20 YEARS OF BEN ALI RULE: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING?

S E C R E T TUNIS 001470 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/FO, NEA/MAG (HARRIS AND HOPKINS) AND DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/07/2017 TAGS: PHUM KDEM PGOV PREL TS SUBJECT: 20 YEARS OF BEN ALI RULE: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING? REF: A. TUNIS 699 ¶B. 05 TUNIS 1148 Classified By: Ambassador Robert F. Godec for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) After much preparation and speculation, President Ben Ali celebrated the twentieth anniversary of his November 7, 1987 palace coup with a major public speech that announced several political, judicial, economic and cultural initiatives, including supporting opposition political parties. Institutionalizing comments he made to CODEL Tanner in May (Ref A),Ben Ali announced several steps to expand the participation of opposition parties in political life, in some cases at the expense of the ruling Democratic Constitutional Rally (RCD) party. In addition to steps to promote domestic investment, Ben Ali announced the end of the Executive Branch's role in prior review (depot legal) of books, publications and artistic works. While some of Ben Ali's announcements are positive, the speech was not as remarkable as some had predicted and/or hoped and it remains to be seen if their implementation will introduce any real reform. After 20 years, most Tunisians remain disappointed that Ben Ali has not done more to implement his 1987 statement that "We can no longer allow president for life...Our people deserve an advanced and institutionalized political life." In a separate step, Ben Ali released eight individuals characterized as political prisoners by local NGOs. End Summary. -------------- MAJOR POLITICAL ANNOUNCEMENTS -------------- ¶2. (C) In the weeks before November 7, Tunisia was adorned with flags, signs, and banners thanking President Ben Ali for his twenty years of "illuminated" leadership. For months, government officials and those "in the know" had been predicting that Ben Ali would announce major political reforms. Officials, and GOT-influenced media outlets, called on all Tunisians, including the opposition, to contribute to this historic occasion. Given the positive environment, private observers speculated that Ben Ali was planning to announce several major political initiatives, perhaps to include the establishment of new political parties. However, whether the initiatives Ben Ali announced, while political, will promote genuine freedom of expression or association 
will depend on their implementation. Major developments include: A) Doubling of government financial support for political parties represented in the Chamber of Deputies, as well as increased financing for party media, and facilitation of the activities of political parties in public spaces. Analysis: On the surface this is a positive development, and those parties currently in Parliament may be able to increase their public profile and popularity. However, tying financial support or freedom of association to parties already represented in the Chamber of Deputies effectively promotes the "loyal" opposition only. Two of the most independent opposition parties, the Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) and Democratic Forum for Labor and Liberty (FDTL),will not benefit, nor would any new political party established by individuals not already serving in the Chamber of Deputies. B) Increased dialogue and reinforcing the opposition's presence on television. Analysis: This is a more general initiative that should benefit all members of the opposition. However, as national television is government-controlled, there is no reason to believe that critical opposition will be heard. Independent television is generally apolitical in Tunisia, so those channels would have to change their policies for this initiative to impact the political landscape. C) Decreasing the number of seats granted to each party list, thus ensuring no single party obtains more than 75 percent of the seats in municipal elections. Analysis: This is a very concrete step that will increase opposition seats to 25 percent from the existing 20 and effectively diminish the influence of the ruling RCD. However, municipal councils do not play a significant role in the major domestic political issues. D) Lowering the voting age from 20 to 18. Analysis: In an effort to bring youth into the political fold, the electoral code will be revised to lower the voting age. This step is largely in response to concerns that Tunisian youth are increasingly apolitical and marginalized by the political process. Given the lack of transparency in election participation rates, it will be difficult to judge the actual impact of this initiative. E) Increased number of female RCD candidates for legislative and municipal bodies. -------------- MAJOR JUDICIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS -------------- ¶3. (C) Ben Ali included several judicial initiatives in his speech, an area rarely covered by Ben Ali personally. While the implementation of these announcements remains to be seen, some are quite positive on the surface: A) Elimination of the Executive Branch's role in prior review (depot legal) for books, publications and artistic works. Analysis: "Depot legal" is the French term for prior review, and denotes the practice of requiring publications to give a copy to the government before they can legally go to print. Depot legal for domestically published magazines and newspapers was abolished in 2005 (Ref B),but continued for foreign media and for books. While this is a step the USG and others had called for, Ben Ali added that "the issuing of decisions to forbid publication will be the exclusive prerogative of the judiciary." Thus, depending on how strictly the judiciary interprets its authority, this decision may not actually end government censorship. B) Improved restitution of rights Analysis: Many of those convicted of a crime in Tunisia, including released political prisoners, have difficulty obtaining passports, national identification and other documents that would allow them to resume a normal life (including employment),due to a legal code that suspends their "rights" for a period after their release. If properly implemented, this announcement could have a significant, positive impact. For this to matter, Ben Ali's announcement will have to reach regional police stations that are responsible for implementing this policy. Often in Tunisia, lower-level bureaucrats are unaware of or unwilling to execute policies even Ben Ali himself publicly supports. C) Elimination of automatic extension of investigation (garde a vue) Analysis: The initial period of detention during the investigation of a crime is called "garde a vue." Human rights groups report that this period, which is limited to 48 hours by law, is routinely extended without evidence. Ben Ali announced that judicial authorities must justify any decision to extend the period of custody. Again, if properly implemented, this announcement could have a significant, positive impact. However, independent activists often complain that the judiciary is not independent. -------------- MAJOR ECONOMIC ANNOUNCEMENTS -------------- ¶4. (C) Much of the twentieth anniversary fanfare highlighted Tunisia's social and economic progress under Ben Ali's rule. Even the usually critical independent opposition agreed that Tunisia has made much progress, although all agree more can and should be made. To that end, Ben Ali announced the following steps to promote business and investment, most of which can be expected to be fully implemented in the coming year: A) Tax breaks and other financial support for small and medium businesses B) Bank liberalization, including raising hard currency limits and liberalizing interest rates C) Debt restructuring for farmers -------------- PRISONER RELEASE -------------- ¶5. (SBU) In a separate holiday tradition, Ben Ali reportedly pardoned four members of the banned an-Nahdha Islamic party and four other individuals characterized by local NGOs as political prisoners. According to local groups, approximately thirty an-Nahdha members remain imprisoned, a fraction of the hundreds sentenced and jailed in the early 1990s. Unlike most Presidential pardons, and perhaps due to the extensive coverage of the twentieth anniversary events, there was no local media coverage of the release. -------------- WHERE'S THE BEEF? -------------- ¶6. (S) Prior to the anniversary, some observers had speculated Ben Ali might announce his intentions regarding the 2009 elections. Throughout the last year, many national organizations called on Ben Ali to announce his candidacy for the 2009 presidential elections. Others had hoped that Ben Ali might use this momentous opportunity to announce his plans to leave office at the end of his current term in 2009. The two-year notice might have presented sufficient opportunity for viable candidates to organize for the elections. However, under the electoral code, candidacies may not be presented until two months before the elections and the campaign can only begin two weeks before the elections, and Ben Ali made no reference to his future candidacy. ¶7. (S) While Ben Ali's announcements were reform-oriented, too often, his word and the reality on the ground have been worlds apart. As the Ambassador told the Foreign Minister on November 9, it is the implementation of the announcements that really matters. Ben Ali regularly espouses the value of freedom of expression and association, but civil society activists find the ideals are not applied by bureaucrats. The gap between rhetoric and action is reflected in the quiet disappointment with the speech and anniversary by many in Tunisia. FDTL Secretary General Mustapha Ben Jaafar told PolOff there was "nothing new" in the speech. In a conversation with the Ambassador, one European Ambassador dismissed the announcements as "not presidential." Many Tunisians feel that Ben Ali failed to take advantage of an opportunity to announce real reform. Unlike other major national holidays, few Tunisians feel any sense of national pride about Ben Ali's November 7, 1987 "Blessed Change." Rather, most are disappointed that after 20 years, it's still hard to see any real political change. End Comment. GODEC