In Tunisia, the state of emergency extended “until further notice” – archyde

The state of emergency in Tunisia is renewed. The Tunisian head of state, Kaïs Saïed, announced it on the night of Monday 23 to Tuesday 24 August, in the form of a laconic press release from the Presidency of the Republic. The text specifies that “Exceptional measures” taken on July 25 – the president then invoked a “Imminent danger” under article 80 of the Constitution – are “Extended (…) until further notice “.

Concretely, the presidential decision to suspend the work of the Assembly of People’s Representatives and to lift the immunity of deputies is therefore extended. At this stage, Mr. Saïed, conservative lawyer elected in October 2019 in favor of a wave of anti-system, does not say more about a scenario of exit from the crisis in which Tunisia is plunged. The presidential statement is content to specify that the head of state “Will make a declaration to the Tunisian people in the coming days”.

The July 25 crisis was the culmination of a clash between the President of the Republic and his own head of government, Hichem Mechichi (dismissed on July 25), supported by a majority coalition in Parliament, dominated by Ennahda, a party from the Islamist matrix. The presidential coup de force, described by some of its detractors as ” Rebellion “, had been greeted in the streets of Tunis by scenes of popular jubilation. While the Covid-19 epidemic had grown out of control, the majority of the Tunisian population was at the end of its patience with the paralysis of institutions against the backdrop of a general deterioration in the socio-economic situation. Ennahda, who has played a central role in all government coalitions since the 2011 revolution, crystallized most of this resentment.

“Bastard system”

Beyond the extension ” until further notice “ of the state of emergency, it remains for the Head of State to specify his vision – at this vague stage – of the overhaul of the political system which he has always called for. According to the meager indications which have so far filtered from the presidential palace, it seems that Mr. Saïed will propose a revision of the Constitution establishing a presidential regime. The current Constitution, the result of a compromise in 2014 between Ennahda and his opponents from the so-called “modernist” camp, was predominantly parliamentary, but included presidentialist elements, such as the election of the president by universal suffrage. “This resulted in a bastard system, marked by inconsistency and ungovernability”, underlines political scientist Hatem Mrad. Tunisia has thus lived in recent years at the rate of insoluble conflicts between, on the one hand, the head of state and his own head of government and, on the other hand, between the executive power and the legislative power.

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