Society 79

Covid-19 : Women, violence and confinement. An interview with Yosra Frawes

According to the Minister of Women, Children and the Elderly, Asma Shiri Laabidi, violence against women in Tunisia has increased five-fold since March 2019. Since the start of the confinement period, several associations have red-flagged this trend. With its support centers set up in different regions, the Tunisian Association of Women Democrats (ATFD) warns about the increase both physical and symbolic violence against women. In an interview with Nawaat, ATFD president Yosra Frawes goes into detail.

The imminent threat of Coronavirus in Tunisia

Much like the governments of other countries, the Tunisian government was hesitant in taking drastic measures to stop the spread of the disease. To its credit, it acted faster than some other countries, though some actions such as closing air and maritime routes with Italy should have been taken much sooner. My observations below are based on collecting public data applied to the specific context in Tunisia, and using some of my training as a data scientist and predictive modeler. Below I’ve provided graphics, data, and alternative models in response to some pressing questions.

With Coronavirus in Algeria and Italy, what measures has Tunisia taken?

Since it first surfaced in China in December 2019, the Coronavirus has quickly spread across the globe. Over 90 thousand cases have been reported, resulting in three thousand deaths. In Tunisia, the first case of contamination was identified on March 2nd, a Tunisian national who had arrived by boat from Genoa on February 27. In Italy, the first death caused by the virus was announced on February 22. Since then, 2,502 deaths have been reported. In Algeria, the first case of the virus was announced on February 25, with eight more cases reported since. What is Tunisia doing to prevent the spread of Coronavirus?

Tunisian derja VS classical Arabic, an ongoing rivalry

Tunisian derja and literary Arabic are often perceived as rivalling languages. But the conflict runs deeper than what appears at the surface, a product of cultural, political and historical issues. It is not enough to simply question the use of one language versus another. Instead, we can ask: why use one language at the expense of the other? What drives the decision to use one language and abandon the other? Nawaat set out to find some answers. 

[This report falls within the scope of activities carried out by the network of Independent Media on the Arab World. This regional collaboration includes Al-Jumhuriya (Syria), Assafir Al Arabi (Lebanon), Mada Masr (Egypt), Maghreb Emergent (Algeria), Mashallah News (Lebanon), Nawaat (Tunisia), 7iber (Jordan) and Orient XX1 (France).]

Tunis’ homeless, another face of social crisis

Deterioration of the economic situation, soaring rent prices and feeble government intervention—all factors that contribute to an increase in the number of homeless individuals in the streets of Tunis, estimated at 3,000 in 2014. Ever more present on the streets, around transit stations, outside building entrances, in public gardens and elsewhere, they are a symptom of rampant social misery and marginalizing conservatism.

“Skadra”, a short documentary by Nawaat

Mohamed Aziz Khlifi, 16 years old, is from the delegation of Bir Lahfay in Sidi Bouzid. Walid Lahmar, 27 years old, is from Bir Ali Ben Khelifa in Sfax. Mohamed Ali Ferjani, 32 years old, is originally from Chneni, Gabes. The three of them were on board a boat to cross illegally from the coast of Kerkennah to Italy on October 8, 2017. These are three survivors of the collision with a Tunisian military ship. After the “Skadra” incident, they have returned to the reality they had set out to escape.

Tourism: Tunisia’s beaches are full, but what about the Medina?

While media outlets and Tunisia’s Ministry of Tourism are understandably eager to paint a convincing portrait of the country’s tourism come-back, not everyone sees growth from the same perspective. On the ground, Tunisia’s seaside hotels are mostly full, its beaches packed with locals and visitors from near and far. The shaded, winding passageways of Tunis’ Medina, a UNESCO World Heritage site, are also teeming with people. Does this mean that business is in full swing for the souk’s craftsmen and vendors? Nawaat took a walk up and down the Medina’s main tourist circuit to find out.

Michaël Ayari (ICG – Tunisia): Intra-elite struggle, social movements and inclusive economy

The last report of the International Crisis Group (ICG) about Tunisia diagnosed corruption and clientelism as the main problems plaguing Tunisia’s “national unity” government. Titled “Blocked Transition: Corruption and Regionalism in Tunisia”, it called for a more inclusive formal economy for business newcomers and entrepreneurs. It also drew attention to the fringe group of business leaders operating in the informal sector, and cited this group’s involvement in backing the protests occurring in the south of the country. That idea inspired a backlash of criticism concerning ICG’s framing of the conflict as an intra-elite struggle. Nawaat had a meeting with Michael Béchir Ayari, senior analyst for ICG Tunisia. Interview.

Sidi Ali Ben Salem refuses the creation of a new municipality

There are many obstacles in the establishment and management of new local authorities. Achieving decentralization and local democracy is not limited to parliamentary debates, creating new structures and drafting new laws. The region of Sidi Ali Ben Salem in Kairouan is witnessing a general uneasiness as it refuses to create the new municipality of Abida. Residents consider the plan to have been concocted unilaterally by the central government, who some claim did not take into account historical, technical and geographical considerations.

Mdhila: Phosphate industry drinks while the town thirsts for water

For over a month, the water supply in several delegations of Tunisia’s Mine Basin has been disrupted by intermittent cuts. The situation has suscitated protests in the towns of Borj El Akarema and Segui in Mdhila, where life has become insufferable for residents. While some accuse SONEDE for not assuming its responsibilities in the maintenance and management of water pipes, ostensibly weathered and rusty, others point a finger at the phosphate industry which exhausts water reserves and pollutes the rest. Nawaat left for Mdhila to meet with residents and farmers to learn more about the water issue.

30 seconds to ISIS

What is certain: the phenomenon of terrorism is here, a deep-seated crisis for which shooting a few terrorists to death is not the solution. As more than 5,000 Tunisians are currently fighting for al Qaeda and the Islamic State, officials and parliament members today are facing the controversial question of how the country will confront “jihadis” coming back home. The answer will be in the State’s actions and will determine whether we decide to be thirty seconds to ISIS, or else to get our act together.

Gender roles from a Tunisian perspective

I was curious about how today’s generation thinks about gender roles and I figured that the best way to do so is to leave it for Tunisians (28 students in my case) to answer a one question survey : What are the things that you would like to do, but you can only do them if you were a member of the opposite sex ?

In Jemna, locals manage oases to reap the fruits of their labor

In the town of Jemna, residents have formed an association dedicated to the preservation and cultivation of 185 hectares of reclaimed oases for the production of dates. The Association for the Protection of Jemna’s Oases is composed of 129 workers including farmers and security guards, three supervisors responsible for managing the workers, administration and finances, plus one general supervisor. Nawaat has traveled to meet with the individuals who have taken over the land in the name of Jemna and its residents.

Ben Guerdane: Protests Against the Death of a Merchant by the National Guard

On April 16, Ben Guerdane was the scene of demonstrations following the murder of Mokhtar Zaghdoud by an agent of the National Guard in the isolated zone between the Tunisian-Libyan borders. Protestors expressed their anger in response to a number of similar incidents; since December 2012, twenty-five inhabitants from the region have been killed in such circumstances. Two of these deaths occurred in April.

March 20, 2015: Independence Day in the Capital After the Bardo Attack

After two strange and stunned-to-silence days in the capital, Friday morning on Avenue Habib Bourguiba bore much the same eager, pent-up energy as the first sunny day following weeks of grey and rain. It was only Wednesday that twenty tourists and three Tunisians (one policeman and the two assassins) were killed and forty-seven wounded at the Bardo Museum, while close by the Parliamentary Rights and Liberties Commission discussed the new antiterrorism law.