When the Arab Spring originated in Tunisia in 2011, it took the middle east by storm. The whole world watched with bated breath the events unfolding in the hitherto autocratic societies. 11 years later, the optimism is long gone and replaced by grave pessimism. The pessimistic attitude could not be graver for Tunisia, the birthplace of Arab Spring.   

In Tunisia, the revolution replaced the single-party country with a multi-party democracy. The current ruling party is the Ennahda movement. The Prime minister is Hichem Mechichi and the President is Kais Saied. At the time of writing, the President has moved to dissolve the assembly. He had already procured all the powers to himself and was ruling by decree but this is one in a series of events that has the potential to be the final nail in the coffin.  

A tussle between the President and Prime Minister

A tussle between the President and the Prime Minister was evident in Tunisia from the start. Critics have often pointed out the rather slow and deadlocked nature of the assembly that has led to policy paralysis. Currently, in Tunisia, the economic hardships are at an all-time high. An economic crisis is more often than that accompanied by a political crisis as well. The tendency to acquire draconian powers in a crisis is another tale of 'how history repeats itself'. 

President Kais Saied looks set to push the country into a dictatorship.

The country remains in conversation with the IMF to pull the economy out of ruins. According to Statista, the unemployment rate in Tunisia stands at 16.69% which is far from ideal. The economic scenario in the country is worrisome, with the covid19 pandemic putting a halt to the tourism revenue as well. The Mediterranean country offered its clean beaches and vibrant culture to its tourists but increasingly that seems to be withering away. The talk here is not going to be, "How did Tunisia get here"? But rather we should talk about how countries with young democracies can find it easier to go back to familiar territory. Let us take a look at what the future could hold for Tunisia.  

Tunisia is a young democracy, and hence this makes the current events all the more dangerous. It is a stern test of Tunisia’s democratic institutions and culture. When democracies are in their youthful stage, such setbacks can take two forms. It can either derail or strengthen democracy. After decolonization in the middle of the 20th century, a lot of countries in Africa and Asia became democratic. 

One such example is India, which a lot of experts predicted would not go far in its quest for democracy. After a national emergency and a political crisis in 1975, they thought their view was vindicated. Today India is the largest democratic country in the world with well-respected democratic institutions. It is up to Tunisia to dig deep and find a way out of this rabbit hole. Since it has been under autocratic rule for a long, it is convenient to romanticize the “good times” before the advent of democracy and go back to what they were familiar with. 

To Tunisia’s credit, it has conducted 6 elections to date, if we consider elections to all levels of government. But democracy is much more than elections, it is an everyday process. Holding your representatives to account, and having an inclusive nature are vital factors. Voter turnouts are close to 60%, which is not bad at all. When the current president was elected, the transfer of power was peaceful. In a promising democracy, however, anger over issues unrelated to democracy can often be misplaced.

Tunisia suffers from economic hardships, which have been compounded by the coronavirus pandemic. Unemployment is high and so is corruption and smuggling. Democracy is not a magic wand and will not automatically solve these problems. It gives a platform to discuss these problems and arrive at the best solution possible. Therefore, it is important that in such situations, rather than flaring tempers things are handled with a bit of composure. Democracy is quite a gradual process, especially in countries that are still experimenting. Only time will tell how far democracy has encroached in the North African country. 

The good news is that the ruling party has urged its supporters to stay calm and has promised to challenge the decision. Since events are breaking out as this goes to press, the questions are only going to increase, some of which are given below; 

The birthplace of Arab Spring is witnessing the death of democracy

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