Tunisia, once celebrated as the sole democratic success story of the 2011 Arab uprisings, is rapidly reverting to the authoritarian playbook of its past. Under the rule of President Kaïs Saïed, the state has replaced the promise of political pluralism with a system of political repression so brazen it has plunged the country into a judicial farce.
The illusion of Saïed’s anti-corruption crusade has been stripped away, replaced by the grim reality of a concerted crackdown on all forms of dissent, turning lawyers, journalists, and opposition figures into political hostages.
The Return of Ben Ali’s Tactics in the Courts
The core issue is the systematic weaponization of the justice sector to silence political opposition. Following his 2021 seizure of extraordinary powers, President Saïed has steadily consolidated all state authority, justifying his actions as necessary to eradicate corruption and eliminate “traitors.”
The core issue is the systematic weaponization of the justice sector to silence political opposition.
However, the reality points to a chilling revival of the repressive tactics of the pre-2011 era. The full scope of this judicial war was laid bare last week. On November 17, a Tunisian court was scheduled to hear the appeal in the politically motivated “Conspiracy Case.” This case saw 37 opponents, activists, lawyers, and researchers unjustly sentenced to prison terms ranging from four to 66 years for charges like “conspiracy against state security,” after a judicial process that human rights organizations described as a “masquerade… devoid of fair trial guarantees.” These severe sentences—and the fact that detainees, including constitutional law professor Jawher Ben Mbarek, have resorted to hunger strikes—illustrate the extreme pressure being applied to critics of the regime.
Street Protest and Civil Society’s Last Stand
The desperation felt by the opposition has boiled over from courtrooms into the streets. On Saturday, November 22, more than a thousand Tunisians—including families of political detainees and activists—massed in the streets of central Tunis to protest the regime’s authoritarian drift. Organized under the banner “Contre l’injustice” (Against Injustice), the marchers chanted defiant anti-regime slogans, including: “Le peuple veut renverser le régime” (The people want to overthrow the regime) and “Ni peur ni terreur, la rue appartient au peuple!” (Neither fear nor terror, the street belongs to the people!).
The protesters denounced the interference of the president in the judicial system, accusing the police of being instrumentalized to target political opponents. The wife of one imprisoned opposition figure, Monia Brahim, explained that citizens are marching because they feel they are “victims of a profound injustice,” and that political prisoners are being “retained as hostages by the regime.” As one organizer grimly stated, “All the progress of the last 14 years have been annihilated.”
As one organizer grimly stated, “All the progress of the last 14 years have been annihilated.”
This public rejection follows earlier protests by journalists, who demonstrated against the growing repression of press freedom and the temporary suspension of several prominent civil society organizations. The government’s crackdown is not only visible on the street but is also administrative: vast antiterrorism and cybercrime laws are now being used to criminalize dissent, and organizations report a “perfidious and effective” strategy of undue tax audits and blocked bank transfers, which quietly strangles activism without politically costly arrests. Human Rights Watch confirms that over 50 political figures, journalists, and activists have been subjected to arbitrary arrests or prosecution since late 2022.
International Scrutiny and the Need for Action
The severity of the crackdown has now triggered a formal international response. The situation in Tunisia has been elevated to an urgent agenda item for the European Parliament.
This week, on Wednesday afternoon (November 26), the European Parliament will hold an urgent debate on the rule of law and human rights situation in Tunisia, followed by an accompanying vote on a resolution on Thursday (November 27). This focus on specific cases, such as the targeting of lawyer Sonia Dahmani, demonstrates that the crisis has escalated to the highest levels of international legislative scrutiny.
For the United States and its European partners, the challenge is clear: supporting Tunisia’s stability must not mean tacitly accepting its repression. The president’s actions, framed as a fight against corruption, have devolved into a campaign to eliminate all political competition, leaving the country with the façade of a republic and the machinery of a police state. The time has come to challenge the legality and legitimacy of a political system that systematically punishes its own citizens for the fundamental act of political expression.
Published originally on November 23, 2025.
