peacefare.net

No to boycott, yes to Tunisia

I’m late to publishing this appeal from the Tunisian opposition, as the election is tomorrow. But there is still time to go vote:

After five years of President Kais Saied’s term, including three years of absolute and individual rule, and after an objective assessment of this period in which Tunisia has experienced its worst conditions since independence—marked by the sharp decline in citizens’ purchasing power, the increase in poverty from 23% to 33% according to official figures, the exacerbation of daily hardships in areas such as transportation, healthcare, water and electricity shortages, and the loss of essential goods like food and medicine, and mounting internal and external debt.

After three years of systematic destruction and dismantling of constitutional institutions that protect the state from disintegration and chaos, and safeguard citizens’ rights.

In the face of the current president’s, Kais Saied’s, inability to solve the economic and social problems, his failure in projects such as penal settlements and recovered funds allegedly meant for poor regions, his failed health cities initiative (Kairouan, Kasserine, and Sidi Bouzid), and the failure of his community enterprises to create jobs for the unemployed, which instead became a waste of public funds.

After he has monopolized all powers in the country since July 25, 2021, imprisoning most of his opponents from various political factions, mistreating them and their families, and attempting to impose a policy of silencing dissent by prosecuting all voices calling for freedom, democracy, respect for the constitution, and the law—politicians, judges, lawyers, journalists, unionists, bloggers, and ordinary citizens under the infamous Decree 54.

After the Electoral Commission rejected most candidacy files with unreasonable and arbitrary conditions, and after the Commission refused to comply with decisions of the Administrative Court’s General Assembly, which cannot be appealed, that ordered the acceptance of the appeals from candidates Mondher Zenaidi, Abdellatif Mekki, and Imed Daimi and required the Commission to include them on the list of presidential candidates.

Law professors, civil society components including organizations, associations, parties, and national figures, have unanimously agreed that the stance of the Electoral Commission constitutes a scandal and a reprehensible act punishable by law as it undermines the state of institutions and eliminates the last bastion protecting rights and freedoms, namely the judiciary.

Despite Kais Saied’s insistence on ruling, his pressure, and intimidation of judges to exclude serious competitors from the electoral race, and prosecuting them using a non-independent and non-neutral Electoral Commission fully under his command.

After observing that candidate Ayachi Zammal remains in the race for the October 6 election,

And given the risk that boycotting the elections could lead to the continuation of the current situation, worsening from bad to worse, and the possibility of the state’s collapse by renewing the current president for another five years,

And following in-depth consultations and a realistic assessment of the current situation and available options, we concluded that Ayachi Zammal is the only remaining viable option among the accepted candidates, in the hope of pulling the country out of its current predicament and freeing it from the nightmare of authoritarianism and populism.

In order to save our country before it’s too late, by peaceful means and through the ballot box,

We, the undersigned, declare:

First: We call on all Tunisians to seize the opportunity for peaceful change by participating in the elections in large numbers and not to heed the calls for a boycott, which only serve the current president whose popularity has recently plummeted to such an extent that some polls indicate he may not even pass the first round.

Second: We call for a massive vote in favor of Ayachi Zammal, after his commitment to turn the page on the past, release all political prisoners, restore state institutions, guarantee the independence of the judiciary, and restore Tunisia’s standing in the international community.

Third: We call on all presidential candidates who continue to be excluded from the race to urge their supporters to vote for Ayachi Zammal as a means of saving the country.

Tunisia gets one more chance

I know Tunisia is not in the headlines, but this statement by presidential candidates struck me. They are trying to preserve what little is left of democratic norms created during the “Arab spring,” which originated in Tunisia. I wish them well, but current President Saied is not making it easy.

Our country will be undergoing an upcoming election in Tunisia during the month of October of this year, and violations have multiplied, affecting most serious candidates who are entitled to compete in the elections. These candidates are faced with restrictions with the aim of excluding them in order to clear the way for a specific candidate, which is affecting the very credibility of the process.

In light of this situation, which undermines the simplest elements of fair competition, the undersigned figures affirm that, while they may compete in the electoral process, they share common national and democratic values, as well as respect for the people as the ultimate decision-makers in choosing their representatives, and commitment to ensuring the integrity of these elections as a fundamental condition for their success. Furthermore, we emphasize the following points:

1: We denounce the arbitrary and security harassment and restrictions that have targeted many of those involved in the electoral campaigns while collecting voluntary endorsements, to the extent of arresting many election coordinators and snatching the endorsements they held. We hold the Minister of the Interior and the Secretary of State for Security responsible for this lack of neutrality and we demand the release of the detainees and the return of the endorsements that were confiscated.

2: We stress that depriving candidates running for elections of their right to obtain a criminal record card, which is essential to run for office, is a violation of a constitutional right. This practice allows for the Ministry of Interior to interfere in the electoral process and exploit the state’s agencies in an illegal manner which contradicts the most basic requirements of political and civil rights. We further stress that it could have been possible for the electoral commission to request this card directly from the Ministry of Interior to avoid such deviation and abuses.

3: We call for the immediate issuance of a Card No. 3 to all candidates and remind that deprivation of civil and political rights can only occur through a final and supplementary judicial ruling, which does not apply to the candidates.

4: We hold the electoral commission, which announced full jurisdiction over this process, responsible for complicating the procedures and conditions, contrary to the applicable texts and electoral law, in addition to the serious violations recorded and the suspicious silence that accompanied them in the past days despite the cries of alarm and denunciation raised by many candidates. It considers that this unjustified silence from the commission amounts to collusion with a hidden agenda aimed at turning the electoral race into a farce and a crime against the Tunisian people.

5: We call on the electoral commission to extend the period for collecting endorsements, in respect of the electoral calendar, considering that the provision of endorsements to candidates did not effectively begin until July 10. The commission must also ensure the freedom of citizens to endorse any candidate while respecting their personal data, away from intimidation and coercion.

6: All Tunisian media outlets are urged to fulfill their role in informing and discussing electoral programs and organizing debates among candidates in a spirit of objectivity, fairness, and equal opportunities. Public media, funded by taxpayers’ money, is required to move away from being a presidential media organ by opening platforms both centrally and regionally in an atmosphere of freedom, independence, and equality, while respecting professional ethics and the public’s right to access reliable information pertaining to all candidates.

7: The administrative court is called upon to fulfill its historical role in light of the deliberate absence of the constitutional court, in order to avoid any unilateral interpretations of the constitution and the applicable laws that may align with the desires of some to exclude most serious candidates in favor of a specific candidate.

8: We call on the Tunisian judiciary to uphold justice and fairness and to operate with independence without any political pressure, and to allow individuals imprisoned in political cases their constitutional right to run for elections. We emphasize that the Tunisian people alone have the authority to exclude any candidate from the race, and this should be done through the ballot boxes.

9: We call for the neutralization of the administration and the prohibition of using state institutions in general, and particularly the posts of mayors, local officials, and governors, to gather endorsements for a specific candidate and to be utilized in any electoral campaign.

10: We call on the military and security institutions to fulfill their national duties and maintain neutrality in all matters surrounding the electoral process, in order to ensure the protection of ballot boxes from any possible manipulation, that is provided that the objective conditions for conducting fair multiparty elections are met, in which everyone can compete freely and without restrictions.

Finally, we urge the Tunisian people to exercise their citizenship and constitutional rights in endorsing and voting for any candidate they deem worthy, in freedom to choose the next president of the country, thus blocking attempts to drain the electoral scene and impose guardianship and exclusion to pave the way for a single candidate. We insist that democratic elections are the only means capable of extricating the country from its political crisis and resolving conflicts based on programs and ideas, rather than on defamation and exclusion.

We further stress that if there is a lack of minimum respect for the basic conditions for fair competition, and if there is a tendency to use official institutions to directly and blatantly influence the nomination process or future stages of the electoral process, while ensuring equality in dealing with all competitors, then we fear that the elections may turn into a mere formal play lacking any credibility, which we refuse to be a part of. This compels us to keep all civic options open to ensure the protection of the electoral process from any deviations it might encounter.

Long live Tunisia, free and proud.

Signatures:

Safi Said

Dhakir Lahidheb

Abdellatif Mekki

Imed Daimi

Ghazi Chaouachi

Kamel Akrout

Lotfi Mraihi

Mourad Massoudi

Nizar Chaari

Neji Jelloul