Tunisian Quartet in conversation

 

Houcine Abbassi, Secretary General UGTT: First of all, our co-operation as members of civil society has a history. In 2011, to assure a smooth transition to a new political order after then-president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fled, political parties and civil society groups created the so-called Higher Authority for Realisation of the Objectives of the Revolution, Political Reform and Democratic Transition. My colleague Ghazi Gherairi, professor of constitutional law, who is also with us today, advised us and acted as our spokesperson. Our work led to the election of the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) on 23 October 2011. Once the NCA formed a government, the Higher Authority was dissolved. But unfortunately, after a year, there were again conflicts and a serious political crisis developed. There were attacks on public personalities, officials and the police, assassinations and a growing danger

of terrorism. Two important political figures were assassinated: Chokri Belaïd [co-ordinator of the Democratic Patriots’ Movement] and Mohamed Brahmi [leader of the People’s Movement]. We were watching what was happening in other states, where there had also been revolution and which were descending into chaos. We told ourselves that we could not just stand by as passive observers if we did not want our country to go down the same route. Tunisia needed to find its own solution for putting an end to the situation. So our four organizations convened to find a way out of the impasse – to initiate a national dialogue. That is how our story started.

 

Ouided Bouchamaoui, President of UTICA: Sometimes one forgets, but it is useful to recall that there had been direct contact between UTICA, the union of bosses, and UGTT, the union of workers, before we started the national dialogue. In 2012, when there were a great number of sit-ins and strikes and a rather difficult social situation, the two syndicates met and we prepared the ground for this dialogue. Certainly, it was not easy at first. I think it

was due to our personalities, and also to the situation in the country, that we were able to set this first milestone.

 

Abbassi: We invited many political parties to join the national dialogue, and quite a few of these parties contacted either Madame Bouchamaoui or myself to warn us against joining forces, believing that what divides us is greater than what unites us. But our answer was clear: the interest of the country goes before everything. We sent strong message to the conflicting political parties: we, as traditional adversaries, have been able to come to an agreement, so you, too, must overcome your internal disagreements for the wellbeing of the country that is dear to us.

 

Noureddhine Allègue, Tunisian Order of Lawyers: The Tunisian Order of Lawyers, in a general assembly, decided to go ahead and engage in this matter. It was clear that we needed to address the political situation and could not leave things as they were. Our cooperation with the Tunisian Human Rights League was natural – its head, Abdessattar Ben Moussa, is one of our colleauges, an ex-battonier [head of a legal bar association], and the league itself is composed of quite a number of lawyers. So there was already a relationship, and also a good relationship with the other two organizations, and that facilitated our task.

 

Abdessattar Ben Moussa, President of the Tunisian Human Rights League: All four organizations had been active already at the time of the dictatorship and had participated in the revolution. So they had the support of the population and of other associations and organizations. Another thing we had in common is that we were independent of the political parties – and also of foreign influence. The embassies wanted to intervene, but we refused. 

 

 

Ben Moussa: Indeed, convincing the three parties who made up the government to step down was difficult. Tunisian society was deeply divided regarding the NCA. There were thousands of protesters at a sit-in outside the NCA building and throughout the country demanding the departure of the government and the dissolution of parliament, and there was the other camp, which demanded the keeping of the status quo. What to do? We decided that, since the NCA was an elected body, it was necessary to respect its legality. But at the same time, the government needed to be held responsible for the security situation and the series of attacks. So we proposed a roadmap that charted a middle way, leading to a new constitution, a non-partisan interim government, a new electoral law and parliamentary and presidential elections. We insisted that the roadmap be accepted, immediately. “We cannot remain in this situation of civil war and chaos,” we said, “otherwise, what will there be left for you to govern? We need to have a dialogue now.” This was the tactic that we used for getting the parties to sign the roadmap. And it was accepted. Afterwards, for the implementation of the roadmap, we sometimes made use of street appearances, holding demonstrations together with the population and with activists.

 

 

Bouchamaoui: All of the elements of the roadmap have been implemented: we have elected the assembly; we have elected the president of the republic and we have adopted the new constitution. So, frankly, we have successfully achieved the political transition. However, it is still fragile, and it will remain so as long as we don’t succeed with the economic transition. Because the young people, when they went out into the streets, demanded not only dignity and freedom, but also work. Today we are a democratic country; we have all the freedoms and there is a strong civil society for defending these freedoms. But the one demand of the people that we

have not yet managed to satisfy is to offer the young people who are unemployed the work they so desperately need. We, as a small country, do not have the resources to do this alone, especially as the majority of Tunisian enterprises are not large. Ninety per cent are smalland medium-sized enterprises – and the majority are very small, one-person enterprises. So our country alone is incapable of offering sufficient opportunities to the young. That is why we are inviting investors from abroad to come and invest in Tunisia. But – and this is a crucial distinction – we are not looking for sub-contracting: what we want is colocation. We are looking for investment in Tunisia in a spirit of true partnership. Not for people who come to Tunisia for a low-cost solution, far from that. We are looking for opportunities for innovation in technology, in healthcare, in education – there are many sectors that require research, creativity and innovation, and I am more than certain that Tunisians are capable of offering these opportunities to foreigners. 

 

 

Bouchamaoui: Yes, a certain number of young people are leaving to join the jihad. There are reports that Tunisia is the first country of exploitation for radical extremists, and that frightens people. First of all, one needs to be sure of the figures. Secondly, we need to listen to these young people, enter into dialogue with them, discuss with them the reasons that are pushing them to go. If we listen to them and talk with them, there will always be an answer.

There is a material side to it, of course, there are young people who are poor, who are looking for work; there are also some who for lack of a social network or for lack of distraction or lack of something else are attracted to those who call themselves Islamist devotees, although it is not true. So we need to try to convince them, to tell them that there is a better future, that there is happiness beyond. It is a matter of employing all the means at our disposal to listen, to create adequate conditions of life and, above all, to offer young people the dignity they deserve.

 

 

Gherairi: I believe that the OSCE, as an organization of peaceseeking countries, is aware of what is happening around it and Tunisia is a country in geographical proximity where important things are happening. On the one hand, Tunisia has what you honoured this morning: a civil consensus in favour of democracy. But Tunisia also shows other potentials, including social demands that have not been met and that can lead either to migration flows – you will recall that in the first weeks after the revolution there was a migration flow to Europe, in particular to Italy – or to what certain media, without verifying the data, purport to see happening in the country, given the presence of a certain number of Tunisian contingents training for the jihad in the Middle East. I believe it would be an error to separate these potentials; they have to be seen together. There is a virtuous process, of democratization, of societal integration, but it takes time to achieve public satisfaction, recognition, stability. We are surrounded by an international environment which is not always in favour of peace, which is not always in favour of democratic values. And often these non-democratic leitmotifs are supported by money – not to say petrodollars. And it is established in Tunisia that certain groups that choose radicalism – they are several dozens of persons – are linked to these sorts of networks. So today, the contribution that an organization like the OSCE can make to international opinion is first of all to understand what is happening in Tunisia. Above all, to understand. Understand that there is a nation that decided to brave all odds and stand up as a democratic nation, virtuous and autonomous. Today we find ourselves in a certain international context. If that is understood, we do not even need to tell you what you should do, it is obvious. It is in line with the very meaning of the OSCE as an organization that cares about peace, peace not just as the absence of conflict but as the establishment of a permanent state of non-conflict.

 

Abbassi: The Quartet has completed what it set out to do. With the national dialogue, we found a solution that allowed the state institutions to take root and establish themselves. We have been requested to institutionalize this dialogue. But we have declined. Because that would be a parallel effort to the declared will of the electorate; that would weaken the democratic institutions. Our task is done and it is now up to these state institutions to continue. But the Quartet will always be watching what is happening in Tunisia; we will be vigilant, all four of us, until our country finds its balance – on the political and socio-economic level but equally on the level of security, as far distant as possible from terrorism. Our role is to intervene if ever we see signs of destabilization. In such a case, we need to move quickly, because if we don’t, the consequences will be dire. That is what still unites us. We will intervene if our country needs us. 

 

Ben Moussa: Let me add that our organizations continue to participate in the reforms. The Human Rights League is working in many areas: educational reform, legal reform, the reform of the security system, also the fight against unemployment, against terrorism and violence. We have a lot to do as an organization of persuasion, but we don’t replace the political institutions.