Tunisia

Table of Contents

Introduction

The Tunisian Republic achieved independence from France in 1956. For more than thirty years, President Habib Bourguiga was the head of the country until he was ousted by the current President, Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali, in 1987.

History of the Constitution

The constitution was first adopted in 1959.

The constitution was amended on July 12, 1988. Significant amendments included:

• Permitting the president to serve for three five-year terms.
• Holding legislative elections every five years.
• Giving presidential bills priority before the Chamber of Deputies.
• Allowing the president to govern by decree when the Chamber of Deputies is not in session (ordinary sessions begin during the month of October and end during the month of July).

Constitutional amendments passed on May 2, 2002 altered 38 of the 78 articles of the constitution (English text). The most important amendments:

• Abolished the term limits on the presidency.
• Raised the age limit for presidential candidates from 70 to 75.
• Granted immunity to the president for acts committed while in office.
• Created a second legislative chamber, the Chamber of Advisors.
• Required all citizens to defend Tunisia’s independence, national sovereignty, and integrity. Activists fear that the new wording could potentially be used against citizens who criticize the regime and its policies.

The government stated that the 2002 amendments were approved by 99.52 percent of voters in the national referendum. Click here for more information on the constitutional referendum.

The government asserts that the amendments broadened civil liberties by enshrining human rights in the constitution, requiring judicial approval for all “preventative” detentions, and providing a guarantee of humane treatment for prisoners.

The constitution was also amended on April 2008. These amendments altered chapters 39 and 40 of the constitution and allowed for multi-candidate presidential elections.

State Institutions

Tunisia’s sonstitution, approved on June 1, 1959, is modeled on France’s highly centralized presidential system (English text, Arabic text). The constitution was amended in 1988, 2002, and 2008.

Executive Branch

The President

The president is the head of state and:

• Appoints the prime minister.
• Appoints the cabinet.
• Appoints the governors of Tunisia’s 23 provinces.
• Can initiate legislation and return a bill to parliament for a second reading.
• Rules by decree when the legislature is not in session.
• Can adopt “exceptional measures” after consulting the prime minister and the president of parliament in case of “imminent peril menacing the institutions of the republic, the security and independence of the country, and obstructing the regular functioning of the public powers.”
• Approves and promulgates laws.
• Is the commander in chief of the armed forces.
• Enjoys judicial immunity for his period in office.
• Can declare war.
• Signs treaties.

Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali has been president since November 7, 1987, when he led a bloodless coup, deposing Habib Bourguiba who had been president since Tunisia’s independence from France in 1956. Ben Ali’s move was triggered in part by Bourguiba's self-designation as "president for life." Ben Ali was reelected for a fifth consecutive five-year term on October 25, 2009.

Presidential candidates must be supported by at least 30 MPs and must present their nominations to a committee composed of the president, the president of the parliament, the president of the Constitutional Council, the first president of the Court of Cassation, and the first president of the Administrative Tribunal. This committee evaluates the eligibility of the candidates. The same committee also adjudicates the final results of the election.

A constitutional amendment in 2002 removed the three-term limit on the presidency and raised the maximum age for a presidential candidate from 70 to 75. Ben Ali was consequently eligible to stand for office again in 2009.

Click here for a list of constitutional articles on the presidential elections.

The constitution concentrates executive authority in the presidency.

The Prime Minister

The prime minister:

• Is appointed by the president.
• Has limited formal powers.
• Recommends to the president the dismissal of a minister.
• May temporarily assume the powers of the president for a period of at least 45 days and at most 60 days in case the presidency becomes vacant on account of death, resignation, or incapacity.
• These powers, however, exclude the power to dismiss the government, dissolve the parliament, call a referendum, or adopt exceptional measures. Presidential elections in these cases must be organized within 60 days and the interim president may not be a candidate.

Mohammad Ghannouchi has been prime minister since November 1999.

Council of Ministers

The Council of Ministers:

• Is appointed and dismissed by the president.
• Is charged with “putting into effect the general policy of the Nation, in conformity with the orientations and options defined by the President of the Republic.”

Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi announced on January 14, 2010, the first major cabinet reshuffle since President Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali’s reelection in October 2009. Minister of Defense Kamel Morjane was appointed minister of foreign affairs (replacing Abdelwaheb Abdallah). Ridah Grira was appointed minister of defense. Other changes included, inter alia, the ministers of information, social affairs, justice and human rights, and education. Click here for more information.

Legislative Branch

A 2002 constitutional amendment created a bicameral legislature, which was not inaugurated until August 2005.

Chamber of Deputies

The Chamber of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwwab):

• Is elected for five-year terms from single-member districts. One hundred forty-eight members are elected by a party-list, simple majority system in 25 multi-member constituencies with one seat for every 60,000 inhabitants. Twenty percent of the seats of the Chamber of Deputies are allotted proportionately to parties that were unsuccessful, the aim being to ensure seats for opposition parties.
• Elects its own president for a one-year term by secret majority vote.
• Can initiate legislation. In practice it refrains from doing so.
• Debates bills introduced by the president. In practice it invariably approves bills with only minor changes.
• Can initiate a motion of censure against the government signed by at least half of the members of the chamber. The motion is adopted by two-thirds of the parliament.
• Can require members of the cabinet to appear for questioning.
• Has 189 members.

The Chamber of Advisors

The Chamber of Advisors (Majlis al-Mustasharin):

• Was created by constitutional amendments in May 2002.
• Held its inaugural session in August 2005.
• May not exceed two-thirds of the number of seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
• One-third of the seats are reserved for representatives of the regions (two or three from each, depending on population); regional representatives are elected indirectly by a college composed of electors from each of the municipal councils. Another third is elected at a national level by trade unions and professional syndicates, and one-third is appointed by the president.
• Is elected for six years, with half of the house being renewed every three years.
• Is currently composed of 112 members: 71 elected and 41 appointed.
• Functions in a consultative capacity only. It cannot initiate legislation. When the parliament is not in session, the president can rule by decree.

Judiciary

Tunisia has a civil law system, except for matters of personal status, which are ruled by Shari'a law.

Tunisia’s constitution provides for an independent judiciary. However, the executive branch strongly influences judicial decisions. The executive branch exercises strong control over the judiciary through the appointment, tenure, and transfer of judges. Judges are appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council. In addition, the president is the head of the Supreme Judicial Council.

The constitution states that defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty, but this provision is sometimes ignored in practice.

Judiciary Councils

The Supreme Judicial Council appoints and dismisses judges. The members of the council include the minister of justice and other officials from the ministry. The council has a separate disciplinary body that is headed by the president of the Court of Cassation and is largely judicial in composition.

Courts

Regular Courts

A four-tiered hierarchy:

• 51 District Courts (mahakim al-nawahi) in which a single judge hears minor civil cases.
• Courts of First Instance (al-mahakim al-ibtida’iyya) in which a panel of three judges hears appeals from the district courts. Additionally the Courts of First Instance have original jurisdiction over more serious cases. There is a Court of First Instance in every governorate.
• Courts of Appeal hear appeals from the Courts of First Instance. There are three appeals courts (located in Tunis, Sousse, and Sfax).
• The Court of Cassation (mahkamat al-ta‘qib) serves as the final court of appeal for all lower court cases in the regular court system. It is composed of one criminal and three civil divisions.

The various levels of courts have sections for civil, commercial, and criminal cases. Specialized courts (for matters such as real estate) exist within the regular court system.

Tunisia does not have separate Shari'a or personal status courts. Specialized sections of the civil courts rule in personal status cases in accordance with the country’s personal status law.

Special Courts

• Military tribunals, which fall under the Ministry of Defense, have the authority to try cases involving military personnel and civilians accused of crimes affecting national security. A military tribunal consists of a civilian judge and four military deputy judges. Defendants may appeal the military tribunal’s verdict to the civilian Court of Cassation.


• The State Security Court, composed of judges appointed by the president, was established in 1968.


• The constitution calls for a separate administrative court system, the Council of State. The Council of State is composed of two organs: the Administrative Tribunal and the Court of Accounts. A judicial body was established in 1995 to settle conflicts between the administrative court system and the civil court system.


• The High Court deals with cases such as high treason by senior officials. It consists of a chief judge appointed by the president, and four other judges and three deputies elected by parliament from among senior judges. The court is convened by the president after consultation with the parliament.


• A 1987 presidential decree (Arabic text) established a Constitutional Council empowered to determine the constitutionality of legislation. This council is composed of judges appointed by the president and rules on matters referred to it by the president.

Military

The Tunisian Armed Forces (Forces Armees Tunisiens) consists of an Army, the Navy, and the Republic of Tunisia Air Force. Military service is compulsory at the age of 20 and voluntary at the age of 18.

Political Environment

Political Parties

There are currently nine legal political parties:

The Democratic Constitutional Rally (Le Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique, or RCD):

• Is the ruling party.
• Has maintained power continuously since independence in 1956. It was previously known as the Destourian Socialist Party (1964-1988) and the Neo-Destour (1934–64).
• Was the only legal party until 1983.
• Controls most positions in the cabinet, the Chamber of Deputies, and regional and local governments.
• Is very closely integrated with the government; the president of the republic is also the president of the party, and the party’s vice president and secretary general each hold the rank of minister. All of the members of the RCD politburo hold ministerial rank.
• Is committed to ensuring that at least 25 percent of its candidates in legislative elections are women. Overall, forty-three of the 189 elected deputies are women, one of the highest proportions in the world.

President Ben Ali signed a “national pact” with opposition parties in 1989. The pact drew together Tunisia's main political parties, the representatives of the business community, trade unions, the human rights community, the farmers' association, the national women's organization, the lawyers' guild, and an unofficial representative of the Islamist opposition al-Nahda Party.

The meeting appears to have been a goodwill gesture that did not lead to specific policy decisions.

Parties represented in the Chamber of Deputies:

• Social Democratic Movement (MDS): Endorsed President Ben Ali’s candidacy in the 2004 presidential elections. Legally recognized on November 19, 1983.
• Popular Unity Party (PUP). Legally recognized on November 19, 1983.
• Democratic Unionist Union (UDU): Endorsed President Ben Ali’s candidacy in the 2004 presidential elections. Legally recognized on November 30, 1988.
• Al Tajdid (Renewal Movement): former communist party. Created on April 23, 1993.
• Social Democratic Liberal Party (PSDL). Legally recognized on September 19, 1988.
• The Green Party for Progress (PVP): Legally recognized on March 3, 2006.

Parties not represented in the Chamber of Deputies:

• Democratic Progressive Party (PDP). Legally recognized on September 12, 1988.
• Democratic Forum for Labor and Liberties (FDTL). Legally recognized on October 25, 2002.

Political parties are generally weak and divided and face considerable restrictions to their ability to organize. None of the opposition parties represented in the parliament challenge the regime's hegemony.

In January 2001, parliament approved a 50 percent increase in public funding to political parties with at least one member in the Chamber of Deputies. For the elections, each party represented in the Chamber of Deputies received a public subsidy of 60,000 dinars (US $42,000), plus an additional payment of 500 dinars (US $3,500) per deputy.

Main Islamist movements/organizations that are not recognized as political parties:

The al-Nahda (Renaissance Party):

• Was allowed to operate openly in the late 1980s and early 1990s despite a ban on religion-based parties. The government outlawed al-Nahda as a terrorist organization in 1991 and arrested its leaders and thousands of party members and sympathizers, accusing them of plotting to overthrow the president.
• Is no longer openly active in Tunisia. Its leaders operate from exile in London.
• The government continues to prosecute suspected members of al-Nahda for “membership in an illegal organization.” In recent years, the government revoked the identity cards of an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Islamists, preventing them from being legally employed.
• Human Rights Watch released a report in April 2005 accusing the government of holding around 40 of the country’s more than 500 political prisoners (most from al-Nahda) in solitary confinement, some for up to thirteen years. The report asserts that their imprisonment is driven by a desire to punish and demoralize jailed al-Nahda leaders, as part of the continuing repression of any manifestation of their movement, inside or outside the prison walls.

Election Results

Results for presidential elections on October 25, 2009:

Name of Candidate	Party	% of popular vote
Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali	Democratic Constitutional Rally	89.62%
Muhammad Bouchiha	Popular Unity Party	5.01%
Ahmed El-Inoubli	Unionist Democratic Union	3.80%
Ahmed Ibrahim	Renewal Movement	1.57%

Voter Turnout was said to be 89.40 percent of eligible voters.

Criticism arose as President Ben Ali won his fifth term. He has been criticized for holding a “pseudo-democracy” in order to avoid a negative profile. Click here for more information.

Results of elections for Chamber of Deputies in 2009:

Party	Seats won (of 214)
Democratic Constitutional Rally	161
Social Democratic Movement	16
Popular Unity Party	12
Social Liberal Party	8
Unionist Democratic Union	9
Green Party	6
Renewal movement	2

For detailed results of the 2009 presidential and legislative elections, click here.

The Progressive Democratic Party boycotted the 2009 parliamentary and presidential elections. Click here for more information in Arabic.

Results of municipal elections on May 9, 2010:

Party	Seats Won
Democratic Constitutional Rally	3,358
Movement of the Social Democrats	154
Popular Unity Party	119
Unionist Democratic Party	66
Liberation Social Party	35
Green Party	29
Independents	15

The opposition Progressive Democratic Party led by Najib Chabbi announced on April 26 its intention to boycott the elections, during which parties will compete for 264 municipal council seats. Opposition parties are only allowed to compete for 25 percent of the seats.

Results of elections for the Chamber of Advisors on July 3, 2005:

The Democratic Constitutional Rally won all 43 seats elected indirectly by an electoral college composed of electors from each of the municipal councils.

The 28 seats elected from unions and professional syndicates on a national level were divided into fourteen seats from the Tunisian Union of Industry, Commerce, and Artisans (UTICA) and fourteen from the Farmers and Fishermen’s Union (UTAP). The General Union of Tunisian Workers (UGTT) boycotted the elections.

President Ben Ali appointed the remaining 41 seats (many appointees were former government officials).

Results of municipal elections on May 8, 2005:

Party	Seats Won
Democratic Constitutional Rally	4,098
Social Democratic Movement	107
Popular Unity Party	51
Unionist Democratic Party	66
Liberation Social Party	16
Independents	6

Three licensed opposition parties were not allowed to participate in the elections because their candidates did not meet the conditions of the elections law, according to the Ministry of Interior.

Click here for details of the municipal elections

Results of presidential elections on October 24, 2004:

Name of Candidate	Party	% of popular vote
Zine Al Abidine Ben Ali	Democratic Constitutional Rally	94.49%
Muhammad Bouchiha	Popular Unity Party	3.78%
Mohammad Ali Halouani	al Tajdid Party	0.95%
Mounir Béji	Liberal Social Party	0.79%

Voter Turnout: Official turnout was quoted as 91.52 percent of 4.6 million eligible voters, although there were indicators that the figure was artificially inflated. NGOs estimated that the actual turnout was closer to 30 percent.

Results of elections for Chamber of Deputies on October 24, 2004:

Party	Seats won
Democratic Constitutional Rally	152
Social Democratic Movement	14
Popular Unity Party	11
Democratic Unionist Union	7
al Tajdid	3
Social Liberal Party	2

Together, the five parties won 12 percent of the vote. However, since 20 percent of seats in the Chamber of Deputies are reserved for opposition parties, 37 (out of 189) seats were divided between five of the seven legal opposition parties in proportion to the number of votes they received.

A coalition of three local independent NGOs (the Tunisian League for Human Rights, the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women, and the National Council for Liberties) cited a lack of media access by opposition candidates during the campaign period and media bias in favor of the ruling party as serious problems. Opposition candidates cited voter intimidation and restrictions on disseminating campaign materials and organizing campaign events.

Click here for details (in Arabic) of the 2004 presidential and legislative elections.

Civil Society and Nongovernmental Actors

There are thousands of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), but in practice civil society is weak due to governmental restrictions. NGOs are not allowed to engage in political activities and must be registered with the Ministry of Interior. Public meetings of NGOs require prior approval from the ministry.

Human Rights Organizations:

• Only one major human rights organization has official recognition (the Tunisian League of Human Rights), although several others attempt to gather and publicize information on the human rights situation in the country.
• The Tunisian League of Human Rights, the first such organization in the Arab world and one of the most active independent advocacy groups in Tunisia, operates under several restrictions. A Tunisian court ordered the Tunisian League of Human Rights not to hold its congress, which was scheduled for February 17, 2007. The organization has been unable to hold a congress since 2005. Click here to read Amnesty International's commentary.
• Since 1998, the government has refused to authorize the National Council for Liberties (Conseil national pour les libertés en Tunisie) as an NGO. The CNLT issues statements very critical of the government’s human rights practices.
• The International Association for the Support of Political Prisoners (Association internationale pour le soutien des prisonniers politiques, AISPP) has also been denied recognition since November 2002.

Trade Unions and Syndicates:

Workers in the private sector and in state-owned companies have the right to form and join unions. Trade unions have played a key role in Tunisia’s history due to their prominent role in the struggle for independence from France.

The General Union of Tunisian Workers (UGTT) is the only labor federation. Approximately 30 percent of the work force belongs to the UGTT, including civil servants and employees of state-owned enterprises.

The UGTT and its member unions are legally independent from the government and the ruling party, but they are subject to government pressure by the provision of state subsidies. Its membership includes persons associated with all political tendencies.

Unions

• Tunisian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• National Union of Agriculturists (UNA)
• Tunisian Union of Industry, Commerce, and Artisans (UTICA)
• Farmers and Fishermen’s Union (UTAP)

Syndicates:

• Young Lawyers Association
• Tunisia Bar Association

There are some unauthorized, independent unions, such as the Democratic Confederation for Labor and the Tunisian Journalists Syndicate.

In September 2005, the government closed the office of the Association of Tunisian Judges and banned the congress of the Union of Tunisian Journalists. Click here for more details.

Civil and Political Rights

Personal Liberties

• The constitution nominally guarantees a broad array of rights and liberties. In practice these rights are routinely violated.


• Article 7 of the constitution defines a large number of wide-ranging circumstances under which the exercise of personal rights may be limited. These include “the protection of others, the respect for public order, national defense, the development of the economy, and social progress.”


• The constitution guarantees freedom of opinion and expression. The government does not tolerate public criticism and uses intimidation, criminal investigations, the court system, arbitrary arrests, and travel controls (including the denial of passports) to discourage criticism by human rights and opposition activists.


• The constitution specifically prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention. In practice, security forces arbitrarily arrest and detain individuals; lengthy pre-trial and incommunicado detentions are frequent. The penal code permits the detention of suspects for up to six days prior to arraignment, during which the government may hold suspects incommunicado.


• The penal code prohibits torture. However, there are reports of security forces torturing detainees to elicit confessions and to discourage resistance.


• The constitution provides for freedom of assembly. The government restricts this right in practice. Groups that wish to hold a public meeting must apply and obtain a permit from the Ministry of Interior no later than three days before the proposed event; they must submit a list of participants with their application.


• An anti-terrorism law was introduced in December 2003. The law contains a very broad definition of terrorism, giving the government sweeping powers to detain suspects. The law also allows for extending pre-trial detention for an undefined period. Existing provisions of Tunisian legislation on terrorism, especially Article 123 of the Military Justice Code and Article 52 of the Penal Code, have been used to criminalize peaceful opposition activities.


• Tunisia’s human rights record has been denounced by international human rights groups. Amnesty International issued a report in 2003 describing how government opponents are subjected to arbitrary arrest, incommunicado detention, torture, and imprisonment.


• The New York-based organization Human Rights Watch provides a comprehensive overview of human rights developments in Tunisia. Click here for a complete list of publications on Tunisia by Amnesty International.

Legislation Regulating the Exercise of Rights

Political Party Laws

• Political parties are governed by the Political Parties Law of 1988 (Arabic text). This law prohibits parties based on religious or regional identity.


• Parties are licensed by the Ministry of Interior.

Electoral Law

• The Electoral Code of 1969 governs the procedures for legislative and municipal elections. It was amended in 1988, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2000, and 2003 (English Text, French Text, Arabic Text).


• The 2003 amendment to the electoral code expanded the number of legislators to 189, all of whom are now elected from single-seat constituencies. It also stipulated that at least 20 percent of the seats must go to candidates (in effect, those from opposition parties) who do not win the majority of votes in the country’s 26 electoral districts. In practice, 20 percent has become the maximum that the opposition is allowed to win, with the ruling party, the Constitutional Democratic Rally holding 80 percent of the seats.


• Amendments to the electoral code in 2003 ban the use of privately owned or foreign television and radio station to seek to influence electors towards voting for a particular candidate. Anyone violating the code faces a fine of 25,000 Tunisian dinars (approximately US $20,800).


• According to amendments to the Electoral Code regarding municipal elections, at least 20 percent of the seats are reserved for lists that did not win a majority of votes (if they get at least 3 percent of the votes cast).


• In August 2004, the government formed the National Election Observatory to monitor all stages of the October 24, 2004 elections. It was to report directly to the president and its members were to include “national figures known for their competence, experience, and independence.” Independent and human rights activists complained that the real purpose of the observatory was to co-opt foreign observers, and reduce pressure to allow independent groups to monitor both the elections and their preparation. Click here for details on the Observatory.

Law on Associations

• The constitution provides for freedom of association. The Associations Law requires that new NGOs submit an application to the government in order to obtain a license. According to the law, an NGO that has filed an application to register may operate freely while the government processes its applications. If the government does not reject the application within 90 days, the NGO is automatically registered.


• In practice, the government routinely blocks the registration of new, independent NGOs by refusing to provide receipts for their registration applications. Without such receipts, NGOs are unable to counter the government’s assertions that they have not applied to register, and therefore are not allowed to operate. In such cases, NGOs could be shut down, their property seized, and their members prosecuted for “membership in an illegal organization.”


• The constitution and the labor code provide workers the right to organize and form unions. A union may be dissolved only by court order. Unions, including those representing civil servants, have the right to strike. However, unions intending to strike must give 10 days advance notice to the General Union of Tunisian Workers, the country’s only labor federation, and the federation must grant approval.

Media Laws

• Article 8 of the constitution guarantees freedom of the press, opinion, expression, and publication. However, Tunisia’s press freedoms are among the most restricted in the Arab world. The government intimidates journalists, editors, and publishers into practicing self-censorship. Security forces closely monitor press activity.


• The Tunisian press is regulated under the Press Code of 1975. There are no legal restrictions on the topics that the media may address.


• The government controls domestic broadcasting and owns or controls six of the eight mainstream daily newspapers. The majority of news originates from the Tunis Afrique Presse, a state-owned enterprise that allegedly censors stories critical of the government. The government manipulates newsprint subsidies and other financial incentives to control the private press.


• Tunisian journalists critical of the regime continue to be harassed, threatened, imprisoned, and censored.


• Tunisian authorities banned the Union of Tunisian Journalists from holding its first conference on September 7, 2005. The conference was to host hundreds of independent Tunisian journalists as well as representatives of international journalists' associations. Click here to read Amnesty International's commentary.


• In May 2005, President Ben Ali announced new measures, the most significant of which was the abolition of the “Legal Deposit” procedure, which obliges editors of newspapers to deliver to the authorities a copy of every publication in return for a “deposit receipt” that allows its distribution.


• According to the annual Worldwide Press Freedom Index by Reporters without Borders, Tunisia ranks 164 of 178 countries. The index runs from 1 (most press freedom) to 178 (least press freedom).

Reforms Under Discussion

Press freedom continues to be criticized in 2009 and 2010. Due to fear of harassment, self-censorship has become a common feature among journalists. In May 2009, the National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists (NSTJ), the only independent journalist organization, released its second report criticizing the state of media freedom in Tunisia.

Due to this highly criticized report, the NSTJ was ousted and replaced by a board of pro-government media on August 17, 2009. Click here for more information.

Personal Status Law

• The Personal Status Law (French text) is based primarily on Islamic jurisprudence. It governs personal status issues for all Tunisians, regardless of religion.


• Although family and inheritance law is codified based on the Napoleonic code, civil law judges sometimes apply Shari'a law in family cases (especially those involving child custody) if the two systems conflicted.


• Women enjoy substantial rights in Tunisia. The government enacted legislation in 1998 to improve women’s rights in matters of divorce and property ownership. However, inheritance law still discriminates against women.


• Unlike in most Arab countries, rights to citizenship are conveyed through either the mother or the father.

Reforms Under Discussion:

As of September 2010, the Tunisian government is currently discussing a new citizenship law amendment that would give women permission to pass on to their children the Tunisian nationality. Despite amendments passed in 1993 and 2002 aimed at giving women the same rights as men, inequality issues are still present. Click here for more information.

Recent Government Initiatives Affecting Rights

• On October 2009, seventeen members of the General Union for Students were sentenced to one to three years of prison by the government as they were peacefully demonstrating at Manouba University. The government denies that the demonstration took place. Click here for more information.


• The Human Rights Watch organization published a report on October 21, 2010, entitled “The Price of Independence: Silencing Labor and Student Unions in Tunisia.” This report documents the Tunisian government’s tight authority over civil society in the country.
  
  Prior to this report, the Tunisian government issued a response to the Human Rights Watch memorandum on union activities. The Tunisian authorities denied all criticism and claimed that union activities had not been allowed because the necessary notifications had not been filed.


• The Tunisian government has been greatly criticized for lacking respect for free speech. In March 2009, Tunisian undercover police physically barred human rights activists and journalists from attending a Human Rights Watch briefing meant to release a report critical of the government. Click here for more information.

Ratification of International Conventions

• The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CCPR) on March 18, 1969.
• The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) on March 18, 1969.
• The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) on September 23, 1988.
• The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on January 13, 1967.
• The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) on September 20, 1985.
• The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on January 30, 1992.
• The UN Convention on the Non-navigational Uses of International Watercourses on April 22, 2009.