Politics Vanessa Szakal 16 July 2016

NATO in Tunisia: how to do things with words

Announcing a new maritime operation in the Mediterranean and intelligence center in Tunisia, NATO has asserted that it intends to intensify its role and partnerships “to support the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL.” While some compare NATO’s declarations following the July 9 Warsaw Summit to the EU’s maritime military strategy, calling it the “militarization of misery,” others have highlighted the intent to establish an enduring presence in the south of the Mediterranean, and Tunisia in particular.

Economy Vanessa Szakal 12 July 2016

Development Assistance to Tunisia: debt for economic recovery

As ally countries and financial institutions have obliged government requests for continued support with new lending agreements, Tunisia concedes to loan upon loan to pay back its debts.

Themes Sadri Khiari 12 July 2016

Are Arabs “Behind”?

“We Arabs, we are behind” we have sighed to ourselves for more than a century. Streams of powerless tears flood our newspaper columns. A veritable fountain of tears spewing from our tear ducts. And we ask Europe, who quietly laughs at us, to give us a hand. “We Arabs, we are behind. Let’s be modern!” We’re spending our time running to catch a train that is behind us. Europe is not our future; it is our past.

Environment Hafawa Rebhi 01 July 2016

Oil contracts disclosure: red lines limiting transparency

Since June 14th, the portal “Open Data” offers to the public contracts that link ETAP and the State to Tunisian and foreign hydrocarbon operators. Other equally vital actors in the energy and mining sector however are absent or nearly so.

Culture Kristen Canavan 28 June 2016

Youth Culture: War Zone Brings Tunisian Hip Hop Artists Together for Friendly Fire

On June 18^th nearly 50 Tunisian hip hop artists came together for the country’s first multi-talent event, “War Zone”.

Rights Kristen Canavan 25 June 2016

Tunisian Gender Law Reform: Optimism in Spite of the Long Road Ahead

On June 3rd, Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (Euro-Med) hosted a conference entitled “Forms of Violence Against Women and Girls” to discuss the Tunisian Personal Status Code and Penal Code – both of which are long overdue for reform. Critical yet optimistic, the proposed goals for legal reform are found in a study entitled “Violences à L’égard des femmes: Les lois du genre” written by Sana Ben Achour, a law professor and former president of ATFD.

Economy Vanessa Szakal 23 June 2016

Tunisia’s renewable energies threatened by foreign loans and PPPs

Observations about the “privatization of profits and nationalization of losses” associated with foreign investment and PPPs in Morocco resonate with concerns in Tunisia about European financial and technical assistance for renewable energies.

Economy Vanessa Szakal 17 June 2016

In spite of red flags, Tunisia pushes forward with PPP

“Practically, realistically, it is inevitable that we move towards PPP,” said Minister of Development Yassine Brahim during a June 14 conference on Finance, PPP, and Sustainable Development at the IACE. “Let’s work instead on how to pursue them while minimizing the risks … it’s a good way to accelerate the country’s development.”

Politics Vanessa Szakal 10 June 2016

A new face for the same “foreign support” to Tunisia

Assessing Tunisia’s resistance to political and economic reforms, the Atlantic Council observes that “old guard networks are present throughout the political system, the business world, and security institutions,” and proposes that Western donors adopt new support strategy to help Tunisia progress in its democratization process.

Politics Kristen Canavan 07 June 2016

Ennahda’s 10th Congress: Contextualizing the “Separation” of Mosque and State

Ennahda’s 10th Congress took place between May 20th and May 25th, bringing reforms which sparked conversations about where the party is headed next. Media coverage highlighted Ennahda’s separation of “mosque and state” as a step towards better governance in Tunisia. The portrayals of what this “separation” truly means varies in Western and Tunisian news coverage, with some reports being more skeptical than others.

Rights Vanessa Szakal 06 June 2016

Tunisians abroad dissatisfied with proposed representative authority

Members of the Coordination of Associations for Immigration and Tunisians Abroad (CAITE) gathered in Tunis last Thursday to articulate their demands for a representative body. The association has criticized the associated Draft Law 015/2015 concerning the creation of a National Council, which CAITE members “cannot accept in its present version.”

Environment Ashraf Abidi 02 June 2016

Building another South in Oued El Khil: Aesthetics of Resistance

Oued El Khil, a few kilometers from Medenine, is situated on the chain of mountains which cross the Tunisian southern cities of Beni Khedach, Chenini, Matmata and Beni Zelten. The small village defies the vastness of the desert and exclusion from the surrounding modern urban ugliness that has polluted and destroyed pearls such as the thirty-three Ksurs of Medenine, bombarded in the early sixties, and the oasis of Gabes, contaminated since the seventies by the chemical industry.

Economy Vanessa Szakal 01 June 2016

Liberalization of Tunisia’s agricultural sector: moving towards the inevitable?

Amidst a circle of union representatives, business-owners, farmers, and researchers, reservations and concerns regarding the impact of a free trade agreement on Tunisia’s agricultural sector were part of a debate that was ultimately less about whether or not than how to proceed with a “greater integration into the European economic space.”

Civil Society Diane Robert 25 May 2016

6th Youth Forum in Gafsa: France-Tunisia Cooperation and its Discontents

Chartered buses from l’Institut Français headed towards Gafsa to assemble at the 6th Youth Forum, which each year, celebrates decentralized cooperation between France and Tunisia. Behind the “support” of civil society appears to be the dissemination of a doctrine; one which claims that what will help boost start-ups is a solution for mass unemployment and marginalization. In light of some “success stories”, how many are left behind?

Politics Kristen Canavan 24 May 2016

Quantifying the unquantifiable: religion and politics in North Africa

On May 10, Tunisian polling institution SIGMA Conseil and German foundation Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS) presented the results of their survey “Religion and Politics in North Africa.” How accurately do study findings reflect society’s views on issues as elusive and multifaceted as religious and national identity?

Rights Marta Scaglioni 19 May 2016

A history of slavery in the village of EL Gosbah

In the arid semi-desert governorate of Medenine, media attention was recently drawn to a small village called Gosbah. Inhabited by a small black community, the ‘Abid Ghbonton. Gosbah lies next to another village inhabited by the white Ghbonton; the two territories are separated by a small river.

Media Vanessa Szakal 18 May 2016

One news, different views: discussing journalism in the Mediterranean

On the morning of May 13, more than thirty individuals from Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spain, Italy, and France gathered in a small conference room in Tunis. Their assignment: to discuss the practice of journalism in the south and north of the Mediterranean. A non-exhaustive overview on some of the points made and questions raised throughout the day.

Politics Vanessa Szakal 10 May 2016

In Clinton’s inbox, US support for Tunisia was reinvented

The recently revealed emails of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton shed light on a cast of key characters and their roles in informing the decisions, diplomatic phone calls, and initiatives that constitute US response to what was unfolding in Tunisia at the time of revolution.