The Guardian view on Tunisia’s new autocrat: Saied’s enablers should stop | Editorial
GuardianApr 20, 2023
Chaima Issa — a member of Tunisia's main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front — and former minister Lazhar Akremi were released by Tunisian authorities on Thursday after being arrested in February alongside 20 other opposition figures.
Dozens of prisoners’ family members protested near the court in Tunis, holding up pictures of the detainees and calling for their release before the judge presiding over Issa decided to release Issa and Akremi. After her release from prison, Issa chanted, “Down with the coup. Down with Kais Saied."
Though Saied said that he doesn't want to become an autocrat, his unscrupulous actions speak far louder. Using the growing pains of Tunisia's young democracy as a pretext, he has taken over the North African nation and is cracking down on dissent to guarantee his control over civil society. A national dialogue must be undertaken to save Tunisian democracy and align it with the norms of the international community.
Tunisians are tired of the corruption and dysfunction brought by the country's so-called "post-Arab Spring parties," namely the Islamist Ennahda party. The country was on the brink of collapse before Saied dissolved parliament, and his actions were and continue to be necessary to maintain order and stability.