Tunisia : the divisions multiply

With hindsight, for all of the international aid and support that  has poured into Tunisia the  apparent absence of international guidance and support for drafting the constitution is a noticeable ommission.The result is  that some articles have been poorly drafted and are imprecise.The draft constitution will hopefully be ready for approval by the Assembly or a referendum  by  February with elections in March.

Ennhada has 40 percent of the seats in the Constitutional Assembly which is a majority. The secular parties seem unable to unite although Nida Tounes and Beji Caid Essebsi are attracting attention. The party discipline of the islamists will probably be enough to ensure an election victory. The appointment of islamists to head most media organisations has drwn widespread crticism form organisations in Tunisia and abroad. The journalists union  the SNJT has suspend negotiations with the government, the freedom of the pressbeing an issue.

Those in business such as the proprieter of the hotel attacked by salafists for selling alcohol in Sidi Bouzid has hired a private securtiy firm for protection as he has no confidence in the police. Indeed salafists attacked a quarter of Sidi Bouzid recently and the police stood by and did not intervene, no doubt on government orders. 

Artists and  performers are also said to be hiring private security firms to protect shows and exhibitions. If a government cannot guarantee the freedom of its citizens from violent agression and show a commitment to preserving law and order is it fulfilling its role in preserving law and order. The vicious assault by salafists on a French local government official  of Tunisian origin on holiday drew the condemnation of Laurent Fabius the French Foreign Minister.

Ennhada's indulgence of the salafists-their "children" as Rachid Ghannouchi put it  is causing concern amongst secular society and now appears to be taking a sinister turn with salafists attacking  the political party meetings  of Nida Tounes and condemning Beji Caid Essebsi of being pro Ben Ali. There appears to be a nasty witchhunt supported by thousands of Ennhada supporters demonstrating for the removal of all former RCD members. It is not innconceivable that anyone opposing Ennhada will be a subect of this witchhunt.

The silence of the other two members of the Troika Mustapha Ben Jafaar and Moncef Marzouki was broken by the interim president:  "There is rising sentiment that our brothers in Ennahda are trying to dominate all the political and administrative levers of the state and place their followers in position of power, regardless of whether they are competent or not," he said. "These practices recall those of the past regime." He said this in a statement at his party's congress. However he is widely viewed as having been outmanoeuvered politically by Ennhada. His failure to speak put against salafist aggression has also lost him support within his party.

Rachid Gannouchi head of Ennhada has always avowed moderation in his interviews with the international press but the actions of Ennhada seem to be the reverse, consolidating their position before elections. If a hardline  islamist state is imposed on a secular middle class there will probably not be a revolution but there would be continued unrest and there would never be peace. Those who forged the revolution would not forgive the imposition of a new form of dictatorship extinguishing the liberty they sought to achieve. Moreover if the islamists fail to deliver on economic renewal and jobs the unemployed will not forgive them. Let us hope that a compromise between secular parties  and islamists can still be achieved and that a revolution which has promised so much is able to deliver a result without extinguishing the liberties it sought to preserve.

Developments in Tunisia are being closely watched and may have a profound impact in the region and many
international donors who have backed Tunisia's move to democracy  will also be paying close attention to developments.