The Tunisia has a political system characterized by a Political party dominating, heir to the independence movement carried out by Habib Bourguiba. Certain opposition parties are authorized but they are not currently able to seize the power.

History

Tunisia under protectorate

It is after the First World War that political parties appear. Several of them result from the Tunisian Party (founded in 1919). This party, resulting from the movement of the Jeunes Tunisians, is characterized by its character of party of elite S. What is at the origin of their appearance, it is the fight against the French protectorate and for the improvement of the statute of the Tunisians. But these objectives do not seem to be able to be reached without a capable party to mobilize a great Tunisian mass. This need of a strategic nature pushes soon the leaders of the party to choose the creation of a movement gathering all the Tunisian nationalists. As of March 1919 emerges the Liberal party Tunisian constitutionnalist (Destour) under the direction of Abdelaziz Thâalbi. Its essential claim is the promulgation of a Constitution intended to guarantee the basic rights of the Tunisians. This claim will be at the origin of several scissions within the party:

  • With the end of the year 1921 appears the Party reformist of Mohamed Naamane and Hassen Guellati. The latter estimate that the claims of Destour are too radical to be realistic.

  • In 1922, a second scission leads to the creation of the independent Party destourien, founded by Farhat Ben Ayed, Chedli Mourali and Taïeb Ben Aïssa, which wants to be honest towards France.
  • Lastly, dissensions relating to the methods of action of Destour between the old ones of the executive commission of the party, holding of a careful policy to avoid repression, and new political office, such Habib Bourguiba, holding of a more radical action in spite of the incurred risks, lead to the divorce between the two tendencies at the time of the congress of Ksar Hellal (March 2nd 1934) and to the creation of the Néo-Destour.

In 1937, the Tunisian Communist party (PCT) comes to lengthen the list of the parties autochtones. Before even independence, the Party reformist disappears just like the independent Party destourien whose influence within the national movement is quasi non-existent. As for Destour, having lost its strategic bet in its fight for independence, it disappears at the beginning from the Années 1960.

In fact of parties, they are rather political associations which have of another choice only the fight in this form partisane in order to renegotiate the statute of their territories. These same movements not aim the conquest of the capacity but the territorial reconquest their fatherlands. In Tunisia, writes the Tunisian academic Moustapha Kraiem, “the parties destouriens did not hesitate to use of violence to remove, by all the means, the possible competitors and rivals. ”

Tunisia under Bourguiba

With independence, the Tunisian constitution does not mention expressly the Multipartisme but does not institute a Sole party. However, it implicitly envisaged the multi-party system: article 8 lays out that “the freedoms of thought, expression, press, publication, meeting and association are guaranteed and exerted under the conditions defined by the law. ” A few weeks after independence, Bourguiba, recalls: “We accept readily the opposition and we recognize its rights because it is an essential condition of freedom and democracy. ”

Vis-a-vis Néo-Destour, it is the Communist party which will resist more the monopolistic claims of the party of Bourguiba. But this resistance is completed the January 8th 1963 date on which is suspended the PCT on the basis of law of the November 7th 1959 relating to associations. After the suspension of the Communist party, Néo-Destour (become Socialist party destourien or PSD) will be during 19 years the only legal actor on the Tunisian political scene. Thus, a few years only will be enough in Néo-Destour to sit a total Monopole on the political life. Even the powerful central trade-union, the Tunisian General union of the work (UGTT), which will try, for a time, to hold head with the capacity, will be recovered by the sole party to become one of its satellite organizations at the conclusion of the trade-union crisis of 1978.

This monopoly will not prevent the appearance of various clandestine movements of opposition such:

  • the Movement of the popular unit (MUP I)

  • the Movement of the popular unit (MUP II)
  • the Movement of the Islamic tendency (MTI)
  • the Movement of the socialist democrats (MDS)
  • the Arab nationalist Gathering of Tunisia (RNAT)

As of its come to power, the Prime Minister Mohamed Mzali proclamation a certain predisposition in favor of the return to political pluralism. This predisposition of the chief of the government is confirmed by a speech of Bourguiba at the time of the extraordinary congress of the PSD (April 10th 1981). Consequently, of new clandestine filing oppositions hasten to deposit their requests for legal visa. Towards the end of first half of the year 1981, at least six requests for visa pile up on the desk of the Minister of Interior Department:

  • the Movement of the socialist democrats (addressed the June 13rd 1978)

  • the Party of the popular unit (PUP I) (addressed the January 21st 1981)
  • the Arab national Gathering independent (RNAI) (addressed in February 1981)
  • the Movement of the Islamic tendency (addressed the May 31st 1981)
  • the Party of the popular unit (PUP II) (addressed the June 4th 1981)
  • the Tunisian Communist party (request lifting of the sanction that it undergoes since 1963)

Of all these movements, only the PCT finds a legal existence at the conclusion of the “grace” granted by the president of the Republic the July 18th 1981.

For the other formations, although not being recognized, they will be able nevertheless to take part in legislative under their own lists. It is following the poll which they will obtain their legal visa if they collect at least 5% of the votes cast. Upon the departure, the Movement of the Islamic tendency and the Party of the popular unit (I) are sulky the elections of November 1st by “regarding them as a pretense of democratization. ” At the conclusion of electoral frauds, the following results are proclaimed:

  • National front (PSD and UGTT): 94,60%

  • Movement of the socialist democrats: 3,28%
  • Movement of the popular unit: 0,81%
  • Tunisian Communist party: 0,35%

No filing opposition obtained more than 5% of the voices and will not be consequently recognized. But, two years later, to cure the fast aggravation of the social climate, the Mzali government legalizes the MDS and the PUP II. This legalization, occurred the November 19th 1983, will be in fact only one operation limited enough in time intended to calm the tensions present.

Tunisia under Ben Ali

With the dismissal of Bourguiba, a wind of freedom blows on the country and, for marking this “revival well”, the PSD is moulted in Constitutional Democratic Assembly (RCD). Being the reforms considered, the president Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, in his declaration of the November 7th 1987, announces the nearest proposal for a “bill on the parties and a bill on the press, likely to ensure a broader participation in the construction of Tunisia. ” The May 3rd 1988, a relative law with the political parties is promulgated. In this mood of d3etente, the new administration grants the legal visa to three new parties:

As for the MTI, its visa of legalization is refused to him. However, in spite of the refusal of its recognition, it will take part in the elections on independent lists. However, these elections reproduce the plebiscite for the party in power. The seven parties of the opposition participating in elections (MDS, PUP, RSP, PSP, PCT and the MTI) do not gain any seat. The second legislative, held March 20th 1994, a mixed way of voting makes it possible to release 19 seats for the opposition (10 seats for the MDS, 4 for the Mouvement Ettajdid, 3 for the UDU and 2 for the PUP). In addition, the financial problems induced by legal measurements are such as the newspapers like El Fajr (Ennahda - ex-MTI), El Badil (Communist party of the workmen of Tunisia), El Watan (UDU), Al Mawkif (RSP), El Mostaqbal (MDS), And-Tarik El Jadid (PCT) and El Wahda (PUP) ceases appearing as of the month of April 1991. However, in same time, the authorities agree of the assistances to the parties of the opposition “among which the granting for each one of them of an envelope of 80.000 dinars including 30.000 dinars devoted to the publication of a newspaper. ”

Current parties

Here a list of the political parties currently present on the Tunisian political scene. They are classified according to the number of members of Parliament within the House of Commons:

Nonparliamentary parties

Not recognized parties

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