Tunisia opposition renews calls for referendum boycott

Tunis, Tunisia – AFP

A Tunisian opposition alliance has renewed calls for a boycott of the referendum due to be held on July 25 for a new constitution promoted by President Kais Saied.

The draft constitution is the centrepiece of Saied’s programme to overhaul Tunisia’s political system, but rivals say the text confirms fears he is seeking to reinstall an autocracy in the country which had been the birthplace of the 2011 Arab Spring.

“We call on Tunisians to boycott this illegal, unconstitutional process that aims to legitimise a coup d’etat,” veteran opposition figure Ahmed Nejib Chebbi, leader of the National Salvation Front said.

Chebbi told reporters that rights and freedoms in Tunisia would be threatened if the charter was approved.

“For me it’s the quintessential bad constitution,” he said.

The National Salvation Front (FSN) includes five political parties, among which is the progressive Islamic Ennahda party. Ennahda has proven to be Saied’s nemesis, and he has tried hard to impose restrictions on its leadership. The Front also includes five civil society groups involving independent political figures.

It was formed in April, months after Saied was elected in 2019 amid public anger against the political class. On July 25, 2021 Saied sacked the government and suspended the parliament, later seizing far-reaching legislative and judicial powers.

Saied’s initial power grab was welcomed by many Tunisians who were sick of the often-stalemated post-revolution political system.

However, critics had warned that his moves risked a return to autocracy, a decade after the 2011 overthrow of dictator Zine el Abidine Ben Ali in a popular revolt that spearheaded the Arab Spring.

The process of writing the constitution has also come under fire.

The legal expert who oversaw the constitution’s drafting has disavowed it, saying it was “completely different” from what his committee had submitted, warning that some articles could “pave the way for a dictatorial regime”.

Last week, Saied published an amended draft, apparently attempting to ward off criticism after the original was blasted for the nearly unlimited power it gave his office.

Jawhar Ben Mbarek, FSN member and leader of “Citizens Against the Coup”, has urged Tunisians to “massively reject this referendum”.

“We reject the entire process,” he said. “We are committed to the 2014 constitution, which we consider to be the only legal constitution, representative of the will of the Tunisian people.”