Tunisia

27 July 2022; MEMO: Tunisia's Workers' Party has called on President Kais Saied to resign after what is said was the "failure of the referendum".

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisians are voting Monday for a controversial new constitution put forward by President Kais Saied that critics say will formalize his power grab and reverse hard-won democratic gains in the North African nation.

21 July 2022; MEMO: Former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki yesterday denounced what he considered an Arab country "resorting" to Israel to "bully" another Arab country, in reference to Morocco.

Marzouki's remarks came after the visit of the Chief of Staff of the Israeli Army, Aviv Kochavi, to Morocco.

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The leader of Tunisia’s main opposition party has been questioned by the country’s counterterrorism unit Tuesday on suspicion of money laundering and terrorism financing through an association charity.

It’s unclear how long the counterterrorism hearings could last for Rached Ghannouchi, 81, who is the leader of the Islamist Ennahdha party. Critics believe it could lead to his arrest — or a trial.

Outside the hearing in the capital, Tunis, Ghannouchi’s supporters decried the proceedings as a sham orchestrated by authorities.

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The leader of Tunisia’s main opposition party is due to be questioned by the country’s anti-terrorism unit on Tuesday on suspicion of money laundering and terrorist financing through an association charity.

The accused, Rached Ghannouchi, was among a dozen top Ennahdha party officials whose bank accounts the north African country’s central bank froze earlier this month. Ennahdha vehemently disputes the accusations of money laundering and terrorism financing.

16 July 2022; MEMO: Rached Ghannouchi, head of the Ennahda Movement, asserted on Friday that Saied is taking advantage of the referendum on a new constitution to re-establish a dictatorship, warning that the scenario in Sri Lanka is not far from reaching Tunisia.

Ghannouchi, who was the speaker of the parliament until President Saied overthrew it, described the atmosphere prevalent in the period before the 25 July referendum as "undemocratic, static and funeral."

15 July 2022; MEMO: Human Rights Watch (HRW) warned yesterday that the draft constitution proposed by Tunisian President Kais Saied gives him broader powers than the current charter, which provides for a hybrid presidential-parliamentary system.

13 July 2022; MEMO: Tunisia's I Watch organisation announced that it had filed a lawsuit against President Kais Saied and the President of the Independent High Authority for Elections, Farouk Bouaskar, on charges of violating the electoral law and committing administrative corruption.

The organisation said in a statement that Saied's participation in the referendum campaign without submitting a request to do so is a violation that requires legal accountability.

07 July 2022; MEMO: The Tunisian Judges Association announced yesterday that two judges have joined three of their colleagues who have been on hunger strike for two weeks in rejection of President Kais Saied's dismissal of 57 of their peers, Anadolu news agency reported.

The body criticised the "continued closure of prospects for dialogue with the executive authority, despite repeated demands."

06 July 2022; MEMO: Tunisia's annual inflation rate rose to 8.1 per cent in June, up from 7.8 per cent in May, the state-run National Institute of Statistics announced yesterday. This is the "highest in three decades," it said, noting that the increase was attributed to the "consequences of the Russian-Ukrainian war."