Kais Saied Calls for Confronting All Attempts to Strike Tunisian State

While opening a cabinet session, yesterday, Thursday, President Saeed stressed the need to reform the judicial system as a whole, stressing that an independent judiciary is better than a thousand constitutions, as he put it.

Saeed considered that the development of the law relating to the Supreme Judicial Council was the result of the intervention of a number of non-competent parties and pressure forces, which he did not name.

The Tunisian President called on the Ministries of Interior and Justice to track down those behind any assassination attempts, whether they were previous or being prepared, as he put it.

This comes at a time when the “Citizens Against the Coup” initiative called on the Tunisian people to boycott what it describes as the coup, and said earlier that it would announce the formation of an expanded political front to confront it.

The initiative declared the anniversary of the revolution, next January 14, as a day of “great mobilization to reject the coup,” as they described it;

The government warned against the involvement of the security services and their use to suppress the protests.

President Kais Saied continues to implement the roadmap he announced despite the criticism, with his last stop being the holding of early legislative elections, ending the state of exception and restoring legitimate institutions to function.

Consultation and interruption

Earlier on Thursday, the “Citizens Against the Coup” initiative called on the Tunisian people to boycott the consultation called by President Said, accusing him of employing state institutions in the face of his opponents.

The initiative confirmed that it is coordinating with all political forces to make next January 14 a significant day against what it describes as the coup, and member of the initiative, Habib Bouajila, confirmed that “the coup employs state institutions in its struggle with its opponents.”

Bouajila added that “the situation has become intolerable, and we demand that the president’s use of the security establishment stop,” noting that the hunger strike by opponents of Said’s measures is political with human rights implications.

Activists from Citizens Against the Coup and politicians began their hunger strike about a week ago, in protest of what they described as Saeed’s coup d’etat.

Members of the “Citizens Against the Coup” initiative confirmed their continuation of the hunger strike, despite the deterioration of the health of a number of them.

Recently, the initiative talked about the deterioration of the health of two of the participants in the strike, one of whom is the official spokesman for the hunger strikers, Ezz El-Din El-Hazki.

The initiative’s member, Shaima Issa, revealed the organization of a million march next January 14th to oppose the “coup”, the day on which the victory of the Tunisian revolution was announced after the escape of the late President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

Former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki joined the initiative, in protest of “individual rule, suppression of opponents’ voices, and prevention of demonstrations.”

Al-Marzouki said – in a video clip broadcast by the “Citizens Against the Coup” initiative account on Facebook – that this strike reminds him of “the strikes we used to carry out during the dictatorship.”

Constitutional reforms

Qais Saeed had announced during a ministerial meeting the “popular consultation on constitutional reforms” and that this consultation would be launched on the first of next January.

Saeed confirmed that this consultation will be on social networks, and will continue until March 20, provided that the resulting proposals will be formulated within legal texts on which the people will be put to a referendum next July, before the legislative elections are held on December 17 2022.

In conjunction with this, US Ambassador to Tunisia Donald Bloom – during his meeting with Tunisian Prime Minister Najla Boden – expressed his support for the existing partnership between the two countries, and his support for the aspirations of the people of Tunisia for an effective, democratic and transparent government to look after their affairs.

The Republican Party in Tunisia (centrist, and has no seats in Parliament) announced – on Thursday – its refusal to harness the capabilities of the state to implement the political project of President Kais Saied, after the “Citizens Against the Coup” initiative called on the Tunisian people to boycott the popular consultation that the president spoke about.

The ambassador stressed the importance of Tunisia implementing an inclusive political consultation process, and expressed his support for the adoption of economic reforms that would advance economic growth in the country.