Economically in difficulty, will Tunisia be able to change course to once again become the country that until recently was called “the only democracy resulting from the Arab Spring”? If the question deserves to be asked, the answer is subject to caution as the arrests made there border on an almost generalized repression. And it is not the opposition, all the political, trade union and civil opposition that will deny us in the face of a situation where, responding to criticism, the authorities claim to respect “human rights” by arguing that the recent arrests “have absolutely nothing to do with rights and freedoms”.

In concrete terms, the political activist Khayam Turki and the very influential businessman Kamel Eltaïef, well introduced in political circles, the former minister Lazhar Akremi and the former leader of the Ennahdha movement Abdelhamid Jelassi were arrested on suspicion of “conspiring against state security,” said lawyer Samir Dilou. Ennahdha leader Noureddine Bhiri was arrested for a post on Facebook, calling for a demonstration against President Saied’s policy, according to the same source quoted by AFP.

This Wednesday, the National Salvation Front (FSN), the main opposition coalition in Tunisia, deplored the “rotting” of the political situation in the country after this series of arrests which it described as “repressive” in political and media circles. Indeed, since Saturday, ten personalities, mostly opponents belonging to the Islamist-inspired party Ennahdha and its allies, but also the director of a large private radio station and a very influential businessman have been arrested during a swipe. “These arrests carried out according to violent and illegal procedures […] are bringing Tunisia into a state of political decay”, lamented at a press conference the president of the FSN, Ahmed Nejib Chebbi. This “revenge” against opponents and “the use of repression” reflect, according to him, “the confusion” of the policy of President Kais Saied, who assumed full powers in July 2021. “The country is in crisis and the power thinks only of getting rid of its opponents, “added Mr. Chebbi, calling on all political parties to unite to get the country out of this situation.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the UGTT trade union center condemned “random” arrests and “attempts to fabricate charges […] in the absence of any official information on their nature”. The UGTT also denounced the government’s desire “to stifle any independent or oppositional voice” by targeting the media, calling on the unions to “mobilize and prepare to defend the rights of Tunisians”. Local NGOs and civil society figures denounced for their part, “the instrumentalization of state apparatuses to settle accounts with opponents”, urging President Saied to “stop the incitement speech against his opponents “. “Those who have been arrested are terrorists and must be tried […], we are not going to leave Tunisia a prey to these criminal terrorists,” President Saied said during a visit Tuesday evening to the headquarters of the Ministry of Interior in Tunis.

In the same dynamic of challenging these arrests, foreigners are not left out. Thus, the members of the France-Tunisia interparliamentary friendship group, chaired by Mr. Jean-Pierre Sueur (Socialist, ecologist and republican – Loiret), wanted to react. They pointed out that, for the first time, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has expressed “concern at the worsening repression against those perceived to be political opponents”, adding the imperative that fundamental freedoms and human rights be “respected everywhere”. Saying that they are deeply attached to the development of Tunisia as well as to a fruitful partnership, they insisted on specifying that this must go hand in hand with the values ??on which democracy is based.