The vote comes at a time when many of Saied’s political opponents and media critics are in prison or facing legal proceedings.
Tunisian President Kais Saied has called presidential elections for October 6, preparing for a possible re-election as many of his political opponents are behind bars.
Announcing the date in an official decree on Monday, Saied did not confirm whether he would seek re-election, but is expected to run for another five-year term.
The former constitutional law professor was elected in 2019 as an anti-establishment advocate who promised to eradicate corruption.
He took full control of the country in 2021, dismissing the elected parliament and starting to govern by decree, in a move that the opposition classified as a coup d’état.
He then oversaw the drafting of a new constitution, approved by referendum in 2022, establishing a presidential system and weakening parliament.
Economic and political turmoil
The political crisis caused by Saied’s seizure of power weighed heavily on Tunisia’s economy, with unemployment standing at 15 percent and around four million of the country’s 12 million inhabitants living in poverty.
The repression resulted in the indictment of more than 60 journalists, lawyers and political opponents, according to the National Union of Tunisian Journalists.
The opposition says fair and credible elections cannot be held unless jailed politicians are released and journalists can do their work without pressure from the government.
“Kais Saied from now until the elections has a long list of individuals, associations, parties and journalists that he will gradually criminalize to always maintain the sympathy of his electoral base”, Romdhane Ben Amor of the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES) . ) told Al Jazeera in May.
“The regime’s machine works very efficiently, which means it devours anyone who has a critical perspective on the situation.”
‘Growing repression of human rights’
Opposition parties, including Ennahdha and the Free Constitutional Party, say Saied is targeting their top figures to ward off potential rivals in the next presidential race.
The leader of the Free Constitutional Party and potential challenger to Saied, Abir Moussi, has been in prison since last year on charges of harming public security.
Other potential election candidates, including Safi Saeed, Lotfi Maraihi, Nizar Chaari and Abd Ellatif Mekki, also face prosecution for alleged crimes such as fraud and money laundering.
Ennahdha leader Rached Ghannouchi is in prison on charges that his party received foreign funding. Amnesty International described his case as part of “a growing crackdown on human rights and opposition and a deeply worrying pattern”.
Saied, in turn, criticized what he describes as “politicians’ jockeying for office”, saying that those who previously boycotted the parliamentary elections now wanted his job.
He said he will not hand over power to those he considers unpatriotic.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
