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Sending a letter to Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali suggesting the creation of an independent justice system was enough for Mokhtar Yahyaoui to lose his job as a judge.
Human rights groups and dissidents say Yahyaoui’s dismissal and the subsequent treatment he has endured is not an uncommon fate for those who speak out against a Tunisian government heading for presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday.
"Since I sent the letter I’m barred from travelling abroad; the harassment I have suffered shows me how the country is far from being a democracy," Yahyaoui, now a prominent human rights campaigner, told Reuters.
Tunisia’s constitution states that "The judiciary authority is independent. In exercising their functions, judges are subject only to the authority of the law".
But rights activists say that in practice the government of this small North African country controls the judiciary by appointing judges and promoting their careers.
Some argue that this popular destination for European tourists has shown significant signs of progress for a Middle Eastern country.
Women’s rights in Tunisia are the most advanced in the Arab world, literacy among the country’s 10 million people is at 96 percent, the middle class is growing and violent Islamic rebels have been crushed.
Critics argue that these achievements are just the window dressing for a state apparatus which jealously guards its control over the real levers of power.
"That government tolerates no opposition and doesn’t respect minimum standards for a state of law," said Mustapha Ben Jafaar, an opposition party leader who is boycotting the Oct. 24 poll.
Modernity, at a price
President Ben Ali stands accused by human rights groups and some opposition parties of creating a de facto police state disguised as a democracy after he replaced in 1987 the father of modern Tunisia, president-for-life Habib Bourguiba.
"The situation has become ridiculous given the progress we made in education, women rights and other social and economic fields," Ben Jafaar told Reuters.
In some quarters Tunisia’s elections are being considered a small test of a U.S. foreign policy demanding increasingly more open expressions of democracy in the Middle East. Diplomats say U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell has stressed such reforms to Tunisian Foreign Minister Habib Ben Yahia.
The government says Ben Ali, in power for 17 years and seeking another five-year term, is committed to progressively establishing a genuine democracy.
It insists no dissidents have been targeted for their views and only those who violate the law are punished.
Following independence from France in 1956 Bourguiba set up a strict one-party state but pushed to modernise the country.
Supporters say Ben Ali has pursued further modernisation.
Seven opposition parties are now legal, though critics say some are pawns of the 68-year-old Ben Ali positioned to provide the appearance of opposition without denting his support.
If previous polls are anything to go by, Ben Ali is set to do well on Sunday. In the past three presidential elections -- two held when he was sole candidate -- he lapped up more than 99 percent of the popular vote.
"No one’s holding their breath. We expect the same of the old," said a Western diplomat.
The Democratic Constitutional Rally is also set to sweep most parliamentary seats. The ruling party for the past four decades counts about half the 4.6 million electorate as members.
Opposition cries foul
Ben Ali’s popularity should not be underestimated.
The president is the ubiquitous face of Tunisia. His portrait is neatly framed on walls of practically every shop and public building in Tunis. Newspapers carry his image on their front pages and refrain from negative reporting.
He is revered by many Tunisians who consider neighbouring Algeria a cautionary tale. A popular election win by a Muslim fundamentalist party in 1992 was annulled by the authorities and led to a decade-long brutal Islamic uprising.
Tunisia’s president enjoys the support of much of the business community which has prospered during his time in office and created the Maghreb region’s highest living standards.
Few Tunisians know what the opposition candidates on Sunday stand for, let alone look like. Walking in the streets of Tunis few would notice an electoral campaign is under way.
Although the authorities suffered a publicity setback after top opposition figure Nejib Chebbi called for a boycott of the presidential poll because he feared a new president-for-life.
Two opposition parties competing in the legislative elections have complained of harassment.
"The authorities seized the Democratic Progressive Party campaign manifesto...and prevented us from printing it saying we have to water down the text," Chebbi told reporters.
The head of the unauthorised Congress for the Republic Party, Moncef Marzouki, was briefly detained at Tunis international airport after calling for a boycott.
"The government is sending a message through this terror campaign: no bit of freedom will be given to the opposition and no discordant voice will be tolerated during these elections," his party said in a statement.
A government official, who asked not to be named, said Marzouki has been questioned by police regarding a "number of illegal activities."
Lamine Ghanmi - Reuters - Tunis
(Additional reporting by Paul de Bendern)
21 October 2004 |
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