En démocratie, lorsque les lois existantes empêchent les paysans d’accéder à la terre – et c’est toujours le cas en période de transition, puisque ces lois sont édictées par l’ancien régime -, ces lois doivent être changées et non pas utilisées pour continuer de réprimer ceux qui les contestent. En occupant les terres domaniales, les paysans ne violent pas le droit, ils l’établissent*.
في الديمقراطية، عندما تحُول القوانين السائدة دون امتلاك الفلاحين للأرض، وجب تغيير تلك القوانين، وليس استخدامها في مواصلة قمع من يحتج عليها. فالفلاحون باسترجاعهم الأراضي الدولية لا ينتهكون القانون، وإنّما يؤسسون له.
* نقله من الفرنسيّة مختار بن حفصة
Recently, all we talk about is Jemna. It has become the new bone of contention. Exchanges are violent, charged with furor and raised voices. In the médias aux ordres, the most unlikely of arguments are used to denounce the occupation of land by peasants. Such arguments say more about the fantasies of their authors than they do about the reality of the situation.
If important steps have been taken to improve management and optimize exploitation of State-owned agricultural lands and alleviate the debts of tenants who lease these properties, adopted measures are yet limited and incomplete … Working at the very heart of a sector upon which depends the country’s food security and, to a certain extent, the economy, Tunisian farmers have yet to gain substantial financial backing, adequate legal support, and due political recognition. Moving onward from a year of climatic fluctuations and political violence which have had devastating effects upon the sector, government officials and decision-makers will do well to recognize and invest in agriculture as the base from which sovereignty, security, and stability can grow.
