Category: Politics

Tunis: A small Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani at the Government Palace in Kasbah Monday went on examining the draft organic law on the regulation of associations. At the end of the meeting, it was decided to submit the draft law to the Cabinet meeting after discussing its current version. The new draft organic law, which comprises 7 chapters, aims to organise and modernise the mechanisms for setting up associations and the way they operate, while striking a balance between enshrining the freedom of associative action and monitoring their funding and financial systems. The meeting was attended by Minister of Justice, Leila Jaffel, Minister of the Interior, Kamel Feki, Minister of Finance, Sihem Boughdiri Namssia, and Governor of the Central Bank, Fethi Zouhaier Nouri. Decree-Law No. 2011-88 of September 24, 2011 on the organisation of associations contains 49 articles. Article 1 "guarantees the freedom to form and join associations, to carry out activities and to strengthen the ro le of associations". Article 2 "guarantees the freedom to form and join associations, to carry out activities and to strengthen the role of civil society organisations, as well as their development and respect for their independence". Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Tunis: President Kais Saied, during his meeting on Monday at the Carthage Palace with Imed Hazgui, head of the Higher Committee for Administrative and Financial Control, ordered that all files in which degrees are found to be fraudulent be referred to the public prosecutor's office. During the meeting, the Head of state also ordered to speed up the preparation of the final report of the steering committee in charge of auditing the recruitment and integration in the civil service, state bodies, institutions, public companies, public shareholding companies and other public structures, which was carried out from January 14, 2011 to July 25, 2021. He also ordered the identification of all parties that did not respond to the committee's requests or provided false data in order to assume their full legal responsibilities, according to a statement issued by the Presidency of the Republic. During his meeting with Imed Hazgui, the president received the preliminary report of the aforementioned committee in his capa city as rapporteur. 'We are fighting a war of national liberation on several fronts and we will only accept victory,' the President said in a video released by the Presidency. He stressed that the determination to triumph over corruption was firm and unwavering and that cleaning up the country was 'not just a slogan, but an ongoing war with no pause and respite.' The President pointed out that those who do not fight corruption, or who collaborate with the corrupt, 'are no different from accomplices in the crime, but more than that, they are traitors and agents who are on the front lines, joining the ranks of the enemy.' He stressed that those who seek to intimidate those who expose corruption files "will not remain free from prosecution and without accountability or punishment," saying "no one is above accountability and no one is above the law. The Head of State told the head of the control body and the committee's rapporteur: 'According to the evidence, you have about 2,700 forged documents. He cited a report by the General Inspectorate which showed that the seal on the degree was not valid and that an administrative document was forged and a forged seal was used in one governorate and one sector. He added that thousands of millions have been stolen in all sectors and regions, and that he has received a dossier on the fodder sector (unrelated to the committee auditing recruitment and diplomas) related to the crime of stealing the resources of the Tunisian people. Saied noted that it was ironic in Tunisia today 'that the one who stole the people's resources and fabricated all these degrees pretends to be chaste and wants to play the role of a victim'. He stressed that the Tunisian people 'have shown an unprecedented awareness, despite the rabid campaigns paid for at home and abroad. The journey of the struggle for total liberation and the full purification of the country from corruption will continue until victory.' Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Tunis: The Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) approved on Monday the by-elections results in the Jendouba and Tozeur distrcits. The ISIE Board also reviewed the preparations underway to update the electoral register in the various Independent Regional Authorities for Election (IRIE). The by-elections were held on May 12 to elect the district councils of Jendouba and Tozeur. The results were announced on Monday. Challenges against the preliminary results can be submitted on May 14-16. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Tunis: Lawyers Monday staged a general strike in courts nationwide, in compliance with the decision Sunday of the board of the Tunisian National Bar Association, in the wake of a "raid" by security forces on Saturday night on the Lawyers' House in Tunis to enforce the arrest warrant against lawyer Sonia Dahmani. The investigating judge issued Monday a detention warrant for Dahmani, lawyer Nidhal Salhi told TAP. The decision was made without hearing Dahmani which, he added, "is a first in the history of the lawyer profession in Tunisia." A large number of lawyers gathered, Monday morning, outside the Tunis Court of First Instance where they chanted slogans calling for the independence of the judiciary amid a confrontation between the security forces and the lawyers. A press conference will be held by the president of the bar association, on Tuesday, while others protests are scheduled for next Thursday in courts nationwide. Lawyers also gathered in front of the Beb Bnet Court of First Instance where journa lists were prevented from covering the protest. The arrest warrant issued by the first investigating judge at the Tunis Court of First Instance against Sonia Dahmani was implemented on Saturday evening. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse

Tunis: Police raid Saturday on the Lawyers' House to enforce an arrest warrant issued for lawyer Sonia Dahmani is "a serious precedent," said the Executive Board of the Association of Tunisian Magistrates (French: AMT), inflicting harm on the whole judiciary. While expressing full solidaity with lawyers, the AMT urged all judges to champion the principles of fair trial, put justice above all other considerations and not give in to pressure. The AMT decries "the serious violations" committed by authorities when allowing law enforcement personnel to storm into the Lawyers' House in Tunis to arrest lawyer Sonia Dahmani " in a spectacular way" and without justification. Attempts to harm the freedom of expression and information are increasinfly frequent, reads a statement, as a result of the abuse in recourse to decree-law 54 which is designed to silence the opposition and hold absolute control over the judiciary. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse