Tunisia: A Country Striving for Democracy The Springers: Cameron E, Maddie H, Megan O, Jacob W

Introduction As many nations strive for democracy to become part of the Global Union, several nations in the Arab region are working hard to make changes in their constitutions after experiencing the revolutionary wave of the Arab Spring. So far, many Arab nations have begun to move past that. However, Tunisia is still suffering from the effects of the Arab Spring. In order for Tunisia to make change into a democracy, they need to make their citizens aware of human rights violations and win their support for any changes. In this presentation, we will discuss several human rights that have been violated, including women’s rights, freedom of expression, police brutality, and LGBT rights.

Women’s Rights Instances of gender-based violence, discrimination against women, and slavery and trafficking have occurred in the past decade and a half Countless cases of sexual violence against women have been reported and publicized long before Arab Spring began Centre for the Listing of Women Victims of Violence has filed 789 cases of violence against women between 1990 and 2000 (International Federation for Human Rights). Several cases of rape occurred in 2013, including rape of a pregnant women by two thugs, and the rape of a disabled 20 year-old by a group (Aïda, CWI sympathizer) Discrimination against women involves the inequality and mistreatment of women

Women’s Rights (continued) Discrimination within inheritance law, which shows that men have priority over women in distribution of inheritance (International Federation for Human Rights). In May of 2016, a women was turned away by police in an airport after being talked down in a sexist tone (Human Rights Watch). An instance of slavery and trafficking involved the abduction of 20 young Tunisian girls to satisfy the sexual desires of jihadists fighting the regime in Syria (Aïda, CWI sympathizer).

Freedom of Expression Freedom of expression is the right to convey your own options and ideas freely through speech, writing, and other forms of communication but it can't cause harm to others or their character by untrue statements. A military officer in Tunisia sentenced a blogger to three years in jail for a Facebook post that “damaged the reputation” of the armed forces. Last November the military court ended up changing it to a year in prison They charged him with “harming the dignity of the army” and “defaming the army high command with the effect of undermining military discipline.” There are 54 lawyers trying to fight the case saying it's a violation against freedom of expression

Police Brutality Former President Ben Ali enforced strict laws to fight against Terrorism Police have no respect for civilian rights as long as they are “protecting” against terrorism, torture methods have been reported by many. Beatings and mysterious deaths are also a result of the Tunisian police, over 300 deaths in less than a month. All of these rights violated led to the overthrow of President Ben Ali on January 14, 2012. He then fled to Saudi Arabia after his 23 year reign The police can enter homes and search anywhere or anyone if terrorism or protesting is suspected. The police are supposed to protect and serve its people

Police Brutality (Continued) “On January 29, 2011, Human Rights Watch observed uniformed agents beating a young man with their hands and clubs in the back of a police wagon on the main avenue of the capital. Later on January 29, police assaulted a French photographer and smashed his camera as he filmed them clubbing and kicking another youth.”(hrw.org 1) There have been efforts of a mass reform of the police force but all protest have been stomped out by the officers themselves, and anyone associated with them are arrested and possibly beaten/tortured. This incident was important because it sparked protests and gained support around the world

LGBT Rights Five years since the Arab Spring revolution in Tunisia, LGBT rights have made little to no progress. Some supporters have even gone as far as saying that conditions have worsened. Tunisia has severe laws that outlaw homosexuality; members of the LGBT community face harassment, prison sentences, lashes and abuse, and even the death penalty in some instances. What should be a basic human right is being denied, and outlawed in Tunisia. After a revolution demanding freedom, how can the new government deny these basic freedoms?

LGBT Rights The Tunisian minister of human rights, Samir Dilou, “has rejected a recommendation by the United Nations Human Rights Council to decriminalize same-sex acts, stating that sexual orientation was a western concept which is incompatible with Islam” (HRW). He has also stated that “the anti-homosexuality laws do not conflict with the premise of freedom because “there is no absolute freedom.” (HRW). The Tunisian government’s policies for the LGBT community seem to go against everything that the Arab Spring revolution fought for.

Conclusion In conclusion the Arab Spring may have only affected Tunisia for a short period of time, but the lasting effects of these rights violated can be seen to this day. Violence and injustice still ravages the country but, hopefully with more non-violent protest and government reform, Tunisia will truly have the rights they deserve.

Works Cited Aïda, CWI sympathizer. “the Ministry of Women excuses violations against women rights.” socialistworld.net, http://www.socialistworld.net/doc/6321. Accessed 4 Oct 2016. “Discrimination and violence against women in Tunisia.” International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), 6 Mar 2002, https://www.fidh.org/en/region/north-africa-middle-east/tunisia/Discrimination-and-violence. Accessed 4 Oct 2016. Guellai, Amma. “Dispatches: Illegal Travel Bans in Tunisia’s Airport.” Human Rights Watch, https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/06/02/dispatches-illegal-travel-bans-tunisias-airport. Accessed 29 Sept 2016. "Tunisia: LGBT Group Suspended". Human Rights Watch. N. p., 2016. Web. 7 Oct. 2016. Universal Human Rights Index. United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, Accessed 6 Oct 2016. http://uhri.ohchr.org/EN/search/results?cc=TN

Works Cited (continued) "Torture in Tunisia." - Al Jazeera English. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2016. Https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English. "Torture and Police Abuse Still a Reality, Five Years after Tunisia's Revolution - France 24." France 24. N.p., 2016. Web. 07 Oct. 2016. @hrw. "Tunisia: End Police Attacks on Protesters." Human Rights Watch. N.p., 2015. Web. 07 Oct. 2016. "Tunisia: Rapists given a Way out While Their Victims Are Blamed and Punished."Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Oct. 2016. Manfreda, Karma. "What Is the Arab Spring?" About.com News & Issues. N.p., 2014. Web. 07 Oct. 2016. https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-press/2015/tunisia http://foreignpolicy.com/2015/01/23/another-blow-to-freedom-of-speech-in-tunisia-ayari/