Breadcrumb
Since its publication, the constitutional draft, which , has stirred up much discussion among the Tunisian public amid concern for the fate of the only democracy that emerged from the Arab Spring.
The new charter will be put to a referendum on 25 July. Although an amended version was released on 9 July, the text still grants extended powers to the head of state.
Many political and civic actors are and the referendum, with most parties planning to boycott the vote since they argue that the whole process has been flawed. Ìę
Calls for a have multiplied from different parties, among them Ennahdha, the Free Destourian Party, Democratic Current (Attayar), and Democratic Forum for Labour and Freedoms (Ettakatol).
"The constitutional draft, which centralises power in the president's hands, has stirred up much discussion among the Tunisian public amid concern for the fate of the only democracy thatÌęemerged from the Arab Spring"
âThis project bestows broad powers on the chief of state without real safeguards. It institutes an ultra-presidential regime and paves the way for the establishment of an authoritarian (or dictatorial) state,â Hella Ben Youssef, Ettakatolâs vice-president, told °źÂț”ș.
A group of small political parties who have stood behind president Saied since last year, such as the People'sÌęMovement (Echaab),ÌęAlliance for Tunisia, andÌęTunisia Forward, are urging people to vote in favour of the draft constitution in the upcoming referendum, embodying a resolve to break with the past ten years.
âWe appeal to Tunisians to vote âyesâ not to go back to a system where the parliament and the executive block one another and put decisions and reforms on hold,âÌęOussama Aouidet, a member of Echaabâs political bureau, told °źÂț”ș.
Voting 'yes'
With Kais Saied calling on citizens to vote âyesâ in the planned referendum, Tunisians are divided about the content of the modified document and the purpose of adopting a new constitution.
Some are determined to endorse Saiedâs project saying they were deeply dissatisfied with the post-2011 political system, often deadlocked, and the ruling eliteâs inability to govern the country.Ìę
âIâm going to vote âyesâ to give power to someone that doesnât represent the political class we had for a decade, to enable him to act on state institutions,â Fathy, a retired 71-year-old in Bab El Khadra, a working-class neighbourhood of Tunis, made clear. But he also admitted that passing a constitution is ânot the prime concernâ today.
âWe are in the s*** now! So I will say âyesâ one thousand times in this referendum,â retiree Majid, 63, told °źÂț”ș.
âI put my trust in Kais Saied, regardless. Heâs better than all the other parties we saw following the revolution,â Messaoui, 44, a market vendor in Bab Souika, another working-class neighbourhood, said. âHeâs Mr Clean and knows the lawâ.
Since the 2011 uprising,ÌęTunisiaÌęhas had ten successive governments who have all failed to handle its economic and social hardships while causing political stalemate, which has undermined public confidence inÌępolitical partiesÌęand institutions.
Many people said they were disillusioned with the Islamist-inspired Ennahdha movement, the largest bloc in the now-dissolved parliament and the main TunisianÌęopposition force, blaming the party for the countryâs political and economic paralysis.
âEverybody hates Ennahdha,â Hosni, a man in his early 40s in the old district of Halfaouine, said. âBillions of dinars have been stolen under its eyesâ.
"Since the 2011 uprising,ÌęTunisiaÌęhas had ten successive governments who have all failed to handle its economic and social hardships while causing political stalemate"
Dr Boujmil, 61, in La Marsa, a middle-class suburb north of Tunis, pointed out that âwrongdoersâ must be punished, referring to the conservative Ennahdha party and its leader, former parliamentary speaker, Rached Ghannouchi.
âThe largest majority of Tunisians are sick of the Islamists and Ghannouchi. Getting rid of those intruders has been a relief since last year,â the doctor said, cheering the presidentâs decision to dissolve parliament.
âSaied will fix the mess created by Ennahdha,â said Hedi, 38, in central Tunis, who hasnât read the constitution but is going to vote yes. âI trust him, he can save our countryâ.
Ghannouchi, whoâs increasingly unpopular in Tunisia, appeared before the on Tuesday for an investigation into terrorist financing and money laundering allegations, and was freed after a nine-hour court hearing.
'Nothing has changed, nothing will change'
Many citizens are wholeheartedly apathetic about the constitution and the .
âIâm not going to read the constitution or vote. We live in misery, there hasnât been progress since the revolutionâ, Abir, who is 35 and unemployed, said.
âItâs been more than ten years. Nothing has changed, nothing will change,â a woman in her mid-30s told °źÂț”ș. âThis vote will serve no purposeâ.
One 30-something medic in Bab Souika, whoâs not going to cast her ballot, stated unequivocally that rewriting the constitution isnât a primary concern, nor is a referendum necessary at a time when life is and public services are visibly deteriorating. Ìę
âPresident Saied hasnât addressed the countryâs priorities,â she told TNA. âLiving standards are really bad, people earn too little to cover their daily expensesâ.
In the economically deprived district of Jebel Lahmar, a young man in a streetÌęmarketÌęselling clothes, who preferred to not give his name, said candidly, âI havenât read the new draft, Iâm not interestedâ.
âTunisia is over,â he continued, with a sarcastic smile.
"I'm not going to read the constitution or vote. We live in misery, there hasn't been progress since the revolution"
Further up the main road, Noura, 45, whoâs employed in a bakery, expressed the same lack of interest. âIâve no idea about the constitution. I just care about working to feed my children,â she said. âI donât expect to see a change after 25 July. Kais Saied canât make a big differenceâ.
Raoua and Syrine, two fashion designers aged 22, in La Marsa, were likewise uninterested in the referendum. âI havenât seen any improvement since last summer. On the contrary, the situation has worsened,â Syrine told TNA. âPeople canât find jobs, those who work are paid very low wages, criminality is on the rise because of the tougher living conditionsâ.
Across the street, 58-year-old Fawzia, a primary school teacher, and her daughter Sanaa, 26, who recently graduated in agri-food engineering, both sounded unconvinced about the benefit of next Mondayâs vote.
âWe thought Saied could do better than those who ruled before, though he hasnât done anything meaningful for the people,â the schoolteacher said, venting her disappointment. âHe betrayed our hopesâ.
Cautious hope
But other Tunisians hold onto hopes that passing the constitutional draft will give Saied more leeway in serving the countryâs interests.
In Jebel Lahmar, Amira, 40, an employee at the NationalÌęHealth InsuranceÌęFund (CNAM), stressed that the president will succeed if parties let him work and do not sabotage his plans. âThe previous constitution granted powers to politicians, [who are] mafia and thieves,â she claimed.
Walid, 46, who works at the NationalÌęSocial SecurityÌęFund (CNSS), echoed the same view. The public employee also said it is âbetter to have one headâ rather than three heads of the state.
Mohamed, 41, an industrial maintenance technician, also clearly favoured a presidential system for running the countryâs affairs. While he has read the constitution, Mohamed acknowledged that a lot of people havenât, and are showing no interest.
Mr Ben Fadhel, a 60-something retiree in Halfaouine, said he has confidence in Saied and his fight against corrupt politicians and the âlobbiesâ and âmafiaâ, with the view to see stolen state funds recovered. âEverybody has a little hope with Kais Saied,â he affirmed.
âHe will go after the lobbies and the corrupt,â Wiem, a 25-year-old graduate in public law in La Marsa who works as a part-time DJ while looking for a job, said. âIâm sure this referendum will change things in the general interestâ.
A return to authoritarianism
Others voiced concern about the risk of TunisiaÌę.
In Tunisâ northern suburb, a 60-year-old manager who wished to remain anonymous, said he is afraid that if the amended charter is passed it will lay the groundwork for post-Saied which could become institutionalised. Ìę
âThe chief of state relieved us of a parliament of clowns and of a pseudo-democracy last year,â the manager said. âWe needed a presidential system, but not a regime with very little counter-powers,â he added, saying he would vote ânoâ.
Golsom, a 48-year-old journalist, walking with her young son in Ennasr, a middle-class residential area, shared her fears of restrictions on the rights and freedoms of women. Although she felt relieved after the head of stateâs coup de force last July, she had reservations about what would come next.
"It could lead to more autocratic presidencies next. We don't know who we might get after Saied"
âI initially thought Saied would take things in hand seriously, but weâve seen nothing,â she said, still undecided on whether to boycott or vote ânoâ.
Others are also undecided but leaning towards voting ânoâ, fearful of warnings from experts that the new constitution bestows .
âIt could lead to more autocratic presidencies next. We donât know who we might get after Saied,â a 50-year-old engineer who wished to remain anonymous told TNA.
President Saied has held nearly total power since last July, when he sacked the government, suspended parliament, and assumed executive authority amid public anger against the political class.
While his initial power grab was welcomed by some Tunisians, there has been mounting criticism against his rule. But whichever way Tunisians vote in the upcoming referendum, much uncertainty remains about the trajectory of the countryâs future.
Alessandra Bajec is a freelance journalist currently based in Tunis.
Follow her on Twitter:Ìę