After the arrest of Islamist opponent Rached Ghannouchi, the Tunisian government firmly rejected, on Wednesday April 19, the concerns expressed in particular in Europe.

Leader of the Islamo-conservative Ennahda party and of the former Parliament, Mr. Ghannouchi, 81, is the most prominent opponent to be arrested in Tunisia since the coup by President Kaïs Saïed, which seized the full powers in July 2021. His arrest on Monday came after statements in which he said Tunisia would be threatened with a “civil war” if left-wing parties or those from political Islam like Ennahda, including were eliminated.

The European Union (EU), a key partner of Tunisia, said on Tuesday it was following “with great concern the latest developments” in the country, citing Ghannouchi’s arrest and the closure of his party’s offices. . The EU also underlined “the fundamental principle of political pluralism”. France, for its part, noted that this arrest “is part of a worrying wave of arrests”, recalling its “attachment to freedom of expression and respect for the rule of law”.

These arrests represent a “worrying escalation”, the United States said. “The Tunisian government’s arrests of opponents and critics are fundamentally contrary to the principles that Tunisians have adopted in a Constitution that explicitly guarantees freedom of opinion, thought and expression,” a statement said. on Wednesday, US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel.

‘Unacceptable interference’

The Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement issued Wednesday evening in response to French and European statements that “the laws of the Republic apply to all litigants without exception, with all legal guarantees”, and that “justice exercise calmly, unswayed by the wave of inappropriate and inadmissible comments”.

He maintained that these comments “can only affect the country’s intense efforts to redress an economic and financial situation under great strain due, in large part, to the poor governance and amateurism that have characterized the past decade” during which the Ennahda party of Mr. Ghannouchi played a leading political role. The ministry, however, did not explain the link it makes between concerns expressed about the rule of law and freedoms in the country and its economic situation.

“These communications constitute an unacceptable interference in the internal affairs of Tunisia from parties who are nevertheless informed about the realities of the country”, added the Tunisian ministry, stressing again “the importance of restarting the Tunisian economy in the best conditions possible”.

Tunisia is going through a serious politico-economic crisis which is pushing many Tunisians to try to reach Europe illegally by sea at the risk of their lives.