Chaos in Tunisia, President Saïed removes prime minister, ministers and suspends Parliament. Assembly: “Null decisions, it’s a coup”

Parliament suspended for 30 days, revoked immunity of its components e forced resignation of the prime minister Hichem Mechichi and some of his ministers. The surprise move of the President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, throws the chaos into chaos Tunisia but the head of state ensures that “This is not a coup d’etat” and to have acted within the limits of the country’s Constitution. “I decided to assume executive power with the help of a head of government that I will appoint myself – Saïed said in a speech on state TV – According to the Constitution, I took the decisions required by the situation to save Tunis, the state and the Tunisian people. Anyone who talks about a coup should read the Constitution or go back to the first year of primary school, I was patient and I suffered with the Tunisian people ”. The president did not rule out the adoption of other measures and in his speech he said he did not want more bloodshed ten years after Jasmine Revolution: “Whoever aims a weapon other than that of legitimacy will find a weapon, but I don’t want a single drop of blood“. And in the late morning comes another news that worries for the democratic stability of the country: Saïed has done close the local office of pan-Arab TV al-Jazeera, historically close to Muslim Brotherhood which in turn is also linked to the Islamist party Ennahda which in these hours is opposing the moves of the head of state. A decision that can be interpreted as an attempt to silence critical voices in Tunisia.

A move that represents the epilogue of one prolonged stall that has plagued the country for months, with the head of state and government never finding a meeting point after the reshuffle of the executive of last January never accepted by Saïed. The situation was then further complicated, with the deputies arriving several times to the physical confrontation inside the classroom. So the President of the Republic decided to remedy the executive with a sponge, after yesterday’s protests organized on the net by the Movement of 25 July, on the day of the 64th anniversary of the proclamation of the Tunisian Republic which brought hundreds of young people and activists to the streets. Yesterday the activists marched under a scorching sun and a temperature of 40 degrees, chanting as the main slogan “the people want the dissolution of Parliament”. Among the other requests of the movement also that a date be set for early elections. Imposing the deployment of police which has cordoned off all access routes to the parliament building and to the central Avenue Bourguiba of the capital. Agents used tear gas to disperse some of the demonstrators who had thrown objects at them and made several arrests. Clashes have occurred in many cities, notably a Nabeul, Sousse, Kairouan, Sfax e Tozeur.

Following the president’s decision, the military have surrounded the Parliament, after having denied access to the President of the Assembly during the night, Rached Ghannouchi, leader of the Islamic party Ennahda, who had presented himself in front of the entrance with the vice president Samira Chaouachi, Noureddine Bhiri and other deputies from the same faction and from the Islamist coalition Al Karama. “We have not been consulted, we reject the decisions announced by Kaïs Saïed and we will appeal to national organizations and those of civil society to oppose them,” said Ghannouchi himself after the emergency meeting of the movement late at night. “We believe that Parliament has not been dissolved and will remain in permanent session. The head of state misapplied the provisions of Article 80. What the head of state has just announced cannot be qualified as anything other than a coup. It’s a coup against the constitution and state institutions “. Saïed instead stated that he had warned both the premier and the president of Parliament of the decision taken, but the latter replied saying that “it is true that the head of state contacted me to tell me that he would announce the state of emergency, but in no way did he tell me that he was preparing a coup and that he had in mind to change the present democratic regime in a despotic and unilateral way ”.

On Monday afternoon, an official note was released from the Bureau of the Tunisian Parliament stating that all the decisions announced by the president are “null and void” because “they go against the Constitution and even Article 80, which was misinterpreted “. The Parliament, the note continues, will remain “in permanent meeting due to a particularly delicate situation “and invites” the forces of order and the army to stand alongside the Tunisian people, protect the Constitution, support the rule of law and preserve the prestige of the state and institutions “.

The military and police helicopters monitor the situation in the capital for fear of one popular uprising which could lead to heavy clashes, but it is already a mystery about the fate of Prime Minister Mechichi who, after the announcement of the head of state, has never been seen in public again. According to some local media, Ennahda executives claim it is in state of arrest and in the meantime his too visit to Rome, scheduled from 28 to 30 July, has been skipped. The president has also decided to torpedo the defense minister, Brahim Berteji, and the Minister of Justice, Hasna Ben Slimane.

Ennahda is reflecting on the deposit of a motion of no confidence against Saïed with the aim of dismissing him. And in this regard Ghannouchi said that “this coup will not restore the social rights of the Tunisian people” and called on people to demonstrate peacefully to resume democracy. And the first riots have already occurred in front of the seat of the Assembly of People’s Representatives in Tunis. The news site Tunisia Digital he reports of clashes between “citizens and members of the Ennahda movement and of the Al Karama coalition” and speaks of some injured by throwing stones. On its website, the radio Mosaic Fm he refers to “supporters of Ennahda who have stormed” and the intervention of the security forces who “are mediating with the demonstrators”.

Meanwhile, President Saïed showed up on the street and was cheered by the crowd. It is not yet clear whether the 25 July Movement, of which little is known but which has been active for a few weeks on the web, is made up of supporters of the head of state who have thus pushed for his intervention or if, vice versa, the will of the President to make a change in the clash with the government resulted in an invitation to protesters to take to the streets to justify his move. A tactic certainly facilitated by the severe economic crisis that Tunisia has been facing for some time now, exacerbated by the pandemic, which led a large part of the population to exasperation.

The first reactions of the parties also arrive, which last night held summits to assess the situation. In addition to Ennahda’s obvious contrary position, even his government ally, Qalb Tounes, defined the president’s move “a serious violation of the Constitution and the provisions of Article 80”. Tounes also called on the head of government to take up his “legitimate” functions and not to create a vacuum in the government presidency. Observers are concerned that Saïed has also decided to take over the position of Attorney General of the Republic, with the faculty therefore to be able exercise criminal prosecution. This would allow him to arrest even the deputies, given that their immunity has been taken away. Again according to the same sources, against Ghannouchi and other 64 deputies, who have pending cases with the justice, the ban on traveling abroad.

On the international level, however, the European Commission lets know that Palazzo Berlaymont “Is following the latest developments carefully. We ask all actors to respect the Constitution, institutions and the rule of law “, as stated by the spokesperson for the EU diplomatic service, Nabila Massrali. “We also ask everyone to remain calm and to avoid any recourse to violence, to preserve the stability of the country”, he concludes. While from fly they let it be known that “we are following the news coming from Tunisia. We certainly hope that nothing threatens the stability and security of people in this country, “said the Kremlin spokesman. Dmitry Peskov.

Me too’Italy he said he was following “with great attention the evolution of the situation in Tunisia. The extent and nature of the decisions taken in the past few hours will have to be carefully evaluated. Italy also expresses worry for the situation and its potential implications and appeals to Tunisian institutions to ensure compliance with the Constitution and the rule of law – reads a note from the Farnesina – At a time when the political-economic crisis in the country is exacerbated by the recent deterioration of the epidemiological framework, Italy confirms its support for the political and economic stability of Tunisia and reiterates its sincere closeness to the Tunisian people ” .

L’Him-her-it instead he asks to “exercise moderation, refrain from violence and ensure that the situation remains calm ”. The spokesperson Farhan Haq, in a note, then expressed “dismay” at the news of a raid by the security forces inside the headquarters of al-Jazeera of Tunis. “We hope that all journalists, including those from al-Jazeera, can carry out their work without suffering mistreatment “.

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