BEYWATCH - NEWS FROM TUNISIA AT THE END OF 2005

UNCLAS TUNIS 000073

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EB/CIP/MA (AMBASSADOR GROSS),NEA/MAG (LAWRENCE,)
USUN GENEVA (WSIS WATCHER)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SCUL SOCI UN TS
SUBJECT: BEYWATCH - NEWS FROM TUNISIA AT THE END OF 2005

REF: 05 TUNIS 00879


1. The following is one of a series of reporting cables
drafted predominantly by Post's entry level officers, which
have the "Beywatch" caption. We believe the different
perspectives offered in each of the following vignettes will
give the reader a look into everyday life in Tunisia that may
not be central to more formal reporting. For more
information about Tunisia or the Embassy Tunis Entry Level
Officer Development initiative, see our Siprnet website.


Topic Paragraph
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Moderate Tunisia is "middle-of-the-road" in driving,
too..............2
Digital divide sculpture commemorates
WSIS............................6
Why are Muslim Tunisians celebrating
Christmas?......................11


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Moderate Tunisia is "middle-of-the-road" in driving, too
-------------- --------------


2. While Tunisia is developed in many respects, it can be
much less so in others. The roads are paved and well
maintained, with directional signs and traffic lights at
every corner. One might say there are more road signs,
traffic lights and traffic circles than there are people on
Tunis' roads. Recently these roads were beautified with
thousands of newly-planted palm trees, and road-side
buildings were given a fresh coat of paint in preparation for
the U.N. World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held
in Tunis in mid-November.


3. Although Tunisia enjoys good roads, drivers can be
careless and dangerous. And although it is common to bemoan
driving practices across the Middle-East, there is one
particular habit unique to Tunisian drivers -- almost all
Tunisians drive over the line dividing lanes as if not to let
anyone pass them on either side of the road. One can never
tell if the driver in front of you is keeping to the left or
meaning to go right, which slows traffic for everyone behind.
All drivers constantly accommodate slower moving mopeds,
cycles, donkey carts and the occasional camel. While major
intersections are supervised by traffic police, the officer
often stands in the middle of the intersection in such a way
that he or she cannot see the traffic lights. There is no
thrill like the thrill of hurling down the roadway at 100km/h
towards a green light only to have to stop short because a
policeman hidden in the center of the road has raised his
hand to signal everyone to stop. Clearly with limited
visibility, the officer and the lights are rarely
coordinated.


4. Driving, during the November U.N. World Summit on the
Information Society (WSIS) event, by contrast, was
delightful, with traffic practically non-existent. The
Ministry of Interior turned off traffic lights on certain
roadways, closed other roads altogether and created special
traffic lanes for vehicles marked for WSIS. This could have
been the precursor to Tunisia's first HOV lane, but as soon
as WSIS ended, so did the restricted lanes. Another factor
which helped lighten road traffic during the summit was the
closing of schools and government offices.


5. Driving schools are plentiful in Tunis, and student
drivers are everywhere, adding yet another challenge to an
already difficult driving environment. But Tunisians, like
drivers in other countries, ignore common-sense road rules.
For example, it is not unusual to see drivers stop their cars
on the road to vent frustration to some other driver for some
perceived traffic slight. They are also fond of creating
extra lanes at traffic lights, in an attempt to "creep" to
the front of the line, and get through the intersection as
one of the lead cars. What cachet the driver acquires for
being the first to cross the intersection on the first blink
of green is not clear, but it is nevertheless common, as is a
slight honk from rear drivers the second the light turns
green. And finally, any discussion of driving in Tunisia
must include at least one parting shot about the pedestrians
in the roadways. These are not only the children one must
constantly watch for, but also the adults walking on dark
streets on dark nights in dark clothes. Taken together,
these various elements form a challenging environment for the
best of drivers. But when coupled with "middle-of-the-road"
driving skills and etiquette, the challenge becomes even


greater.


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Digital Divide Sculpture Commemorates WSIS
--------------


6. Opinions are divided on the artistic merit of the new
sculpture outside the Le Kram Exposition Center, the compound
where the WSIS summit was held. In early 2005, the GOT
decided to set aside 350,000 TD ($256,485.45 USD) to
commemorate the summit with a sculpture. In April the GOT
held a national contest for art students, architects, and
engineers to develop an edifice that would symbolize the
theme, "The Digital Divide between the North and South."
From a group of around 25 contestants, 5 finalists were
chosen to present their ideas to a panel of the COMSI (WSIS
organizational committee). However, the final winner was
actually the choice of President Ben Ali. The monument is
the creation of artist Abdelmajid Jenhani and architect Samir
Bellagi.


7. The sculpture is a treated iron structure covered with an
aluminum casing, and appears on the traffic circle in front
of the exposition center. It is composed of two intersecting
isosceles triangles supporting a globe in their crux, where
the globe, according to architect Bellagi, symbolizes "all
the civilizations and cultures in the world." Bellagi told
Emboff that the longer triangle represents the North, and the
shorter triangle, which pierces the north in its side,
represents the South. At the very tips of the triangles are
yellow lights symbolizing "progress." At night, the entire
structure is lit from within, and is illuminated by external
spotlights around the concrete base. The triangles' main
sides have colored stripes, separated by dotted white lights,
which represent "the highways of information," and the
transparent slim sides of the triangles represent
"transparency." An article in Tunisian daily La Presse
stated that the colors of the stripes represented "cultural
diversity," but Bellagi said that this was a bit of artistic
license on the part of the journalist. In actuality, he said
he just picked out colored panels that looked good, and tried
to get them close to the colors of the WSIS logo. The panels
are made from polycarbonate imported from Canada, but all
remaining materials were sourced from Tunisian suppliers.


8. After Jenhani and Bellagi won the commission, they
"technically" commenced work on the project on 05/05/05 at
5:00pm, which Bellagi considered a lucky portent for the
start of the project. However, it took 44 meetings, from May
to September, to secure all the approvals necessary to
actually begin any physical work on the structure itself.
During this deliberation period, the project's budget was cut
to 250,000 TD, ($183,453 USD) and the longer, northern
triangle decreased from 20 meters in length to 11 meters, its
current size, as the structure shrunk to fit the new budget.
Also gone was a reflecting pool for a base, which represented
"transparency" in the original design.


9. Once approvals were finally secured, they had two months
to build the structure, from September to November. At this
point, they had to find a company willing to build the
structure within the budget and time restrictions. Most
vendors approached by the amiable architect turned down the
work because of the tight time frame for construction.
Several also voiced the fear of too much "presidential
visibility" in the case of failure. However, one
construction company, Afrique Metal, took the contract and
assembled a team of civil engineers, electrical engineers,
metallic construction workers, and landscaping crews. During
the initial excavation for the structure's base, the work had
to stop briefly when they hit an old road under the traffic
circle. This road dated back to the French colonization
period, sometime before Tunisia's independence in 1956.
However, this did not stop the project, and workers, using
bright construction lights, worked day and night on the giant
structure. Work was completed on November 1, 2005.
President Ben Ali was present on November 14, 2005 to
inaugurate the structure, two days before the opening session
of the WSIS summit, which ran from November 16-18, 2005.
There is a marble plaque on the concrete base which
commemorates the occasion. Ben Ali's comments were that the
sculpture was "grandiose, .... a giant."


10. Even with all the challenges, the project was completed
on time, and even under budget. The total cost for the
construction was 198,504.449 TD (USD $145,970). The artistic
studies and architect's fees were 29,920 TD (USD $22,002).
To date, the construction company has been paid -- but not
the artist and architect. However, Bellagi, with a sheepish
grin, said "I am still hopeful I will be paid someday."


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Why are Muslim Tunisians celebrating Christmas?
-------------- --


11. All throughout the month of December in Tunisia, it
could truly be said "it's beginning to look a lot like
Christmas." For westerners, that can be somewhat surprising,
considering the country is approximately 98% Muslim, with an
estimated 1% Christian population. Nevertheless, signs of
Christmas could be seen in many places, even more than
evident in 2004. There were store windows decorated with
Christmas trees, bakeries selling Yule logs, and even
Christmas lights on traffic circles put up by the GOT. The
large supermarket in Tunis, Carrefour, had a fairly large
section devoted to Christmas decorations, and Embassy staff
in country for the past several years have watched this
section get larger and larger with each passing year.


12. Sales of Christmas items are not for the expatriate
community only. Local Embassy staff, as well as local
Tunisian commercial establishments, put up trees and
decorated offices. Tunisians even put up decorations,
including trees with lights and ornaments in their homes.
The exchange of small gifts was also welcomed, and somewhat
expected, particularly at our annual Embassy office Christmas
party. And finally, many Embassy staff received holiday
cards from Tunisians this year, both at home and office
addresses. This Embassy officer received a card from a
Tunisian architect, who lives outside the capital, with a
Christmas ornament in glitter on the cover. Inside, the
greeting was for a "happy new year," but the Christmas-like
design on the front of the card was unmistakable.


13. Where is this influence coming from, and why is not a
conflict with traditional Muslim beliefs? The Tunisians take
their western cultural cues from the French, who like
Americans, consecrate the month of December to the
celebration of Christmas. Also appealing are the more
secular customs of Christmas, apart from the religious
aspects of the holiday. They like the fact that it is a time
to offer gifts, to get together for a family reunion, and to
offer aid to the less fortunate. Since it is also common for
Tunisians to secularize even Muslim holidays, it poses less
of a moral problem to secularize an occidental holiday.
Therefore, this officer predicts you can expect even more
future appearances of "Papa Noel" in coming years.
HUDSON