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Politique Vanessa Szakal 02 May 2017

L’Allemagne et le G20 prescrivent un “Plan Marshall” pour l’Afrique

Youssef Chahed était censé se rendre à Washington pendant le weekend du 21 avril, à l’occasion des Réunions de printemps de la Banque mondiale (BM) et le Fonds monétaire international (FMI). Une occasion pour la nouvelle présidence allemande du G20 et les banques de développement pour promouvoir une « nouvelle stratégie de sauvetage économique de l’Afrique». D’après Wolfgang Schäuble, le ministre de Finances allemand, la Tunisie compte parmi les premiers cinq pays qui auraient déjà montré leur intérêt pour y adhérer.

Chahed and the IMF: how close is too close?

After a four month delay which prompted observers to convey their concerns and suspicions about the International Monetary Fund (IMF) « lending freeze, » Tunisia is set to receive the second installment of its four-year $2.9 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan. The Tunisian government has agreed to set to work immediately with « delayed structural reforms, » including reducing spending on wages in the public sector and devaluing the national currency.

Can hotels and banks save tourism in Tunisia?

Tunisia placed 87 out of 136 countries ranked in the 2017 Tourism Competitiveness Index, an assessment prepared by the World Economic Forum. According to the Index report released on April 5, Tunisia dropped down 8 points from its position in the previous year, owing to « low safety and security…with terrorism emerging as a destabilizing force…which in turn has led to high costs on business…and an extremely rigid and uncompetitive labour market. » The same week, the Tunisian Federation of Hotels proposed a debt restructuration plan as a life line for the country’s tourism industry. The sector is weighed down by a staggering 4 billion dinars in debt according to the Federation, and the Central Bank of Tunisia reports that some 120 out of 800 hotels nationwide are unable to settle their debts.

The DigitUs team: working to broaden Tunisia’s digital ecosystem

If the idea of blockchain technology is to simplify financial and administrative transactions by removing intermediaries and essentially decentralizing processes, why partner with La Poste Tunisienne, a state-owned enterprise? Walid Driss of the startup DigitUs answers his own question: « I never thought I’d be working on a project in collaboration with an administration in Tunisia, let alone on a technological project, something quite disruptive and very cutting edge… » But Driss and business partner Hichem Ben Fadhl never intended to go it alone, and although they had considered other partners at the outset, La Poste had « a clear need, and there is a gap in the ecosystem that we want to help fill. »

Anis Mahrsi: caricaturist at all costs

« I’m sick, » Mahrsi smiles. « My hand is sick… Like someone who always needs to smoke, I always need to draw. » Indeed, one of the most impressive things about Mahrsi is his seemingly relentless productivity, the profusion of caricatures, illustrations and projects he has worked on since 2011. In spite of a limited market, a media landscape that thas yet to shake of the habits of censorship, and lack of recognition, Mahrsi has not let down his pen for a moment.

Soja, la Tunisie importe les OGM

Dans un rapport publié fin février 2017, le département agricole américain prévoit une augmentation de l’importation de soja en Tunisie « pour répondre à la demande croissante du secteur de transformation ». Alors que la vaste majorité de soja est génétiquement modifié et que la Tunisie n’a toujours pas de législation concernant les OGM, les importations de cette culture devrait augmenter jusqu’en 2025.

The Tunisian body, on and off screen

The body in cinema was the theme of the 17th edition of Cinéma de la Paix? organized by the Tunisian Federation of Film Clubs (Fédération Tunisienne des Ciné-Club, FTCC) in Tunis. March 8-12, at the Quatrième Art theater downtown, cinephiles, directors, students, FTCC members old and new filled café tables and spilled out into the street, clutching programs and caricatures sketched out by an on-site cartoonist. On Sunday evening, a musical performance by Pardon My French marked the end of the festival, five days of reflections and discussions on what the body in cinema reveals about society.

Politics aside, civil society pushes for an end to violence against women

In anticipation of International Women’s Day on March 8, Tunisian civil society organizations are campaigning for the expedient adoption of legislation concerning the elimination of violence against women. The Tunisian Association of Women Democrats (ATFD), the Tunisian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LTDH), and other non-governmental associations who are the first recourse for women victims of violence, are pushing for the adoption of a pending draft law, even while one of their primary critiques regarding the text is its failure to recognize the essential role played by non-governmental actors.

Chahed courts the IMF, Tunisian General Labor Union defiant

On February 25, Youssef Chahed announced the appointment of new heads to several ministries. The UGTT lost not a minute in denouncing what it called a politically-driven and unilateral decision to replace Abid Briki, former UGTT Under Secretary General, with Khalil Ghariani, head of social affairs for the UTICA, as Minister of Public Service. In a statement published on February 26, the UGTT deemed the move a deliberate provocation, and made in the interest of unblocking the second installment of a $2.9 billion loan from the IMF. The conflict, which culminated in Ghariani’s refusal to accept the nomination and the subsequent suspension of the Ministry of Public Service on March 2, is the most recent flare-up in the tenuous relationship between the current government and country’s largest workers union.

Tunisia follows lead on Europe’s migration strategy

Since the beginning of February, the EU’s revamped strategy to reduce the number of migrants arriving on European shores has suscitated fervent reactions from south to north of the Mediterranean. On February 3, European Council members met in La Valetta, Malta, where they signed a declaration committing to « step up our work with Libya as the main country of departure as well as with its North African and sub-Saharan neighbors. » On the heels of the summit, the Tunisian government has, more or less, followed the lead of its European partners, having been promised sizeable economic packages in exchange for cooperation in curbing the human flow across the Mediterranean.

Enquête sur l’attentat de Sousse : agences de voyages, forces sécuritaires mises à l’index

Le 26 juin 2015 à Sousse, les forces sécuritaires auraient raté une intervention rapide et efficace en raison d’une « simple lâcheté » et d’un « retard délibéré et non-justifiable », selon un rapport confidentiel du pôle judiciaire de lutte contre le terrorisme en Tunisie. Un résumé de ce rapport a été présenté lors d’une audition à la Cour royale de justice de Londres le 8 février 2017. Alors que les médias anglophones assistent de près au déroulement des auditions, le silence en Tunisie devient pesant.

Expulsion des migrants : derrière la diplomatie, la solution militaire

Hier, mardi le 14 février, la chancelière allemande Angela Merkel a insisté pour accélérer l’expulsion des tunisiens demandeurs d’asile déboutés. Youssef Chahed, en visite officielle à Berlin s’est montré ferme en estimant que c’est les autorités allemandes qui ralentissent la procédure d’expulsion. Derrière ce dialogue de sourde, les tensions d’une gestion sécuritaire, et depuis peu, militaire des flux migratoires.

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Environment Translation : Vanessa Szakal 08 February 2017

Investigation: Mohamed Ayachi Ajroudi grabs Hammamet’s forest

On Sunday, January 22, a group of friends set off to Jbel el Faouara in the hills of Hammamet, where they were threatened by security forces at the service of wealthy businessman Mohamed Ayachi Ajroudi, who is expanding his palace in the foothills, illegally. The following Sunday, residents of Hammamet organized a picnic protest recalling their right to access the green space they love.

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Culture Vanessa Szakal 12 January 2017

Reviving the Beys

Broad-faced, imposing Qsar Essaïd in Tunis was the palace Sadok Bey, one of Tunisia’s many rulers under the Ottoman Empire. It was here where Sadok Bey adopted Qanoun Eddawla, the country’s first constitution. Two decades later, he signed the Treaty of Bardo, marking the beginning of the French protectorate. Today, sixty years after independence and six years after the revolution, Qsar Essaïd has been opened to the public with “The Awakening of a Nation,” an exhibition on a period of Tunisia’s history (1837-1881) that modern regimes preferred to forget.

What authorities don’t say, cinema does: « Life is short » in Gabes

From the center of Gabes, a 365-degree view of the city offers a stunning panorama of the world’s only seaside oasis, an urban setting scattered with green-grey palm trees, a blue-grey sea, and, jutting up from the main port, the Tunisian Chemical Group’s sky-high factory topped by thick plumes of smoke. It is a grey December morning on the weekend of Gabes’ short-film festival, “Life is short.” Even in the midst of a three-day cultural event animated by film directors, artists, university students, and cinephiles, the unsettling omnipresence of the factory close by inspires the festival’s title with sharp irony.

Derrière les drones : un détachement paramilitaire américain

Aprés le feu vert de l’administration sortante de Barack Obama pour établir une base secrète au Moyen-Orient, le Commandement des Opérations Spéciales de l’Armée américaine (JSOC) renforce sa mission antiterroriste à l’étranger. Le vendredi 25 novembre, le Washington Post annonce l’initiative du gouvernement américain qui vise à « élargir les pouvoirs de l’unité élite militaire pour chasser les combattants étrangers au niveau mondial ».

Tunisia 2020 : Cartographie régionale du climat d’affaires

Alors que la Banque mondiale a classé la Tunisie première au Maghreb en termes de « Doing business » en 2016, les entreprises tunisiennes estiment le climat d’affaires « peu satisfaisant ». C’est la principale conclusion d’un récent « Rapport sur l’attractivité régionale 2016 » publié par l’Institut arabe des chefs d’entreprises (IACE), au moment où le pays s’apprête à accueillir des hommes d’affaires et investisseurs étrangers pour une conférence internationale à Tunis le 29 et 30 novembre.

Truth Commission Public Hearings: Kamel Matmati and Tunisia’s disappeared

Last Thursday, November 17, Tunisia’s Truth and Dignity Commission held the country’s first public hearings with victims of human rights violations carried out under the Bourguiba and Ben Ali regimes. Torture victims—including former political prisoners Sami Brahem and Gilbert Naccache—as well as the families of the disappeared and martyrs of the revolution testified on national television.