Four organizations in Tunisia, including the trade union center UGTT, on Friday launched "
an initiative to save the country
" in the face of deteriorating economic conditions and political divisions since President Kais Saied's coup.
The UGTT has set up a new "
Quartet
" with the LTDH Human Rights League, the ONAT Bar Association, and the NGO FTDES (Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights), which aims to be as ambitious as the who won the Nobel Prize in 2015 for his driving role in the democratic transition.
Political crisis
UGTT leader Noureddine Taboubi announced the creation of expert commissions and a series of meetings to "
develop a coherent, rational and independent plan on how to save the country
".
Regarding the political crisis that has shaken Tunisia since President Saied seized all the powers on July 25, 2021, the president of the LTDH, Bassem Trifi, predicted "
a still very low participation
" in the second round on Sunday legislative elections.
The first round on December 17 was marked by an abstention of nearly 90%, a record since the 2011 Revolution and the advent of democracy.
In the summer of 2021, Kais Saied dismissed his Prime Minister and froze the activities of Parliament, before reforming the Constitution to severely limit its prerogatives and return to an ultra-presidentialist system.
Measures denounced as "
a coup
" by the opposition.
"
For 12 years, there has been no horizon, we spend our time accusing each other and the country
is sinking," lamented Noureddine Taboubi, calling for "
rethinking the way to save the country
".
“
This national initiative is to discuss economic, social and political solutions
”.
Read alsoIn Tunisia, democracy is broken down
In addition to political divisions, the country is plunged into serious economic difficulties, accentuated by the war in Ukraine and inflation which has plunged the purchasing power of Tunisians.
Growth is sluggish and the poverty rate is rising.
“
More than 32,000 Tunisians have emigrated illegally in 2022 so far
,” noted FTDES President Abderrahmane Hedhili.
Heavily indebted, the country is struggling to invest in its infrastructure and has been negotiating for months a new loan with the IMF of around 2 billion dollars, in exchange for difficult reforms such as the lifting of state subsidies on certain basic products.
