May 17, 2024
TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisians are voting Monday for a controversial new constitution put forward by President Kais Saied that critics say will formalize his power grab and reverse hard-won democratic gains in the North African nation.
Monday’s referendum marks one year to the day that Saied froze Tunisia’s parliament and dismissed his government — a move derided by critics as “a coup” but celebrated by Tunisians who had grown exasperated with the country’s political elites and years of economic stagnation. In the year since then, Saied has given himself the power to rule by decree and has fired dozens of judges, decisions that have provoked a series of protests.
The new constitution gives the office of the president all executive powers and removes key checks and balances. The power of Tunisia’s judiciary and parliament would be greatly reduced.
Critics warn that Saied’s new political structure could pave the way to a new autocracy in the country that rose up against former autocratic strongman Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011 and kicked off the Arab Spring pro-democracy protests. Tunisia is the only nation to emerge with a democracy from those protests.
Saied says the changes are needed to eliminate corruption and “return the nation to the revolutionary path.”
After casting his vote in Tunis on Monday morning, Saied told the Associated Press that the referendum was a call to Tunisians everywhere “to partake in history, to create a new history.”
Saied rejected fears the constitution would revive a dictatorship, saying that citizens were able to protest and express themselves freely.
“There is no dictatorship, as I said in the explanatory document on rights and freedoms: this constitution protects (such freedoms), and the revolution is defended by a people who stand up to those who undermine it.”
A former constitutional law professor, Saied ran for the presidency on a populist, anti-corruption platform in 2019, winning with over 70% of the votes in the second round.
Former Minister Hatem El Euchi believes the unification of executive power could ensure stability, revive the economy and investment, and create jobs.
But for Tunisian magistrate Ahmed Souab, the constitution represents a “serious danger for democracy” because it does not guarantee a clear balance of powers and gives more prerogatives to Saied than those held by previous Tunisian strongmen.
The proposed constitution has split Tunisia’s opposition. Only one party, Afek Tounes, has said it will vote against the proposal. Most political parties, including Tunisia’s influential Islamist party Ennahdha, say they plan to boycott Monday’s referendum so as not to legitimize the process.
“We refuse to go to the funeral of democracy,” said Republican Party leader Issam Chebbi, adding that he considers “the absolute personal power” that Saied wants to grant himself “worse than that of Ben Ali.”
The preliminary results are expected to be announced by Wednesday, with a final result on Aug. 28.
