About: Tunisia

Now more than ever – Tunisia’s democracy needs its friends

After the President's decision in July to suspend parliament, Tunisia's democracy needs support from the EU and other international allies, writes Rached Ghannouchi.

Facing triple crises, Tunisia is in trouble

Each crisis on its own would debilitate any country. In Tunisia, they add fuel to the others, creating a vicious cycle of inaction and instability that threatens to undermine the fragile democratic transition, writes Sarah Yerkes.

Fatnassia camp is a time-bomb that threatens whole of North Africa

The ongoing armed conflict in Libya is going to push thousands of people, now asylum-seekers in Libyan camps, to escape towards the Southern border regions of Tunisia, Medenine and Tataouine, writes Mourad Teyeb. Mourad Teyeb is a journalist and consultant...

Fatnassia refugee camp will anger both Tunisians and Europeans

Tunisia has always publically refuted reports that it “promised” Europe to accept hosting on its soil refugees from different African countries, but the EU could seize the opportunity of a war in Libya to convince Tunisia to do so, writes Mourad Teyeb.

Arab uprisings: spring time continues

Since the rapture of the 2011 Arab uprisings, starting in Tunisia and sweeping through North Africa and the Middle East – most notably engulfing Libya, Egypt, Syria, and Yemen – a bitter aftertaste of repression and civil war lingers, writes Sharon Lecocq.

Trouble ahead as Tunisia eyes elections in autumn

As Tunisians go to the polls later this year to elect a new president and parliament, they are confronted by a confluence of factors that could seriously threaten the viability of their young democracy, writes Dnyanesh Kamat.

Now is the time to support Tunisia’s fragile democracy

Tunisia is at a turning point, which makes now the perfect time to support its vibrant but fragile democracy and turn it into one of Europe's strongest allies in the region, write Frédérique Ries and Fulvio Martusciello.

Tunisia underestimates imminent North Africa refugee crisis

Tunisia has signed agreements with the EU for the return of  illegal Tunisian immigrants and to host asylum seekers from other African countries. But Tunis is now denying those deals, writes Mourad Teyeb.

Jobs and skills to cement democracy in post-Arab Spring Tunisia

Opportunity is the bedrock of a stable democracy. EU support for innovation and education in Tunisia will benefit the whole of North Africa, as well as the EU itself, write Imed Hammami and Pier Antonio Panzeri.

Outsourcing European border security – ‘at the whim of foreign dictators’?

If Europe wants to stabilise itself against the relentless pressure of South-North migration — a must rather than an option now — taking matters into its own hands is the only sustainable way forward, argues Leopold Traugott.

Time for a serious re-think as EBRD celebrates 25th birthday

When the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) started operating in 1991, it seemed like the countries of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union would transition to market economies with help from the bank. However, it has not gone as planned, writes Fidanka Bacheva-McGrath.

Tunisia must confirm its commitment to minority rights

Tunisia is a promising young democracy in many ways, but its penal code must be brought into line with its constitution to prevent the persecution of homosexuals, writes Ian Duncan.

Tunisian civil society groups need help from Europe

The European support to Tunisia should not turn into empowering the very people and groups against whom Tunisians revolted in 2011, writes Mourad Teyeb.

Creating Europe’s ‘Plan A’ for North Africa

Europeans managed a respectable initial response: they got themselves smartly on "the right side of history" during the Arab Spring. But 18 months on, there is less cause for satisfaction, say Nick Witney and Anthony Dworkin.

Internal border controls in the Schengen area: Much ado about nothing?

The revision of the EU's border-free Schengen zone prompted by Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi's reaction to the wave of immigration from North Africa will probably be a minor one, argues Yves Pascouau. But he says there are legitimate concerns regarding the apparent acceptance that the free movement of people can be limited and even dismantled.

Imagining a New Mediterranean World

The upheaval in North Africa holds the possibility of a renewal of the Mediterranean Union, if Europe can overcome its obsession with Islamic fundamentalism and the 'Muslim Question', argues Mustapha Tlili of New York University.

The Middle East’s feminist revolution

The significant participation of women in the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa challenges both local dictators and Western stereotypes, writes author and social critic Naomi Wolf.

The Middle East Awakening

Europe should provide long-term assistance for the democratic and economic development of the southern Mediterranean's post-dictatorship governments, argues German Green politician Joschka Fischer, a former foreign minister and vice-chancellor.

Democratic values and cosy relationships in North Africa

The EU has done little in the past to further democracy in North Africa, writes Anna Khakee of Madrid-based think-tank FRIDE in an exclusive commentary for EURACTIV. If Europe wants to avoid future embarrassment, it has to give up the close ties some of its politicians have had with the North African elite, she argues.

Tunisian democracy deserves full support from the EU

Recent events in Tunisia will have a profound impact on democracy and political freedom in the Arab world, while the EU – which had turned a blind eye to authoritarian rule and corruption in the country – must support the 'Jasmine Revolution', writes Eberhard Rhein in a January blog post.