THE DICHOTOMY OF ISLAM IN TUNISIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L TUNIS 002564


STATE FOR NEA/MAG - LAWRENCE
PARIS FOR ZEYA
LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/27/2015
TAGS: PREL TS
SUBJECT: THE DICHOTOMY OF ISLAM IN TUNISIA

REF: A. TUNIS 2420

B. TUNIS 2153

Classified By: AMBASSADOR WILLIAM HUDSON FOR REASONS 1.5 (b) AND (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY. Tunisian religious views cut across a wide
spectrum of beliefs and adherence. From atheists to
Christians to Muslims to Jews, Tunisians are diverse in their
religious views. While Islamic extremists may have enjoyed
strong popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s, since
then the GOT has co-opted the religious movement while
labeling those with political leanings as terrorists. Many
secular Tunisians, especially those of the Bourguiba
generation, also completely reject the possibility of
including conservative religious elements in government, as
they believe these groups will reverse the social and
cultural progress Tunisia has made since independence. At the
same time, Tunisians are more visibly religious today than
they were even ten years ago. END SUMMARY.

BACKGROUND
==========


2. (C) Tunisia has a history of moderate and secular
religious leanings. Founding father and first President Habib
Bourguiba undertook political and social reforms that some
called anti-Islamic according to some interpretations of the
Quran, such as banning polygamy and granting women
inheritance rights. He also famously drank juice on
television during the holy month of Ramadan and removed a
young woman's veil, saying both could hinder progress and
development. Tunisians explain that the Maliki school of
Islamic jurisprudence followed by North Africans is more
moderate that those schools followed in the Levant and the
Gulf, and that Tunisians have rarely been conservative or
even observant Muslims. Despite this, like many Muslim
countries, Tunisia experienced a resurgence of conservative
religious elements in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Second
(and current) President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali and the
an-Nahda (Renaissance) Party engaged in a bitter and
sometimes violent struggle for political power. An-Nahda,
which enjoyed strong support, particularly among students,
was subsequently banned, and Ben Ali has used the Ministry of
Interior to ensure religious elements never again gained such
popular support.

ISLAM IN TUNISIA TODAY
======================


3. (C) Tunisians and foreigners alike often remark on the
increase in outward displays of faith that has occurred in
Tunisia over the past ten years. More women appear to be
wearing the veil, mosque attendance is rising, and more
Tunisians fast during Ramadan. Even public advertising seems
to be impacted. Recently, local shops displayed an
advertisement for skin cream that depicted a naked female
body. A few weeks later, the posters were covered with a
piece of draped cloth that hid the female features, and
shortly thereafter the ads were taken down altogether.
Poloff spoke to two well-educated, professional thirty year
old women about the ad: their responses represent the
divergent views of average Tunisians about religion today.
One expressed shock that conservative elements could actually
impact advertising; the other said she was pleased that
someone was taking action to protect religious morals.

GOT RESPONSE
============


4. (C) Since the mid-1990s, the GOT has been waging a war of
words with religious elements, characterizing conservative
Muslims as "Islamists" and "terrorists". This policy has
been quite successful, as the two terms are used practically
interchangeably in Tunisia today. The GOT uses the term
"Islamist" to tarnish the image of those who it thinks
represent a threat to regime stability. FM Abdullah recently
told Ambassador (Ref A) that he has noticed a "regression" in
Tunisian society toward more conservative religious
practices. At a recent meeting with U.S. military officials,
the MFA Director General for the Americas and Asia
characterized those who use the Quran to justify extremism as
"criminals". The GOT also uses a policy of "exporting"
nationals who are suspected of fundamentalist behavior to
combat the internal Islamic threat, while failing to address
the root causes (Ref B).


5. (C) To reach out to moderate Muslims and combat extremism,
President Ben Ali has also taken steps to co-opt the
popularity of religious sentiments in Tunisia by highlighting
his own religious sentiments and practices. In 1992, Ben Ali
elevated the then Department of Religious Affairs to a
full-fledged Ministry. On Muslim holy days, Ben Ali prays at
a large mosque built in greater Tunis in 2003, eclipsing a
nearby historical cathedral. In an attempt to further
exploit Tunisia's Muslim and Arab heritage, Ben Ali decreed
that Arabic is the official language of the GOT. One of his
daughters now reportedly wears the hijab, or veil.

SECULARISM STILL STRONG
=======================


6. (C) A significant portion of the Tunisian populace is
strongly secular in their beliefs and agrees with President
Ben Ali and the GOT that political Islam represents a threat
to Tunisia's economic and social progress. These views are
found throughout Tunisia, not only in the relatively modern
and Western capital of Tunis. A young shopkeeper in the
ancient Roman town of Sbeitla told Poloff that he is Arab,
not Muslim. Muslims pray, go to mosque and read the Quran,
and are nothing like him. The trend towards increasingly
outward expression of one's faith is disturbing to these
Tunisians, who tend to doubt the true intentions of those who
suddenly become conservative Muslims. One woman told Poloff
that shopkeepers complain that women are donning the hijab
then coming to the market and stealing produce. A former
an-Nahda member also complained to Poloff that politicized
Muslim groups are all about political activism and alliances.
God and religion are irrelevant to these organizations,
which would not be any better than the current political
leadership in Tunisia.

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE, NOT EXTREMISM
===================================


7. (C) At the same time, many Tunisians are increasingly
demonstrating their religious beliefs, while calling into
question the historically secular nature of Tunisian society.
One man, discussing the 2002 floods in Tunisia, told Poloff
that natural disasters are the result of "people not thanking
God." He went on to explain that Tunisians do not pray or
otherwise fulfill their religious commitments, especially
those Tunisian women go out of the house "naked." More
religious Tunisians often express their feelings that the GOT
restricts their ability to worship freely. A young doctoral
student told Poloff that she would wear the veil, but she
fears that her brothers, who are government employees, could
lose their jobs if she insisted. There are many anecdotes
about GOT harassment of veiled women or men with beards,
including stories that police have torn off women's veils,
manhandled veiled women in the markets and arrested and
interrogated bearded men or veiled women. This strong
government reaction drives the most religious underground -
and even out of the country. Some Tunisians claim to know a
story - real or rumored - of a young Tunisian man who
traveled to Iraq on "jihad" to fight in the Iraqi resistance.

THE MIDDLE ROAD
===============


8. (C) Despite the strong views against conservatism, some
observant Muslims have found a middle ground that is
acceptable to the GOT. Such Tunisians attend mosque and
observe other religious practices, while keeping a low
profile. One forty-year-old man told Poloff that his wife
wears the veil. When asked if she had any difficulties with
the GOT, he said, "No, she wears the traditional head scarf,
not a conservative veil." Another young woman cited a hadith
(saying) from the Prophet Muhammad, that advises (in short)
if you cannot speak out against wrongdoing, or express your
disagreement, the least you can do it know it is wrong in
your heart. The woman said that she does not believe she can
wear the veil in Tunisia, but she, and thus God, knows that
she would if she could.


9. (C) COMMENT. The GOT's efforts to walk the fine line
between respecting Tunisia's Islamic roots and combating
religious extremism has had an unclear impact on the public.
Clearly, the apparent increase in religious observance is
being tolerated to a certain extent by the GOT. But any
forays into the political sphere, through government
criticism or political activism, are completely restricted.
While one could speculate that repressing religious
expressions could lead to a religiously-based attempt to
overthrow the government, the unique position of Islam in
Tunisia suggests that there are many moderate elements that
could act as a counter-balance to any sudden move towards
extremism. In fact, scholarly works that discuss topics such
as moderate Islamic political thought, secular government and
interfaith dialogue, are among the most popular books in
Tunisia.


HUDSON