Tunisia arrests prominent opposition figure

By Mehmet Akif Turan

TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) – Tunisian authorities arrested Abir Moussi, a prominent opponent of President Kais Saeid and the leader of the Free Constitutional Party, at the entrance to the presidential palace on Tuesday.

Nafaa Laribi, the attorney representing Moussi, said they lack details about the reason for her arrest.

"My client had filed a written complaint with the prosecutor's office to contest the decision of the regional and local National Council elections made by the Presidency on Dec. 26. As the leader of the party, Moussi has the right to object to the election decision, so she had applied to the administrative court to halt the decision,” Laribi said.

Laribi clarified that Moussi did not recognize Saied as a "legitimate" authority and disclosed that his client was arrested by security personnel while doing a livestream on her social media account.

After initially endorsing Saied's "extraordinary decisions" made on July 25, 2021, which set the stage for a transformation in the nation's structure, Moussi subsequently opposed him due to his handling of political parties in the following period.

- Extraordinary decisions

Saied's extraordinary decisions led to an exceptional situation in the country.

He froze the activities of parliament and lifted the immunity of its members, consolidating his executive authority entirely through new decrees on Sept. 22, 2021.

Within the framework of Saied's "roadmap to resolve the political crisis," a constitutional referendum was held on July 25, 2022 followed by early general elections.

With the new constitution, Tunisia transitioned to a presidential system, and in addition to the People's Assembly, a second parliament called the Regional and Local National Council was established.

Some segments in Tunisia describe Saied's decisions as a "coup" and argue that the country has moved away from democracy.

*Writing by Esra Tekin in Istanbul