Geneva - The unjust court rulings against human rights defenders in Tunisia—including lawyers, media professionals, political activists, and opposition figures—should raise alarm bells. The rulings follow a campaign of arrests by the Tunisian security services against individuals who criticised the performance and public policy management of official authorities in the preceding months, particularly in the run-up to the Tunisian presidential elections.
A Tunisian court sentenced on 24 October media professional and attorney Sonia Dahmani to two years in prison under Presidential Decree 54/2022 for "spreading false news". In a first that sets a dangerous precedent, Dahmani was taken into custody on 11 May when Tunisian security forces broke into the Bar Association's headquarters in the country's capital of Tunis. During her detention, she was subjected to harassment, denied her right to a fair trial, and prevented from attending some of the court sessions on her case.
The arbitrary detention of opinion activists and the imprisonment and conviction of supporters and political opponents of the government are part of a systematic policy to undermine rights and freedoms
Earlier, on 18 October, the Criminal Chamber of the Tunis Court of First Instance sentenced Ennahda Movement leader and former Minister of Justice Noureddine Bhiri to 10 years in prison on charges of attacking state security and inciting violence among citizens. Bhiri's attorney has attested to the fact that the trial was "marred by serious violations", and that her client was found guilty due to a phony Facebook post that was purportedly from him, but later shown to be fraudulent by technical tests. Bhiri and several other opponents of President Kais Saied have been imprisoned for 18 months now.
Euro-Med Monitor condemns the arbitrary detention of opinion activists and the imprisonment and conviction of supporters and political opponents of the government, which are part of a systematic policy to undermine rights and freedoms in the country, particularly the right to peaceful assembly and the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
These actions constitute a blatant violation of Tunisia's constitutional guarantees of human rights, particularly Article 37, which protects freedom of opinion, expression, and information, and Article 42, which protects the right to peaceful assembly. Even Article 55, which places extremely strict restrictions on these rights, does so without compromising the essential elements of the freedoms and rights that are protected by the country's constitution and required by any democratic system.
According to General Comment No. (34) of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, the ongoing arrest campaigns in Tunisia also constitute a serious violation of the country's international obligations to guarantee human rights, particularly Article (19) related to the right to freedom of opinion and expression of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Tunisia ratified in 1969.
In accordance with its obligations under the local constitution and pertinent international agreements, the Tunisian government should immediately and unconditionally release all human rights defenders and other detainees serving sentences for exercising their right to freedom of opinion and expression; stop arbitrary arrests and unlawful prosecutions; respect the right to freedom of opinion and expression; and repeal any laws that conflict with human rights regulations, particularly Decree 54/2022 on combating crimes related to information and communication systems. This Decree violates the right to privacy, restricts the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and imposes arbitrary criminal penalties on it.
The international community must insist that the Tunisian government uphold the rule of law, human rights, and human dignity, in addition to the country's constitutional rights and pertinent international commitments.
