Steemit Engagement Challenge S11/W4 | " How is democracy functioning in your country?."

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How is democracy functioning in your country?

The experience of the democratic transition in Tunisia after 2011 represented an exception in its Arab environment and a unique experience that was seen as a model in the experiences of democratic transformation. However, this experience has witnessed emergency transformations and is fraught with dangers of slipping into autocratic rule and retreating from democratic gains, especially after July 25, 2021.

The democratic transition period lasted about ten years before it was overrun by the July 25, 2021 measures devised by the President of the Republic, Kais Saied, elected in 2019, which represented a turning point in the political scene that Tunisia lived through for ten years under a dual parliamentary system that led to an intense struggle for power. And a conflict of powers between the three presidencies (the Presidency of the Republic, the Presidency of Parliament and the Presidency of the Government).

The measures of July 25 were cut off, with a decade marked by political conflicts, coinciding with the “Covid-19” crisis and its severe economic and social repercussions, which prompted Tunisians to express their discontent with the political system at the time and with the performance of Parliament.

Is your country free from any domination ruled?

Ten governments in ten years have failed to improve economic conditions, provide job opportunities, and end corruption in Tunisia, and the Tunisian people have the right to be angry.

On the one hand, it seems that the president wanted to move the stagnant waters and implement a quick intervention plan that includes shaking the entire Tunisian political situation. The Tunisian president is not military, not corrupt, and has no previous political experience. He is a constitutional expert who used to work as a university professor teaching the constitution, and the Tunisians elected him precisely because of those qualities, as they saw them as the characteristics of a person who would not be corrupted by power.

Indeed, the president's personality is nothing like the personality of the traditional Arab dictator, who often does not go beyond the personality of the "empty drum" who inherited power from his father or brought about a military coup. This weakens the possibility that kais Saied's plan includes his transformation into a dictator who seizes power forever, and we hope that this is not the plan.

On the other hand, there are some very disturbing indications of what the Tunisian president did, specifically the closure of Al-Jazeera media offices. This reminded me of the military coup in Egypt at the time, and on the day of the coup, I was laughing at myself attached to a false hope that what is happening now in Egypt is not a traditional coup, but rather good for Egypt. I remained attached to this hope as I followed the news until the news of the closure of the Al-Jazeera office in Cairo appeared immediately after the announcement of Morsi’s arrest. At that time, I knew that what was happening was a traditional coup, as the suppression of freedom of the press was the most prominent feature of dictatorial rule.

The Tunisian president did not close any other press offices, only Al-Jazeera, as it is seen as close to the Ennahda party (and the Muslim Brotherhood movement in general), and it is strange that he did not close the Al-Zaytouna channel affiliated with the Ennahda party. It seems that, with the exception of the closure of the Al-Jazeera office, the rest of the media is still operating freely.

I do not want to prolong, but what I would like to say is that what the Tunisian president has done contains mixed and confused signals. I do not want to call it a coup, but neither can I consider it a continuation of the course of the revolution. The problem is that the president's future plan is not clear, so we have to wait for some time for more things to become clear.

Finally, it is the duty of Western countries that call for the values of liberalism and democracy to intervene immediately to provide any assistance that Tunisia needs, especially in terms of material, so as not to leave room for the UAE and Saudi Arabia to interfere, and we all know what that intervention would mean if it happened.

Is your country self-sufficient in food production?

During the last ten years Tunisia has been experiencing an acute crisis in food security in light of the decline in production systems in the agricultural sector and the absence of clear strategies to save the sector. Tunisia was historically called "Rome's landfill" because it used to provide grain food for the entire Roman Empire but today is no longer food-secure and its national food security is on the brink of collapse for internal and external reasons and its people cannot obtain the necessities of daily life except after great hardship and hardship. .

International developments and fluctuations have exposed the weakness of the national health and food security of Tunisia. After the biological war that was conducted under the title COVID19, which revealed the collapse of health security for Tunisia, the Ukraine war came to show the depth of the food security crisis for Tunisia. related to the import of foodstuffs.

Tunisia, which is suffering from a major financial crisis, has been hit hard by the rise in global wheat prices as a result of the war in Ukraine. Because of this war, Tunisia is particularly exposed to disruptions in grain supplies, as it had imported most of its soft wheat and barley needs from Russia and Ukraine in 2021.

It must be emphasized that the problem of Tunisian food security is evidence of the failure of Tunisian developmental economic policies, as well as a product of the policy of subjecting Arab and African countries to food dependency by the countries that control the global economy.

How is youth employment in your country?

The unemployment rate in Tunisia increased by about 17% during the current year compared to last year, while the authorities are suffering from a severe financial crisis and complex economic conditions in light of the stalled negotiations with the IMF.

The high unemployment rates are mainly due to weak economic growth due to the contraction of the private sector and its unwillingness to invest due to the state of political and social instability.

There is also a crisis due to the requirements of the labor market and the lack of readiness for new graduates to join it, as the state tended to reduce assignments for government jobs to the maximum degree, until it decided 4 years ago to stop assignments in the public sector in order to reduce wages.

Among the reasons for unemployment is that the educational curricula in Tunisia do not meet the needs of the labor market, stressing the need to change the curricula, in addition to the Corona crisis, which exacerbated the unemployment crisis, as well as the decline in foreign investment.

What you want your country to be like?

There are many things I want to change in my community I want to see a more equitable society where everyone has equal opportunities , regardless of race , gender , sexual orientation or socioeconomic status. I want to see a society where everyone is treated with respect and dignity, and where everyone has access to good education , health care and housing. I want to see a community where we care about our environment and work together to solve the challenges facing our planet.

I know there will be challenges and obstacles in trying to achieve these changes, many groups of existing beneficiaries and beneficiaries will emerge whose main concern will be to resist and thwart change. I will take challenges because I believe these changes are worth fighting for , I believe that everyone deserves to live in a community in which they can thrive, and I am committed to working toward that goal.

I will be sure that I will succeed because I am not alone. There are many people I have met in person and online who share my vision of a better society, all we need is coordination to make the idea a reality. I believe if we all come together, we can create a better society for all. We can make our society more accepting and tolerant of the other. We can attract investment. We can improve our society because future generations deserve better. All this did not and will not happen unless we develop education and encourage scientific research.

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Thank you very much for reading, it's time to invite my friends @patjewell, @pelon53, @graceleon to participate in this contest.

Best Regards,
@kouba01