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The Future of Democracy in Tunisia
January 22, 2019 @ 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EST
A luncheon discussion with elected female parliamentarian from Tunisia,
Meherzia Labidi Maïza
Meherzia Labidi Maïza
The National Interest Foundation is pleased to invite you to attend our luncheon discussion where Meherzia Labidi tackles the question on Tunisia’s future of a stable democracy.
Tunisia is the sole democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring protests that ripped through the region over the past decade. By 2013, the democratic process was almost derailed by unfulfilled economic promises, political and ideological disagreements, and foreign meddling. Fortunately, local and international mediation then helped to avert catastrophe and pave the way for elections. But less than a year before the next general election, scheduled for late 2019, the country is again in crisis. Tunisia’s President Beji Caid Essebsi warned this past Monday that the country’s democratic experience is not in a safe situation. He also warned of the risks of a general strike called by his country’s largest labour union for Thursday. What happens next is a critical test of where Tunisian democracy is headed.
Tunisia is the sole democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring protests that ripped through the region over the past decade. By 2013, the democratic process was almost derailed by unfulfilled economic promises, political and ideological disagreements, and foreign meddling. Fortunately, local and international mediation then helped to avert catastrophe and pave the way for elections. But less than a year before the next general election, scheduled for late 2019, the country is again in crisis. Tunisia’s President Beji Caid Essebsi warned this past Monday that the country’s democratic experience is not in a safe situation. He also warned of the risks of a general strike called by his country’s largest labour union for Thursday. What happens next is a critical test of where Tunisian democracy is headed.
About our Speaker:
Known as “most senior elected woman in the Middle East”, Meherzia Labidi Maïza is currently a member of the Tunisian Parliament and Head of the Committee For Women, Family, Children and the Elderly Affairs. She was proud of helping to include a clause to protect women’s rights into Tunisia’s post Arab Spring constitution. She is also the honorary president of the organisation Religion for Peace. She has a degree in English literature and writes on topics linked to women and education. She is also a translator, and specialises in Islamic jurisprudence and Islamic finance. She holds a certificate in theatre studies and a Master’s degree in translation from Sorbonne University. She teaches translation at the European Institute of Social Science in Paris.
Known as “most senior elected woman in the Middle East”, Meherzia Labidi Maïza is currently a member of the Tunisian Parliament and Head of the Committee For Women, Family, Children and the Elderly Affairs. She was proud of helping to include a clause to protect women’s rights into Tunisia’s post Arab Spring constitution. She is also the honorary president of the organisation Religion for Peace. She has a degree in English literature and writes on topics linked to women and education. She is also a translator, and specialises in Islamic jurisprudence and Islamic finance. She holds a certificate in theatre studies and a Master’s degree in translation from Sorbonne University. She teaches translation at the European Institute of Social Science in Paris.
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