Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali (rear RTL زينالعابدينبنعلي), born the September 3rd 1936 with Hammam Sousse, is president of the Tunisia since the November 7th 1987.

It occupies several stations within the army and of the national security before becoming Minister of Interior Department, in the government of Rachid Sfar, then Prime Minister. It finishes, at the time of a Coup d'etat, by depositing the president Habib Bourguiba for medical reasons.

It is the subject regularly of charge of violation of the Human rights on behalf of various defense organizations of the human rights as well as various foreign mediums.

Career

Born within a poor family from the town of Hammam Sousse (his/her father is guard with the port of Sousse), Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali carries out his secondary studies with the college of boys of Sousse and integrates the local structures of the Néo-Destour. Hédi Baccouche, young militant of Néo-Destour, imprisoned by the French at the detention center of Zaarour in 1952, enjoys in 1956, date of independence, prestige necessary to help Ben Ali to join the rows of the young person Tunisian Armée. The party is at the time preparing a list of candidates selected for a military formation in France. It is within this framework that it is graduate military special École of Saint-Cyr military school then of the École of application of the artillery of Châlons-sur-Marne. It gains then the the United States where it follows the courses of the Senior Intelligence School of Fort Holabird (Maryland) and of the School for Field and Anti-Aircraft of Fort Bliss (Texas). It becomes also electronic Engineer in .

Of return in Tunisia, it is affected with the service of the Kefi general. Its marriage with his/her daughter Naïma undoubtedly opens new horizons to him: he sees himself entrusting, in 1964, the creation of the direction of the military security which he directs during 10 years. He becomes then military attach3e to the Morocco in 1974, then in Spain. Whereas Mohamed Mzali is seen entrusting the ministry for defense, it calls upon him and assigns it to its cabinet. In December 1977, the Prime Minister Hédi Nouira appoints it managing director of safety. It leaves the aforementioned direction in April 1980, after the events of Gafsa, and occupies the station of Ambassadeur of Tunisia in Poland.

He is recalled to Tunis after the bloody riot S of January 1984 and finds himself promoted, the October 29th, as Secretary of State in charge of the national security. The October 23rd 1985, president Bourguiba creates a ministry dedicated to the national security and Ben Ali is charged with this wallet.

He becomes Minister of Interior Department the April 28th 1986 while keeping the supervision of the national security. He integrates two months later the political office of the Socialist party destourien (PSD), of which he becomes assistant general secretary. After the departure of Mzali in July of the same year, it keeps its functions within the government of Rachid Sfar.

Seizure of power

In May 1987, Ben Ali is initially promoted minister of state in charge of the interior, then Prime Minister the October 2nd, while preserving the wallet of the interior, thus succeeding Sfar. He becomes general secretary of the PSD and is thus confirmed like possible dolphin of Bourguiba.

In the morning of the November 7th, Ben Ali makes play article 57 of the Tunisian constitution and, on the faith of a medical report/ratio signed by 7 doctors attesting of the incapacity of president Bourguiba, deposits it for senility. It becomes, in accordance with the constitution, chair and supreme leader of the armed forces. Bourguiba is then assigned with residence.

In their book Our friend Ben Ali , the journalists Nicolas Beautiful and Jean-Pierre Tuquoi tell: Seven doctors whose two soldiers, are convened in middle of the night, not with the bedside of the patient but, there still, with the ministry for the interior. Among them the current doctor of the president is, the cardiologist and general Mohamed Gueddiche. Ben Ali summons the representatives of faculty to establish a medical opinion of incapacity of the president. “I have not seen Bourguiba for two years” protests one of the doctors. “That does not do anything! Sign! ” section the Ali. general

Presidency

Political action

It consequently takes in hand the PSD and transforms it into Constitutional Democratic Assembly. With the report heading, it begins the reorganization of it. The constitution amended removes the presidency with life and limit the number of presidential mandates with 3. A law on the political parties is adopted and of new parties are recognized. Thus, with the legislative elections of the April 2nd 1989, the candidates of the opposition, in particular the islamist, obtains 10% of the votes (see more in certain districts of Tunis). With the presidential behavior the same day, being the only candidate, Ben Ali is elected with 99,27% of the voices.

To this period, incidents in the district of Bab Souika, in full center of Tunis, are allotted to the party Ennahda (islamist opposition). Shown to be opposed openly to the principle of a republican State by recommending an Islamic State, and to Tunisian laws, particularly the Code of the personal status, the party is not recognized and is shown of enfreindre the code of the political parties. It falls down then in clandestinity.

The process of Consensus and national accord takes a blow. The process of democratization and standardization of the political life slows down but without being openly abandoned. However, the electoral code is revised on a proposal from Ben Ali. In order to increase the parliamentary representation of the legal opposition, a minimum quota of 20% of the seats of the House of Commons is reserved to him.

The March 20th 1994, Ben Ali is one applicant for his own succession and is re-elected with 99,91% of the voices. The October 24th 1999, the first presidential election pluralist is organized. Ben Ali and two other candidates, Mohamed Belhaj Amor and Abderrahmane Tlili, present themselves. The outgoing president is again re-elected with 99,44% of the voices compared with 0,31% for Belhaj Amor and 0,23% for Tlili.

In 2002, the constitution is again amended to remove the limit of the presidential mandates which it itself introduced and to lengthen the maximum age to stand as a candidate. The same amendment also grants the permanent Immunité to the Head of the State for any act related to its professional obligations. Validated by a Referendum, it thus makes it possible to the president to represent until in 2014. The revision also introduces the Bicamérisme by creating the Chambre of the advisers. Contrary to the House of Commons, no mechanism is designed to represent the opposition. This is why, the RCD is the only party represented in this enclosure (in addition to the professional organizations). Moreover, the president can name 7 of the 9 members of the Constitutional council, which must take care of the validity of the candidatures for the presidential election, the 2 others being named by the president of the House of Commons (which is member of the RCD).

To the elections of October 24th, 2004, 3 opponents (Mohamed Bouchiha, Mohammed Ali Halouani and Mounir Béji) present themselves during a poll presented like a show of Démocratie by ONG like Human Rights Watch or international Amnesty, and several Tunisian parties of the opposition which decide Boycott er. Severe restrictions are imposed on the expression of the opposition. A law of August 2003, modifying the electoral code, prohibited the use of a radio or a private television or emitting abroad with an aim of inciting to vote or to abstain from voting for a candidate or a list of candidates, which does not prevent the outgoing president from being omnipresent in the national mediums, because of the exercise its functions. The principal opponent presenting themselves, Halouani, are not authorized to print and diffuse his electoral program. At the time of these elections, Ben Ali is again re-elected with 94,49% of the votes compared with 3,78% for Bouchiha, 0,95% for Halouani and 0,79% for Béji.

As of the end 2006, various organizations close to the capacity launch calls to the president so that it presents his candidature for the presidential election of 2009.

Economic action

Ben Ali launches an official policy of liberalization of the Tunisian economy under the pressure of the the World Bank and the Fonds international currency (the IMF). A Privatization of the public large companies and a levelling of the private sector are started. Progressive privatization, the encouragement with the investment and the introduction of a legislative and tax flexibility start again the economy after a beginning of the Années 1990 marked by the fold due to the crisis of the Tourisme related to the war of the Gulf. This crisis reproduces in 2002 - 2003 after the islamist attack against the Synagog of Ghriba to Jerba. Foreign investors settle gradually and the economy grows atan oscillating rate between 5 and 5,5%.

The State undertakes to diversify the economy by increasing the share of industry, in particular textile, while reinforcing the traditional sectors of the Agriculture and the Tourisme. A policy of encouragement to the overseas investment and room, and the creation of companies is installation and an action is taken for the multiplication of the microphone-companies and the extension of the technologies the information.

The current Unemployment rate is of 13,9% (against 15,6% in 1994). The banking reform required by the IMF is not applied yet.

Private life

Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali wife in first Weddings Naïma Kefi with which it has three girls:

• Ghazoua: married to Slim Zarrouk (business man)
• Dorsaf: married to Slim Chiboub (former player of Volley ball and former president of the sporting Hope of Tunis)
• Cyrine: married in 1996 with Marouane Mabrouk (business man and close to the former minister Hédi Mabrouk)

Divorced in 1992, it remarie in second weddings with Leïla Trabelsi which he meets whereas he is Minister of Interior Department. They had two girls and a son:

• Nesrine: married in 2004 in Sakher Materi, the Tunisian mode being regularly shown to violate the human rights, and to repress the Freedom of expression.

The president is listed since 1998 like one of the “10 worse enemies of the press” by the Comité for the protection of the journalists. Reporters without borders also indicates it like a “predator of freedom of the press”.

Political prisoners are frequently tortured, and of the defenders of the human rights, in particular the lawyers, are victims of harassing and devices of intimidation without their complaints being accepted by Tunisian justice. They are released in February 2006.

References

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