THE TUNISIANS HAVE SPOKEN

Tunisia is a country located in North Africa between the Mediterranean and Libya.  The country was once colonized by France until 1951 when Tunisia became independent.  Habib Bourguiba became the first President of the country after independence, and ruled by one party state for 33 years with the support of Western Powers.  Despite being a despotic ruler, the West preferred Bourguiba in the region to secure Tunisia’s neutrality in Libya and the Middle East debacle.

  Also, Tunisia’s neighbor, Libya, has started worrying Western Powers by the abrupt assumption to power by Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al- Qadhafi, who established his Third Universal Theory system of government.  He had a plan coming to office by creating a utopian idea of state governance.  His form of government is an amalgamation of socialism, Islamic and cultural traditions.  He seeks an identity for Libya that would be different from modern Western way of governing.  That was Qadhafi’s idea of being an independent nation; he is a visionary and a revolutionary who can do anything to get his ideologies the respect they deserve.  He totally disassociates and rejects the Global community to achieve his utopian ideas in state governance.

Most academia perceived Habib Bourguiba as a political puppet of the West, and he manipulated Tunisia by consolidated his hold to power for 33 years with two soft weapons.  That is, his quest for the promotion of women’s rights, and repressing Islamic fundamentalism in North Africa.  This made Bourguiba a compromising figure for the West.  However, young military nationalists that aided in putting pressure on France to secured Tunisia independent felt that their country was still governed by an Arab imperialist who was popular abroad, and considered as a traitor by his people.

 In November 1978, Bourguiba was deposed by self proclaimed military nationalist named Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, in a still bloodless military coup.  Ben Ali served as President for five terms until January 14, 2011, when angry protestors for hiked in price of food, fuel and his impotent economic policies in a global village world ran him out of the Presidential Palace.  He later fled to Saudi Arabia when bread lines went on the rampage, and took to the streets of Tunis, took the law into their hands and called for the President’s resignation.  His Prime Minister since 1999, Mohamed Ghannouchi announced the president’s hasty abandonment of the country and declared himself  president to prevent constitutional crisis.

Unlike his predecessor, Mr. Ben Ali has made himself very complacent in the way he controlled his country by isolated himself from Western Powers.  This self isolation made his administrative kite economically bankrupt, and the lack of stringent measures to combat corruption made economic recovery a daunting task for the elderly statesman.  His government was unable to pay civil servants and teachers, the global recession skyrocketed prices of domestic goods which made conditions unbearable for the citizens of Tunis.  The political parties that have been playing the underdog all these years saw the food crisis as an opportunity for the Old Fat Cat’s exit.  They fuel the tension in the Capital and the forces of brutality of President Bin Ali were no match for the hungry and angry crowds of Tunis.

Let me give you an idea of political pluralism in Tunis, here are the political parties and their leaders.   Al-Tajdid Movement [Ahmed IBRAHIM]; Constitutional Democratic Rally Party (Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique) or RCD [President Zine El Abidine BEN ALI] (official ruling party); Democratic Forum for Labor and Liberties or FDTL [Mustapha Ben JAFAAR]; Green Party for Progress or PVP [Mongi KHAMASSI]; Liberal Social Party or PSL [Mondher THABET]; Movement of Socialist Democrats or MDS [Ismail BOULAHYA]; Popular Unity Party or PUP [Mohamed BOUCHIHA]; Progressive Democratic Party [Maya JERIBI]; Unionist Democratic Union or UDU [Ahmed INOUBLI]; note - the Islamist party, Al Nahda (Renaissance), is outlawed (CIA- The World Fact book).

Tunisia is blessed with many natural resources including Petroleum, Iron Ore, but the National debt was enormous during the regime of Ben Ali.    Tourism was one of the main sideline revenue for Tunis, but due to the economic meltdown of Western economies, tourism has declined.  The challenges ahead for the new government include: privatizing industry, liberalizing the investment code to increase foreign investment, improving government efficiency, reducing the trade deficit, and reducing socioeconomic disparities in the impoverished south and west.  They must also beware of their skillful neighbor, Libya who have tried time and again to get Ben Ali mixed up in the Arab- Israeli conflict.

 Although Libya has been showed the unwelcome door mat several times in the Arab League, she has tried to revamp by claiming Pan Africanism and calling for the Unification of Africa.  Libya has done her campaign through the African Union, and also known to have sponsored civil conflicts in Africa to position leaderships that may sympathies with his unification ends.  Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ivory Coast have been some of the countries she has destabilized by providing training, arms and compensation for insurgents.  Libya is also economically supporting other African dictators such as Blasé Compaore of Burkina Faso, Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Yayah Janeh of The Gambia to aid them in power consolidation.

It has concerned most in the academia the big brother role often played by Saudi Arabia when it comes to African Dictators.  Sheku Toure who had ruled Guinea since independence from France in1958 was one of the first dictators in African.  He had an alliance with Saudi Arabia.  He planted desert trees in Arafat desert in Saudi which Muslim Pilgrims claimed to be fifty miles long.  He constructed this tree planting project in a country that is very rich, and has no record of helping developing economies other than issuing free tickets to pilgrims during the Hajj, knowing quite well that the pilgrims will economically boom Saudi economy.  The trees were planted decade before AL Gore and others started talking about global warming, which cast doubts in the minds of many as to why Guinea will spend millions of pound sterling in the rich deserts of Saudi Arabia, while millions of her citizens were without drinking water and electricity.

Years after his death, it was revealed that the Guinean Statesman had purchased properties, burial sites for himself and his Moroccan wife in Saudi Arabia.  When Toure passed away in a Moroccan hospital, a manicure was shipped to Guinea for burial, while the Saudi and Moroccan government conveyed his body to the Holy land for burial as he wished. 

Idi Amin Dada, former dictator and murderer of his Ugandan people also lived in Saudi Arabia until his death after he fled Uganda.  Several attempts for his repatriation failed, as the Saudi King turned a deaf hear to calls for his return.  Ugandan former President Obote once called Amin "the greatest brute an African mother has ever brought to life." President Jimmy Carter said events in Uganda during Amin's rule "disgusted the entire civilized world" (Associate Press).  I wonder who else will be on transit to Saudi, the safe heaven for dictators where the International Community has no strategy to expatriate Human Rights violators due to politics of petroleum.    

Really, who next? Is it Mugabe, Yayah Janeh? Blasé Compaore? Ivorian, Gbagbo?  Seriously, help me here, who is next?  Can Charles Taylor escape from The Hague and seek refugee in the Holy Land?  Has the Holy Land become a refugee for African dictators?  I guess am alone in this state of mind.  Who else cares about what Africa and Africans think about their destructive, corrupt, thieves, murderous escapee leaders?  I guess no Western power’s interest has been threatened in Africa?  Time and again, military dictators will change their uniforms and jump into civilian clothes and continue to rule.  Yeh right!  African democracy!  It is unbelievable that the IMF and World Bank are buying into this old trick and released funds to governments that are democratic in policy.

 Who am I to ponder over these issues?  The other day, some guy rained abuses on me, calling me the Thomas Payne of Africa.  I was called a Thomas Payne of Africa because I reminded my Egyptians brother that, Egypt is in North Africa and not located in the Middle East.  Although Egypt plays a strategic role in the Middle East debacle, doesn’t change their geographical locality.  North Africans may have different complexion from the rest of Africa, but they are still Africans.  They must cancel their memberships from the Arab league and concentrate in building Africa.  They were never fully accepted in the Arab League of Nations, and I hate to see them kiss the behinds of Arab Leaders just to belong.  The Partition of Africa has been finalized, we may add new states as larger and divided nations like Sudan and others disintegrate.  So get over it Buster, and be who you are, an African.

Finally, I am calling on my Tunisia brothers that are loyal to the run away President Ben Ali to stop sporadic attacks on police officers, and opponents of other political party.  A comprehensive Unity government is pending soon and a lot has been learned politically the previous week.  Also, I am calling for the impartiality of the Police and Soldiers during the transitional period.  The days of military intervention are over; the world is now a global village.  The International Community is watching, and Human Rights of all Tunisians and foreigners must be respected.  Violators of Human Rights will never escape prosecution in Tunisia.  The people of Tunisia have spoken, took the appropriate course of action in Tunis, what are you waiting for?  How would you tolerate a single dictator to control your future, the future of your children, grand children and great, great, grand children?  And you! Am talking to you, not you, I meant him and his little boy.  How long will you cling to power at the detriment of your people?  Stop the suppression of members of the fourth estate in your countries.  The world is watching, the day of reckoning will come sooner than you expect, you have been warned.

Long live Democracy, Long live Africa.

Gershon Bai-Lama Bangura

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