMED Notes: Democratization in the Middle East and North Africa
September 11th, 2007 by Sean
A timely and pertinent discussion of the current state of human rights and democratic reform in the Middle East and North Africa was held today at the School for Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins. Prominent Tunisian democracy activist Sihem Bensedrine discussed the current state of human rights in Tunisia, while Habib Nassar and Neil Hicks spoke of a similar situation in Syria.
“Democracy is not just being alive and having a passport,” Bensedrine explained, questioning how Tunisians can have political and economic stability while yet being deprived of their democratic freedoms and basic human rights.
Hicks noted that “the tragedy of the Bush doctrine [connecting undemocratic regimes with terrorism], is that the diagnosis was correct.” He decried the current situation in many countries, in which governments use the primacy of “counter-terrorism” to deflect criticism of their human rights abuses.
POMED’s notes from the event, and the heated Q & A afterward, can be found here.
POMED also conducted an interview with Sihem Bensedrine yesterday.
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Human Rights, Syria, Tunisia | Comment »
POMED Interview with Sihem Bensedrine
September 11th, 2007 by Stephen
At 12 noon today, Human Rights First and the Protection Project at SAIS will hold an event entitled “Democratization in the Middle East and North Africa.” One of the featured speakers will be Sihem Bensedrine, longtime Tunisian human rights activist and journalist who is visiting the U.S. this week from Tunis. Ms. Bensedrine is the founder and primary spokesperson for the National Council for Liberties in Tunisia (CNLT), one of the two primary NGOs devoted to issues of democracy and human rights in Tunisia. She is also the founder and editor of the prominent online newspaper Kalima.
Yesterday afternoon, POMED had the opportunity to sit down with Ms. Bensedrine to discuss the state of political freedoms, oppression, and political reform in North Africa. In the poignant interview, Ms. Bensedrine covered topics such as the effects of the internet on freedom of expression and the crippling effects of U.S. support for Tunisia’s authoritarian ruler, General Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, on local efforts for reform.
“The problem for us is that, if our dictator was alone, and we only had to fight against our dictator, then we know how to do this. But when our dictator is supported by the large democratic countries, then we have to fight the whole world, and it’s too much for us.”
Click here for the full text of the interview.
Posted in Human Rights, Reform, Tunisia | Comment »
Tunisia: Most Likely To Democratize?
August 17th, 2007 by Shir
Kamel Labidi, writing in the Daily Star, examines Tunisia’s recent release of political prisoners, and discusses why “many maintain that the country remains one of the best qualified in the Middle East and North Africa to emerge as a democracy.” He sees an opportunity in Tunisia’s 2009 elections for President Ben Ali’s “friends in the European Union and the United States to advise him not to run for the presidency in 2009 and to start paving the way for a democratic transition.”
Posted in Democracy Promotion, Tunisia | Comment »
Apologizing for Dictators
June 27th, 2007 by Audrey
In Vanity Fair, Christopher Hitchens invites controversy by suggesting that Tunisia’s dictatorship may not be so bad.
Posted in Tunisia | Comment »
