23 Dec 2021; MEMO: Recent reports that Turkey supports Tunisian President Kais Saied's power grab are "deficit of credibility" and "are mostly a matter of media marketing", the adviser to former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki has said.
In a statement to MEMO, the former adviser for international affairs Anouar Gharbi said: "Turkey has encouraged initiatives and efforts by the peoples of the region who demanded democratisation and never supported the coup against democracy and the rule of law."
"Turkey is trying to reduce regional tensions and uncertainties, generate new economic opportunities and boost its resilience to potential shocks so it is not time for its government to be part of the problem and not solutions." After the Jasmine Revolution which saw the ouster of Tunisian dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011, Gharbi explained, Ankara provided Tunis "financial and technical aid and both countries have signed an agreement for a closer bilateral cooperation mechanism and agreed to cooperate in the fields of politics, security, military, economy, science, technology and trade."
The statement comes after Tunisia's Foreign Minister Othman Jerandi met with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu with reports that during the meeting the Turkish official affirmed his country's support for all the measures taken by Saied to preserve Tunisia's stability and security and to consolidate its democratic path.
"It is difficult to trust the Tunisian minister's declaration due to the following facts: We know that based on previous experience there is a deficit of credibility and these declarations are mostly a matter of media marketing."
"Tunisia has won international plaudits for its democratic transition, has been supported by the international community, but today the regime is isolated and it is time for the Tunisian people to go back to the constitution and democratic rules," Gharbi said.
Saied has held nearly total power since 25 July when he sacked the prime minister, suspended parliament and assumed executive authority citing a national emergency.
He appointed a prime minister on 29 September and a government has since been formed.
The majority of the country's political parties slammed the move as a "coup against the constitution" and the achievements of the 2011 revolution. Critics say Saied's decisions have strengthened the powers of the presidency at the expense of parliament and the government, and that he aims to transform the country's government into a presidential system.
On more than one occasion, Saied, who began a five-year presidential term in 2019, said that his exceptional decisions are not a coup, but rather measures within the framework of the constitution to protect the state from "imminent danger".
A Tunisian court yesterday sentenced former President Moncef Marzouki to four years in prison in absentia on charges of "attacking external state security". This led to three Tunisian parties accusing Saied of pressuring the judiciary to intimidate political opponents.
