Tunisians still remember the starting point of the revolution called “Jasmine Revolution” which precipitated the departure of the then President of the Republic, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali on January 14, 2011. A popular protest movement that wanted a new Tunisia with strong institutions and better living conditions.However, despite this national commitment against the government at the time, it is the status quo in the country right now because the problems remain without concrete solutions.
Review of the facts
Ten years ago to the day, Mohamed Bouazizi, a 26-year-old street vendor, set himself on fire in the city of Sidi Bouzid, in Tunisia, after having his work tools confiscated. This tragedy that occurred on 17 December 2010 marked the starting point of a vast popular protest movement that forced President Ben Ali to leave the country. An event that the Tunisian people will remember in the context of an increased health crisis. The government announced a lockdown on Thursday 14 to commemorate this popular uprising.
Nothing has changed, alas
Young Tunisians, precursors of this revolution, seem to have fought for nothing because now the national unemployment rate is around 15% with some particularly affected regions such as the Tataouine Governorate, where nearly 30% of the population is unemployed.A situation accentuated by Covid-19 because Tunisia owes much of its economic life to tourism.
One of the emblematic figures of this revolution, Wadii Jelassi, present in Tunis on 14 January 2011 to demand the departure of Ben Ali, is sad to see that nothing has changed in the country. “Ten years after the revolution, nothing happened, on the contrary. We are even more marginalized, even poorer,” he said in a bitter tone.
Elected on 13 October 2019 with 2.8 million votes, the current Tunisian president, Kaïs Saïed, seems not to have the solution to get his country out of the impasse even if the current global context does not plead in his favour.
