Tunisie : consolidation autoritaire et processus électoraux (original) (raw)

The year 2004 started well for President Ben Ali: the national football team won the African Cup of Nations. It is true that Tunisia is not the only state in the world to use sport for political-demagogical purposes, but this time the political authorities did not skimp on resources: they proceeded with the "express naturalisation of the Brazilian Dos Santos", offered a "huge salary" to Roger Lemerre, the national team coach, and proposed a "special bonus of more than 36,000 euros per player", paid out of the personal funds of the "tenant" of the Palace of Carthage. The Head of State had to, from the outset, in this election year, to put all the assets on his side to prepare as best he could for the October elections which are supposed to devote his triumphant re-election to a fourth presidential term. It is within this framework that we must place the operation of charm launched with the United States at the beginning of 2004. President Ben Ali, who since the beginning of the 1990s presents himself as the apostle of the fight against "fundamentalist terrorism", went to the United States on an official visit from 15 to 18 February with the firm intention of "selling" his record in this area. His statements to the international press on this subject were unambiguous: he intends to give his American counterpart the benefit of his "anti-terrorist experience". His objective is also to legitimise his repressive policy towards opponents by emphasising his "gradual" approach to democratic reforms in Tunisia. While the US administration has not really taken the Tunisian head of state's argument on democratic reforms seriously, it remains entangled in the contradictions of its international policy: The US has set itself the goal of promoting democracy throughout the Arab world, but at the same time it relies on authoritarian client states in the region to carry out its campaign against "international terrorism". President Bush's speech to Ben Ali during their meeting on 18 February reflected this contradiction. While praising Tunisia's economic, educational and counter-terrorism achievements, President Bush told his interlocutor that the United States remained "concerned about political reform" and "press freedom". President Ben Ali, like most Arab leaders, is trying to make the most of the antinomic objectives of the American superpower. The operations of charm aimed at the West are accompanied by the development of security arrangements which will allow President Ben Ali to be acclaimed in the presidential elections and to begin his new presidential term with his eyes riveted on the next presidential term of 2009.