Harassment in Tunisia

Dr Moncef Marzouki, a former professor of medicine at the University of Sousse in Tunisia, has been subject to an ongoing campaign of harassment by the authorities because of his human rights activities. A previous president of the Tunisian Human Rights League (LTDH) and spokesperson for the National Council for Liberties in Tunisia (CNLT), he has suffered intimidation and repression.

He has been imprisoned for his “anti-governmental” activities, had his passport confiscated and been banned from leaving the country. He was also arbitrarily dismissed from his academic post in July 2000.

Dr Marzouki was found guilty of disseminating information “liable to disturb public order” and “maintaining an unauthorised association”. The information thought liable to provoke disorder was a paper highlighting the condition of liberties and human rights in Tunisia and presented at a meeting of human rights activists in Morocco. The “unauthorised association” was the CNLT which actively investigated and exposed human rights violations in Tunisia. The Tunisian authorities failed to officially recognise it.

Recently, restrictions on Dr Marzouki’s movements meant that he was unable to leave Tunisia in March this year while trying to rejoin his family in France and commence teaching at a university in France.

Alert - Tunisia