As Tunisia’s President Kais Saied continues to seize power and erode democratic institutions, there is an urgent need to confront this assault on Tunisian democracy. There was new post on this subject in Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Here is an extract:

Tunisia has become a hostage of President Kais Saied’s mission to consolidate power and destroy every democratic institution and achievement of the 2011 revolution. Women’s rights are no exception. In recent years, Tunisia has witnessed an unprecedented setback in women’s progress and freedoms.

Tunisia used to have one of the most progressive laws in the world regarding women’s equal political participation, as a 2011 electoral law mandated gender party in electoral lists. This law, the fruit of the feminist movement’s struggle, reflected the commitment of the state to achieve gender equality and social transformation through the equal representation of women’s interests.

However, the flawed 2022 constitution and subsequent removal of gender parity in an updated electoral law released before recent parliamentary elections—both overseen by Saied—resulted in the shocking figure of 16 percent representation for women in the new parliament, compared to 31 percent in 2014. This means approximately 50 percent less women with the opportunity to influence the legislative policy agenda.

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