In Tunisia, the top priority for women is to take action on the establishment of the new constitution within the text of the principle of equality and inclusion of women in decision-making and negotiating opportunities.
“Tunisia is characterised by an accelerated rhythm of history, a new configuration of power relationships and by unstable changes that have had dire consequences on women’s human rights.
The women’s movement provides a multitude of possibilities for action which all cater to women’s rights in Tunisia.
What the Women of Tunisia Stand Against
Women in Tunisia have demonstrated on the streets continuously with other agents of civil society and have equally monitored women’s rights in the national and international fora against the attempts to postpone democracy and the marginalisation of politics, the censorship of the media, the limitation of public spaces and the violence perpetrated by organised groups and parallel militias affiliating themselves with morality police; which, according to women’s associations, are the premises of the implementation of a new dictatorship.
The women of Tunisia also stand against the economic and social marginalisation of women and unemployment policies that discriminate against them and the regional imbalance. Youth and regions have been exacerbated by globalisation and liberalism. In such context, women are weakened and pay the highest price.
Tunisian women stand against those reactionary voices that attempt to undermine women’s entitlements on the pretext of religious and cultural specificities and which confine identity in a rigid and out-dated vision.
They also refuse the increasing extremism and violence against civilians, artists, and human rights activists. Because this area of freedom has not only been opened for Tunisians but also for different voices and particularly those who threaten progressive entitlements and fight on the ground to establish a model of a reactionary society. The exclusion of women from decision-making processes, from political structures, and from state’s key positions provide a negative image conveyed by the media and social networks.
As the National Constituent Assembly writes the new Constitution, the top priority in the eyes of Tunisian women is to take action on the establishment within this text of the principle of equality as an inalienable principle, as well as for international conventions Tunisia had ratified.”