First Thoughts: Tunisia
After eight days of filming and traveling in Tunisia, I thought it would be a good opportunity to share some initial impressions of this fascinating country. I’m writing this in the hour I have before heading to the airport, so I’m going to keep it relatively simple for now — there is so much here to explore.
If you’re not familiar with Tunisia’s recent history, in late 2010, Mohamed Bouazizi, a vendor in a small town in southern Tunisia, set himself on fire and ignited protests throughout Tunisia and quickly throughout the Arab world — protests that became known as the Arab Spring.
Within weeks of Bouazizi’s immolation, Tunisia’s long time dictator had fled the country and Tunisians found themselves in control of their own government for the first time. Over the next three years, a Constitution was created and in 2014, Tunisians elected their first President.
Fast forward to today and Tunisia is the only Arab Spring country where the revolution didn’t collapse. Supported by a deeply felt national pride in their achievements, a young democracy is taking shape. But challenges exist, as the country struggles to confront economic challenges, interference from foreign governments, and debates about religion’s role in how Tunisians govern.
Civic society is strong but might not be deep
Tunis is the nation’s capitol and where we spent most of our time. Not surprisingly, our interviews and conversations trended elite — political party leaders, journalists, human rights lawyers, university students.
This universe had diverse political opinions, but across the board there was an emotional bond to the concept of democracy. They were proud to tell their stories of election day — driving across the country to vote, waiting in line for 4 hours, taking a bus from college in the United States to the Tunisian embassy in DC.
But when we asked cab drivers and merchants if they voted, we often heard the same cynicism you’d get in America: “they’re all crooks,” “they’re all the same.” There are vibrant debates happening here, but it’s unclear if average Tunisians feel deeply connected to them.
That said, there is a women’s protest occurring in Tunisia tomorrow, and political parties are starting to mature (partially supported by trainings from American organizations like the National Democratic Institute and the International Republican Institute).
Is Ennahda the first moderate Islamist party?
Ennahda is the Islamist party in Tunisia — a version of the Muslim Brotherhood movement that briefly won power in Egypt. They are undoubtedly conservative and hold positions that would make many Americans uncomfortable.
They also make liberal Tunisians uncomfortable. We were repeatedly told Ennahda waters down their extreme positions because they know they can’t win an election with them. Some people even said they would flee to France if Ennahda regained power.
But in our conversations, they came across as committed (small “d”) democrats. At some level this makes sense. They are one of the biggest benefactors of democracy in Tunisia. Displays of devout Muslim faith (such as headscarves) were banned under the dictator President Ben Ali. And Ennahda members were harassed by police and government officials throughout the Ali reign. Now, Muslims are free to practice their faith as they want — finally able to wear beards or headscarves (from our travel, this appears to a minority of the population).
They’ve elected a woman, Meherzia Labidi, into leadership — the only women in a leadership role in any Islamist party in the world. Effectively exiled in Paris during the Ben Ali regime, Labidi worked for NGOs that supported fledgling democracies around the world.
She has taken positions regarding women’s rights that have angered some in her own party. In our conversation, she discussed at length the “schizophrenia” she believes infects much of political Islam in the Middle East and how that leads to terrorism.
In other conversations with party officials, they expressed opinions about a current political topic, women’s inheritance policies, that we as Americans found deeply unfair. But when we asked if they would accept a more equitable policy if a majority of Tunisians voted for it, they said yes without hesitation.
If their moderation is a ruse, it’s an extremely well organized one — one American political parties would find nearly impossible to pull off.
What appears more likely is that democracy has driven them towards modernity and moderation — focused on fixing problems rather than instituting religious law.
I’m someone who strongly believes in the divide between religion and government. If I were Tunisian, I can’t imagine I’d ever vote for Ennahda and I understand the skepticism we heard from liberal and secular Tunisians. But they might be an example of Islamic politics that could transform the region for the better.
Tunis and the south are different worlds
On our first full day in Tunisia, we drove south to Sidi Bouzid, the town where Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire. Over four hours, we drove on bad highways through acre after acre of olive and almond groves. We passed encampments of deep poverty — people living in makeshift tents surrounded by a steady stream of plastic trash.
To enter Sidi Bouzid, we had to pass a police checkpoint at the edge of town. After showing our authorization from the government, we were allowed to enter. For the first hour, we were tracked by uniform police. After a conversation with our local ‘fixer,’ the uniform guard backed off, though we later discovered we had been watched throughout the day by undercover officers.
Sidi Bouzid is a small and poor town, an outpost on the edge of the desert. Just outside the city, a camel was casually tied to a road sign. In town, there were large populations of men sitting around the cafe in the middle of the work day, presumably under or unemployed, given the high rates of unemployment in the city. Arabic was the primary language of the town — with limited French the way we were able to get around.
By comparison, Tunis feels almost Parisian. Its wide main boulevard teemed with life and stores. There is a streetcar system that runs regularly which took us from La Marsa, the suburb where we stayed, into the heart of downtown. Though we walked around with more camera gear than we had in the south and were holding interviews on busy streets, the police seemed almost entirely uninterested in us.
When asked, residents of Tunis realize they live in a bit of a bubble and that, while they feel more connected to Mediterranean culture and Europe, the south is more Arab.
One journalist explained to us that while the French colonized and developed Tunis, they mostly left the south as an unoccupied militarized zone used to mine phosphorus. That distinction continues today.
It’s a much more extreme version of the urban/rural divide we see reorganizing American politics at the moment. I worry it’s a bit of a blind spot for officials in Tunis, and that the place where the Arab Spring began could again serve as the starting point of uprising — this time against an immature but promising democracy.
Click here to learn more about Indispensable and our travels to Tunisia, join our mailing list. The views in this column are Scott’s.
