Violence 17

Police Impunity & Soccer: Tunisia’s Ultras in the line of fire

« The Omar Laâbidi case has been pushed back to center stage thanks to the « Learn to swim » campaign, and to the efforts of civil society and “Ultras” (groups of soccer team supporters). This has roused the anger of Tunisia’s security apparatus, inciting its recourse to intimidation », says one activist. In the midst of this highly charged atmosphere, police officers are responding through the blows of their batons.

The Forest Behind the Trees: Exploring Family Violence

A notable achievement since Tunisia’s adoption of law-58 on the Elimination of Violence Against Women in 2017 is that it has broken the taboo on speaking about domestic violence. Yet, while spousal violence has received significant attention, it can be seen as representing the trees hiding the forest: family violence, and its multifaceted implications for women in their adulthood, remains a kind of family secret. It is time to shed light on this dimension of violence against women.

Interventionism, Systematic Alignment Instill Political Divisiveness – and No Resolve for Gaza

In Tunisia, there is a great deal of skepticism regarding the competency and «responsible governance» of the interim government in juxtaposition with Tunisia’s international image as the ‘sole democracy in the Arab world’ as citizens sense that technocrats and politicians are incapable of rising above their own political and electoral trajectories to synchronise a unified, coordinated national response to aggression that is tantamount to a Palestinian holocaust.

Moving the Masses to Reject Terrorism / Register to Vote

The interim government’s approach to addressing terrorism is a continual source of public discontentment, and heightened security issues have directly influenced citizenry’s reticence to participate in political processes, according to several La Presse and Nawaat reports. On the same day that the Ministry of National Defense reported on the Jebel Ouergha explosion, the High Independent Authority for Elections (ISIE) announced the markedly low turnout for voter registration.

Weekly Political Review – The Ebb and Flow of Democratic Transition in Tunisia

With Article 15 on the table for debate, peaking intensity of conflicts in Medenine over the closure of Ras Jedid, and Jomâa’s glowing reflections about his visit to Washington, and widespread public cynism about the volatility and apparent inefficiency of politics and politicians, the past week in politics in Tunisia captures the give-and-take, all-but-constant process that is ‘democratic transition’.

Electoral Law, Political Campaigns, and…Dissolution of the Leagues for the Protection of the Revolution

With the electoral law on the table for discussion, the nomination of several ministry candidates, and the naming of eighteen governors, it is not surprising that election campaigns have rolled into action. Security remains a prominent issue in the National Dialogue and national media, and although the common concern is that insecurity is a block for the political process and efforts to precipitate democratic elections this year