U.N Urges Tunisia to Restore Judicial Watchdog
By Ojieh Victoria Orowo
The United Nations Human rights Chief, Michelle Bachelet has urged President Kais Saied to restore a key judicial watchdog. Saied dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council (CSM) on Sunday, months after sacking the government and seizing wide-reaching powers in Tunisia, often praised as the only democracy to emerge from the 2011 Arab revolts.
“This has been a big step in the wrong direction,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet said on Tuesday that the move “is in clear violation of Tunisia’s obligations under international human rights law”.
The council “is a thing of the past”, he said according to video footage released by the Tunisian presidency, accusing the CSM, an independent constitutional body set up in 2016 to guarantee the good functioning and independence of the judiciary, of serving political interests.
It would however be recalled that on Monday, the Tunisian police blocked access to the council, preventing members and staff from entering the premises.
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The supreme Judicial Council had been mandated to ensure the proper functioning of justice and the independence of the judicial authority in Tunisia. The UN human rights office pointed out that its establishment in 2016 had been seen as a major advancement for the rule of law, separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary in Tunisia.
The Ambassadors to Tunisia from the G7 group said “a transparent, independent and efficient judiciary and the separation of powers are essential for a functioning democracy that serves its people”.
Tunisia was the only democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring revolution 10 years ago, but civil society groups have expressed fear of slipping back authoritarianism a decade after the revolution.
