The spokesperson for the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell, Nabila Massrali, mentioned in her statement the dissolution of the Assembly of People’s Representatives in Tunisia and the legal proceedings against certain elected officials.
The European Union (EU) said it was “very concerned” by the latest developments in Tunisia, in particular the dissolution of the Assembly of People’s Representatives (ARP – Parliament) and the legal proceedings initiated against some of its members.
In a statement published Thursday on the website of the European External Action Service (EEAS – EU diplomatic service), the spokesperson for the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell, Nabila Massrali, underlined that the EU calls “for the return, as soon as possible, to a normal functioning of the institutions” in Tunisia.
“We will continue to carefully monitor the various stages of implementation of the political timetable approved in December 2021,” said the spokesperson for European diplomacy.
The President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, unveiled a roadmap on December 13, 2021, with a referendum scheduled for July 2022 to amend the Constitution and early legislative elections on December 17, 2022, after the revision of the electoral law.
According to Massrali, “it is essential that the reform process in Tunisia be based on an inclusive dialogue of all political and social actors”.
“While fully respecting the sovereignty of the Tunisian people, we also recall the importance of respect for the democratic acquis, the separation of powers, the rule of law, and fundamental rights and freedoms, including civil and policies, in order to guarantee the stability and prosperity of the country,” she added.
The spokesperson for Josep Borrell welcomed the progress made in drawing up an economic reform program, and reiterated the EU’s support for the Tunisian people “in a context of the major social and economic crisis which was further aggravated by the impact of Russian aggression on Ukraine”.
France expressed on Tuesday its concern with regard to the latest developments in Tunisia (dissolution of Parliament), and called on all the political forces in the country to engage in an inclusive dialogue and to avoid all forms of violence.
The spokesperson for the Quai d’Orsay, Anne-Claire Legendre, had stressed that Paris “wants the return, as soon as possible, to a normal functioning of the institutions, in order to be able to respond to the economic and social emergency”.
On Monday, Turkey declared that “the dissolution of the elected parliament in Tunisia is a blow to the will of the Tunisian people”.
For its part, Washington said last Thursday it was “deeply concerned” by President Saied’s unilateral decision to dissolve parliament, stressing that any process of political reform in the country should be inclusive and undertaken in coordination with the different political parties. .
Last Wednesday, the Assembly of People’s Representatives (ARP) adopted, during a virtual plenary, a bill repealing the exceptional measures decided by Saïed on July 25. On that date, the Tunisian Head of State had taken a series of exceptional measures, notably suspending the work of Parliament and lifting the immunity enjoyed by deputies.
He had also suspended the Authority for the Control of the Constitutionality of Laws and decided to legislate by means of decrees, just as he dissolved the Superior Council of the Judiciary.
A few hours after the ARP online plenary was held, the tenant of Carthage announced in a televised address, the dissolution of Parliament “to preserve the state and its institutions”, describing the virtual plenary and its decisions as a “failed coup attempt”.
The majority of Tunisian political and social forces reject Saïed’s decisions, which they consider to be “a coup d’etat against the Constitution”, while other parties support them, considering that they are a “restoration of the process of the Revolution” of 2011.
Saied, who began a five-year presidential term in 2019, said his decisions are measures taken within the framework of the Constitution to protect the state “from imminent danger”, emphasizing the preservation of rights and freedoms.
