Political analysts have insisted that it will be hard for democracy to develop within a short time period. They note that the opposition is weak and members of disposed President Ben Ali’s Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) are still in positions of power. The people are not going to idly wait. They have returned to the streets, in all the major cities, unhappy that interim President Foued Mebazaâ and provisional Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi reappointed so many ministers from Ben Ali’s government, and demand the complete resolution of the RCD. In fractious times, Red Pepper spoke to Tunisians living in at home and abroad about events taking place. For many, it is the first time in decades that they have been able to talk freely about their political opinions and hopes for the future.

Amel is a young Tunisian Producer who has lived in Brussels for nearly a decade. She followed events mostly via Facebook:

“The last two weeks were progressively tense. The immolation of Bouazizi was an alarm siren to me. I could not expect something good but the coming days proved the opposite. The hope of seeing the country freed from its oppressors was mixed with positive anxiety over the aftermath; about reconstruction and the political project to build up to ensure real changes. Today, it’s more a negative anxiety, nurtured by everyday news reporting the terror caused by supposedly 3000 fired presidential policemen and armed militias. But we are determined to get back our freedom of speech, benefit from more job opportunities and to decide freely on whom should run our country. We want, more than ever, to get back our dignity, and effective participation in the public sphere.”

Aymen is a computer engineer in the capital Tunis. He participated in street protests:

“On the one hand people here in Tunis are celebrating and are happy about the victory over [disposed President] Ben Ali. But on the other hand, there is an anxiety in the air, a feeling of instability and insecurity. We need to react fast now because Tunisia does not want to slip into an economic crisis and we need stability. The next step is to change the constitution so that we gain time to not have elections in two months because the opposition needs more time. But at least now we have freedom! I hope that Tunisia will be a role-model for young people in other African or Arab countries.”

Abir is a young language student:

“I am mourning for those who have lost their lives during the protests and at the same time I feel joy because of our revolution and proud of being Tunisian. But I have no hope for the new government as long as the whole party of Ben Ali is not dissolved. The Tunisian Constitution should be changed because it serves only the interests of the ruling class. I only have confidence in the Tunisian trade unions, which have again proved that you can count on them.”

Hamadi is a 50-year-old father who has lived in the Medina (town center) of Tunis for most of his life: “The future belongs to our young people under 35 years. I mean the young generation of Tunisians, excluding fundamentalists and members of the RCD led by former President Ben Ali.”

Sophia is a photographer from La Marsa, a small suburb outside of Tunis. She documented events over the past month with her camera:

“The last month was a battle for us, a real discovery. For years we were living in fear, lacking confidence, but we fought and we found ourselves; our dignity and pride. Now we have to look forward, believe in our strength as a people and stop hiding. Nobody would have believed a couple of weeks ago that we could become an example for the rest of the world! The country is still suffering from the consequences of 23 years of authoritarian leadership, [but] I believe that we will succeed in building a new country. Everyone I met during the protests helped me to believe in my dream of living in a country of freedom and mutual respect! It is important for people to know to that we here in Tunis don t talk about the jasmine revolution, that is only the Western press who created this term. We name it by the facts: fire and blood revolution, the revolution of freedom.”

The closing lines of the Tunisian national anthem are been sung with fervor in the streets of Tunis, capital of Africa’s most northeastern country. After two decades of torture, harassment and arrests, the people of Tunisia are ready to break their silence and condemn the brutal rule of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Their actions are chipping away at the peaceful façade he has fought to maintain and finally focusing media attention on the deaths, unlawful detentions and corruption that have resulted from government efforts to keep dissent at bay.

According to eye witness reports collected through Facebook, at least 50 people have been killed and hundreds injured during protests in Kasserine, Thala, Meknassi and Erregueb, small cities troubled by high unemployment rates and poverty. Government statements that report fewer casualties and claim that police fired on crowds “in legitimate self defense” have only fueled anger.

The uprisings have been traced to December 17, when a young man named Mohammad Bouazizi attempted suicide after being harassed by the police. The 26 year-old had been selling fruit and vegetables without a license in Sidi Bouzid, a small city in the center of the country. A constable confiscated his scales and produce, depriving a family’s breadwinner of their only means of income. Before setting himself on fire, Bouazizi tried to report the incident at a local government building. He was turned away.

The incident came shortly after the government blocked internet access to Wikileak’s US embassy cables, which referred to the Ben Ali regime as corrupt and out of touch. As Bouazizi lay dying in his hospital bed, civil unrest exploded onto the streets. At first, demonstrators organised to bring attention to the country’s high unemployment rate, which stands at 23 percent among college graduates. Seizing the opportunity for dissent, public outcry has swiftly turned against the regime in general.

Abusing power

Ben Ali swooped into power in November 1989, after declaring then-President Habib Bourguiba senile. After winning his first election with 99 percent of the popular vote, he sanctioned violent crack downs on Islamists. The approach is suspected by many of masking the suppression of opposition movements as a whole. After being elected for a maximum third term in 2002, the President changed the constitution to allow leaders to hold power until the age of 75.

Now, the protests have finally caught the attention of a western media hesitant to look beneath the glossy veneer of a country marketed as the perfect European holiday destination and role-model for democracy and modernism within North Africa.

According to Amnesty International, the Tunisian government has been “misleading the world” with a positive image of their human rights record. State-sanctioned torture, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances are common place. Unfair trials and abuse committed by prison guards is well documented and refugees forcibly returned from abroad face severe retribution. The Economist ranks Tunisia as an “authoritarian regime” and Reporters Without Boarders ranks the country 143^rd out of 173 regarding press freedom.

Liberties have been further eroded under the veil of “fighting terrorism”. In return for their condemnation of the 9/11 attacks and cooperation in the global international efforts to combat violent extremism, a blind eye has been turned to the entrenched corruption and human rights abuses blighting the Tunisian state. Young intellectuals and political artists have been particularly targeted in recent years, while internet access is heavily censored. Freedom of speech does not exist in any practical sense.

Viral dissent

Social networking sites and bloggers-in-exile have changed the game. Sabina, a young Tunisian student, is one of a growing number of Tunisians sharing information via Facebook. Her husband was one of at least six young activists and journalists arrested early in the morning on 6 January. According to Sabina, he was seized without explanation along with his laptop and hard drive. The rapper Hamada Ben Omar, also known as “El General”, was also detained, having recently released a song entitled: “President, your people are dying.” In a rarely heard act of defiance, he sings: “Where is the freedom of speech? So far I only hear the words, I’ve never seen the action.”

The detainees are all ‘cyberactivist’, trying to break through the walls of censorship erected by the Tunisian Internet Agency (TIA), which have blocked sites including YouTube. Of the 15 countries surveyed in Freedom House’s 2009 Freedom of the Net survey, Tunisia tied with China as the second worst performing country.
Facebook is one remaining avenue for communication with the outside world. Sabina has used the site to post her concerns for her husband’s safety and communicate with other activists. Others are updating their profile picture with a black version of the Tunisian flag, a collective symbol of mourning and resistance.

According to Sabina’s Facebook wall, her husband, along with Hamada and the other cyberactivists, were released without charge on Sunday 9 January. What happened to them in detention remains unknown, however, as Sabina’s last message explains that she will no longer have access to the internet, or a computer. Reports are now surfacing that the TIA has begun blocking proxy sites and using sophisticated methods to steal users’ passwords for Facebook, as well as Gmail and Twitter, and access account information.

It is a desperate, dangerous measure, taken by a government under threat. Last week, police opened fire on people gathered to morn at the funeral Mohammed Bouzazis. Undeterred, Tunisians continue to march, heartened by the increasing scrutiny of international media outlets. The protests have grown to become the largest, most violent uprising under Ben Ali’s rule and have already spread to the capital. For the first time in 23 years, the shackles are starting to break.