Opposition party leader is latest critic of Tunisian president to be arrested
GuardianApr 18, 2023
After Tunisian authorities on Monday arrested Ennahda Party leader Rached Ghannouchi, one of the most prominent critics of Tunisian President Kais Saied, police raided the party's main headquarters on Tuesday.
The party said the police, after showing a judicial warrant, emptied the headquarters to begin a search that will take days. It was also reported that three other party officials — Mohamed Goumani, Belkacem Hassan, and Mohammed Chnaiba — were taken into custody.
President Saied is, yet again, using his power to strengthen his iron grip over Tunisia. Though he's 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 post-Arab Spring parties, namely the Islamist Ennahda party. Ennahda, which dominated Tunisian politics over the last 10 years, has worked against the Tunisian people. 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.