News
Show news feed

Thousands of Tunisians protested on Sunday against President Kais Saied, demanding a return to normal democratic order and rejecting his replacement of an independent electoral commission with one he appointed himself, Reuters reported.

"The people want democracy" and "Saied has led the country to starvation" were two of the slogans chanted by the demonstrators who gathered in the center of Tunisia.

"It has become clear that the street supports a return to the democratic path," said Samira Chaouachi, the deputy leader of the dissolved parliament who like Kais Saied's other opponents accuses him of a coup.

Kais Saied has solidified his one-man rule since seizing executive power last summer, dissolving parliament, going to rule by decree and saying he will replace a democratic constitution through a referendum.

Saied denies the coup, arguing that his intervention was legitimate and necessary to save Tunisia from years of political paralysis and economic stagnation caused by the actions of a corrupt, self-serving elite that seized control of the government.

Meanwhile, Tunisia's economy and public finances are in crisis, and the government is in talks with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout package for the country amid widespread poverty.

Kais Saied's actions plunged Tunisia into the biggest political crisis since the 2011 revolution, which led to the establishment of democracy and the Arab Spring, jeopardizing the rights and freedoms won 11 years ago.

It replaced the judicial council, which guaranteed the independence of judges, as well as an independent electoral commission, calling into question the integrity of both the judicial process and the election.

!
This text available in   Հայերեն and Русский
Print