On Thursday 16 March, the European Parliament expressed its deep concern about the “authoritarian drift” of Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed and his instrumentalisation of the country’s “dire” socio-economic situation to reverse its historic democratic transition, calling for an end to the ongoing crackdown on civil society.
In a joint resolution by The Left, Greens/EFA, Renew Europe, EPP, S&D and ECR groups (496 votes in favour, 28 against and 13 abstentions), MEPs call on the Tunisian authorities to immediately release all other arbitrarily detained persons, including journalists, judges, lawyers, political activists and trade unionists, and to respect freedom of expression and association and workers’ rights.
The European Parliament also calls for the immediate reinstatement of arbitrarily dismissed judges, the reversal of all measures that undermine the independence of the judiciary and an end to the use of military courts to prosecute civilians.
According to the European Parliament, specific EU support programmes for the Ministries of Justice and Home Affairs should be suspended.
MEPs also condemn President Saïed’s “racist” speech against sub-Saharan migrants and the subsequent attacks, and call on the authorities to comply with international and national laws.
See the resolution: https://aeur.eu/f/5ue (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)