Tunisia: implementing a new constitution
The country’s new parliament must adopt laws to translate a promising text into reality
Tunisia’s new constitution is a major step along the road to building a stable parliamentary system. This blueprint for its young democracy guarantees a range of civil liberties that have been hailed as groundbreaking in the Arab world. Adopted three years after the country’s citizens chased out its authoritarian ruler, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the document dilutes the power of what was once an overweening executive presidency by boosting the prerogatives of elected lawmakers and the prime minister. Tunisia’s constituent assembly adopted the new charter in January 2014. Under the new constitution, parliamentary and presidential elections followed, from October to December 2014. Much of the spadework for implementing it now falls to the 217 newly elected members of parliament, many of whom have experience in the previous assembly.
Their first task will be to hammer out legislation to create several bodies specified in the constitution. Much of the constitution’s content represents a compromise between the leftist opposition and the moderate Islamist party, Nahda (“Awakening”), which along with two smaller parties controlled a governing majority in the constituent assembly. The influence of leftist opposition parties punching above their weight is seen in articles that guarantee equality between the sexes and eventual “parity between men and women in elected assemblies”. Two articles guarantee “freedom of creative expression” while committing the state to “the protection of the sacred and the prohibition of all violations thereof”. These clauses could give rise to stimulating legal debates down the line.
Nidaa Tounes (“Tunisian Call”), a centrist party founded in 2012 by veteran politician Beji Caid Sebsi (pictured), is now the new parliament’s largest party, with Nahda in second place. Many Nidaa Tounes activists were supporters of Mr Ben Ali’s ruling party, the Democratic Constitutional Rally (RCD), and are hostile to Nahda’s moderate Islamism. However, the 88-year-old Mr Caid Sebsi portrays himself as a conciliatory figure. After winning the presidential election last December he resigned from the party, as the constitution decrees. The head of state, a “symbol of national unity”, is above the political-party fray, the constitution says. However, intended merely to map out broad outlines, the document has left some grey areas surrounding the chief executive’s role. The president defines the “general orientations” of security, defence and foreign policy, it says, without going into details.
Mr Caid Sebsi is already trying to give more form to his post. In a television interview last April, he made indirect references to diplomatic relations between Tunisia and Syria, which were suspended in 2012. When asked whether a Syrian ambassador would return to Tunis shortly, as the foreign minister had suggested, Mr Caid Sebsi replied firmly, “I don’t think so.” He added that the president had responsibility for defining foreign policy while the minister merely “implements” that policy. During the presidential campaign late last year, the opposition argued that it would be dangerous for democracy to have a president whose party was also the strongest in parliament. The next few years will be crucial in determining how this balance of power plays out. Using its parliamentary majority, Nidaa Tounes in January named Habib Essid as prime minister.
A non-partisan figure and previously a junior minister under Mr Ben Ali, Mr Essid’s coalition government includes one minister and three junior ministers from Nahda ranks. Mr Caid Sebsi maintains he was not involved in choosing ministers and will respect the constitutional limitations on his role. However, his association with Habib Bourguiba, the country’s first post-independence president, who is still widely revered, combined with the strength of his personality, has enhanced his political influence. Lack of detail in the constitution also triggered fierce debate in parliament in April over the draft law creating a new supreme judicial council. This body is responsible for ensuring judicial independence as well as investigating allegations of judicial misconduct. For decades, judges have been seen as pliable to presidential instructions. Under Ben Ali and Mr Bourguiba, many handed down heavy prison sentences to silence political dissent.
In non-political cases, some judges were seen to be swayed by bribes. In contrast, lawyers see themselves as more combative and independent than most judges. The contentious parliamentary debate underscores the tensions that continue to divide the two professional groups after the revolution. The constitution stipulates that two-thirds of the judicial council’s seats should go to judges while the remaining third should be filled by “independent, specialised persons”. The lawyers lobbied for all these seats to be filled from their ranks. The two judges’ associations, ever attentive to what they see as attempts by lawyers to encroach on their domain, resisted such a strong presence of lawyers on the council. They argued for the inclusion of non-lawyer specialists. This issue was unresolved at the time of writing. A transparent and efficient legal system remains a high priority for many ordinary Tunisians, not least as cases concerning alleged Islamist extremists come to court.
The constitution also calls for the supreme judicial council to appoint four judges to sit on the new 12-member constitutional court. This key body will rule on whether laws violate or conform to the constitution. Parliament is still carving out a legal framework for this court and a good governance and anti-corruption commission. The constituent assembly had already established a communications commission, responsible for regulating and guaranteeing media freedom. In addition to existing town councils, the constitution envisages another layer of local democracy in the form of elected regional councils. Local elections are planned for 2016, once the enabling legislation has been passed. Independent Tunisia’s first constitution, adopted nearly 60 years ago in 1959 and modified several times, guaranteed civil liberties and the separation of powers. But two authoritarian presidents spurned these provisions.
The risk of sliding back towards authoritarianism remains, especially as many Tunisian are preoccupied with day-to-day concerns. The economy is struggling to recover from the disruption brought by the revolution. Tens of thousands of new jobs for the restless youth have yet to materialise, as investors remain cautious, especially in the interior regions. The difficult security situation, with armed Islamist groups ratcheting up violence against the state, lends further urgency to the task of consolidating this still-fragile republic. Over the next few years, lawmakers will need to continue to work in a spirit of compromise as they lay the foundations for strong independent institutions to underpin the country’s emerging democracy.
