New Political Initiatives for Tunisia - La Presse

The two initiatives  dominated political debate this week, the first caused a sort of shock, a great controversy and mixed reactions. The second generated by contrast, support from all sides, including from the interim government and the  Ennahdha party, writes La Presse de Tunisie.

They   were announced  when the spiral of violence and the rise of intolerance failed undermine the unity of all
Tunisians,despite unleashing a feeling of fear and insecurity. It is in this climate of anxiety and doubt that has  ffinally encouraged Tunisians to seek an alternative that offers a serious possibility  for the country to break  the vicious circle in which it continues to be bogged down. Two projects that synthesize two methods of action and both approaches have a common aim- securing the future of Tunisia, its stability, security and its social model.

Both of them call for national unity, consolidating the achievements of the country, the necessary transition to democracy and the establishment of the civil state and rejecting all forms of violence, La Presse says.

Through the Call of Tunis or "Nida Tunes,"Mr. Beji Caid Essebsi is trying  to unite secular Tunisians around a new political party, the centrist forces who are recruited from across the political left, centre and former RCD Party  around shared goals and a shared vision. The new reformist party  affirms its devotion to the legacy of  Habib Bourguiba, the republican, democratic values. It affirms its determination to give substance to the peaceful transfer of power and to preserve national unity and all  the gains made by Tunisians for over fifty years.

The Troika leading the interim government perceive Mr Beji Caid Essebsi as a threat. He has roundly criticised the interim government which he said was  unable to manage the affairs of the country, pointing to the recent curfew following salafist riots.He said that the political scene in Tunisia is "defective and unbalanced" and secular parties have failed to unite effectively.

His insistance that former members of the former RCD party should be allowed to join the new party has ignited opposition to his proposal. Whilst it is understandable that there should be opposition to the former regime especially when there is some evidence that previous regime members were behind recent violence,history shows that  elements of previous regimes who are eventually accepted back into society with a pragmatic policy
of reconciliation are an essential element for success. Iraq is an example of a disastrous decision to exclude all previous members. In Tunisia fortunately the army stayed loyal and is a pillar of strength. Nevertheless, those who oppose Mr Essebsi's proposal characterise it as an attempt of former regime members to return to power.

The other initiative mentioned by La Presse is the Tunisian Trade  Union body the UGTT  call for a new party which La Presse says has broader support because of the UGTT's historical role in negotiations and social issues. Both initiatives La Presse notes, show an awareness of the need to preserve national unity. The reality is howvever that the secular parties remain divided and Ennhada still has the largest share of the vote. The urgency of the situation is demonstrated by the serious constitutional argument gbetween the Interim President and the
Prime Minister over the extradition of Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi to Libya. The coalition is showing the strains. 

Perhaps the most important factor howvever is that the political process seems to be failing to attract the attention of the young who started the revolution and are still searching for jobs.There seem to be very few young leaders involved in the political process.