Lettre ouverte au Président de la République, au Chef du Gouvernement, aux membres de l’Assemblée des Représentants du Peuple, aux membres du Conseil Supérieur de la Magistrature, aux Ministres de l’Intérieur et de la Justice

The Tunisian authorities must oppose any attempt to violate the rights and freedoms of individuals during the month of Ramadan.

We, members of the Civil Collective for the defense of Individual Freedoms,

Noting, during the previous years, multiple attacks and violations perpetrated against individual freedoms by public authorities, groups or individuals self-proclaimed protectors of religion and good morals, in a context of total impunity;

Noting, during the previous years as the month of Ramadan approaches, the rise of hate speech against religious diversity in our country and the increase in threats against the freedoms of conscience, religion, opinion and expression ;

Recalling the very disturbing content of the repeated actions of the agents of the Ministry of the Interior in violation of the freedoms of conscience, religion, expression, opinion, and especially those relating to the arrest of non-fasters during the month of Ramadan without any legal, accessible and clear legal basis;

Also recalling the response of the former Minister of the Interior, Lotfi Brahem, to the question asked by the deputy Hajer Ben Cheikh Ahmed concerning the closure of cafes and restaurants during the month of Ramadan, in which he invokes that he " take measures during the month of Ramadan to ensure public order and respect for the religious feelings of practicing citizens ”;  

Faced with this restricted, selective and conservative reading of the constitution, the Civil Collective for the Defense of Individual Freedoms expresses its deepest concern as to the way in which the authorities approach the issue of individual freedoms and condemns these positions that it considers to be not only reason but also a cover that hides the spread of violent and hate speech, and a means to fuel extremism and reinforce terrorism.

For these reasons, the Collectif Civil Pour Les Libertés Individuelles is sending this letter to the Tunisian authorities to remind them of their national and international commitments, in particular those set out in the Constitution and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to ask them to '' refrain from violations committed against individual freedoms for whatever reasons, and calls on it to put an end to all attacks on individual freedoms by prosecuting and punishing the aggressors (individuals or groups). Therefore :

• The Civil Collective For Individual Liberties calls on the President of the Republic to fulfill his constitutional obligations to "ensure respect for the Constitution" (Article 72) as a coherent unit according to Article 146.
• The Civil Collective For Individual Liberties also asks the Head of Government, constitutionally responsible for "determining the general policy of the State and ensuring its implementation", to repeal the circulars which flagrantly violate the provisions of the Constitution, in particular the circular published in 1981 which provides for the closure of cafes and restaurants during the month of Ramadan, and in general, calls on it to implement the provisions of the Constitution relating to rights and freedoms.
• The Civil Collective also calls on the Assembly of the Representatives of the People to assume its responsibilities concerning the revision of repressive laws, including the Penal Code in order to adapt it to the new Constitution, in terms of guaranteeing individual rights and freedoms and collective.
• The Civil Collective For Individual Liberties reminds the judiciary of its constitutional obligation to "protect rights and freedoms from any infringement" (Article 49 of the Constitution), and "to guarantee the supremacy of the Constitution, the sovereignty of the law and the protection of rights and freedoms ”(Article 102 of the Constitution), and calls on it to abandon any arbitrary legal proceedings in contradiction with the Constitution.

The Civil Collective For Individual Liberties recalls that it has already had recourse to justice in a first phase in order to protect these rights and freedoms and in order to provide justice to the victims of these violations and arbitrary arrests. The components of the Collective declare themselves ready to campaign by using all legal means to ensure respect for the rule of law, freedom of conscience and belief, equality and protection of individual freedoms, the civil and democratic State consecrated by the Constitution of January 27, 2014.
 

The signatory associations:

1. Tunisian League for Human Rights
2. Tunisian Association of Democratic Women
5. Association DAMJ - For justice and equality
6. Tawhida Ben Cheikh Group
7. Tunisian Association for Positive Prevention
8. Doustourna Association
9. CALAM Association
10. Tahadi Association
11. Mawjoudin Association
12. Association Fanni Raghman Anni
13. Free sight association
15. Euromed Rights Network
16. Comité pour le Respect des Libertés et des Droits de l’Homme en Tunisie

Dated: 

Wednesday, May 15, 2019