Ben Ali:I did not know that I was a dictator until today - Thousands March in Tunisian Capital

Tunisian dictator addresses the people: I did not know, he said, that I was a dictator until today

I kid you not. That was the message of the speech.  The dictator basically announced that he has just learnt that he is a dictator and promised that he will put an end to his dictatorial rule in 2014.

Posted by As'ad at 11:17 PM

How come the US media are not labeling the Tunisian Revolution?

I mean, you foolishly labeled Cedar Revolution and Orange Revolution and Green Revolution.  You don't think that a Revolution against an ally of US and EU is worthy of a color label?  Do you realize how politicized you nakedly appear in all your standards and coverage and labels?  

Posted by As'ad at 8:42 AM

Despite Ben Ali’s Speech, Thousands March in Tunisian Capital

14/01/2011 Although Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali tried to calm weeks of tensions by promising not to seek another term, several hundred protesters demonstrated in the capital Friday.

"No to Ben Ali, the uprising continues," shouted demonstrators in a march that first numbered a few dozen people but quickly swelled despite the presence of police, AFP reporters said.

Police threw up a barricade to stop the march from reaching the interior ministry, blamed for a harsh crackdown on protests that a rights group says has killed 66 people, several times higher than the official toll.

"The interior ministry is a ministry of terror," the crowd shouted, paying tribute to the "blood of the martyrs".

In demonstrations in other towns, including western Sidi Bouzid where a wave of protests was unleashed mid-December, thousands of marchers shouted "Ben Ali out", AFP reporters said.


NOT SEEKING OTHER TERM


After nearly a month of riots that initially focused on unemployment, sparked by the suicide of a young graduate who set himself alight, the president appeared on television late Thursday in a bid to calm tensions.

Ben Ali, who has been in power since 1987, vowed not to seek re-election in 2014.

"I say no to being president for life and I refuse to alter the age limit set by the constitution."

He also promised to institute widespread reforms, introduce more freedoms into society, and to investigate the killings of protesters during demonstrations that have spread throughout the country over the past month.

Ben Ali promised to introduce "total freedom" of information and Internet access and vowed reforms.

"I say again to you here that I want to deepen democracy and to revitalize pluralism in our country," he said.

The president promised to lower prices of basic commodities such as milk, bread and sugar.
He said that he did not intend to scrap a constitutional upper age limit for candidates.
"Enough firing of real bullets," he said, adding in a rare admission that he had been "wrong" in his analysis of the country's social ills and promising a full inquiry to establish "each and everyone's responsibilities".

But even as the president addressed the nation, two people were killed as police opened fire on protesters in central Tunisia, witnesses said.

The witnesses, who asked not to be named, spoke of chaos in the town of Kairouan where pillaging had taken place over several hours.

Also on Friday, the foreign minister, Kamel Morjane said that Ben Ali is prepared to hold new legislative elections before the 2014 poll. Speaking to France's Europe 1 radio, Morjane said that Ben Ali has decided that presidential and legislative elections will not be held at the same time anymore, and that "in so doing, he accepted the principle of elections before the presidential poll."

Almost simultaneously, the government appeared to lift its heavy hand from the media, allowing opposition figures onto television and lifting bans on formerly censored websites such as YouTube.


OPPOSITION WELCOMES


Hours after Ben Ali’s speech, opposition reacted positively on Friday, with Mohammed Nejib Chebbi, long-standing leader of the Progressive Democratic Party, which is legal but not represented in parliament, said: "The positive fact is that the president decided not to stand again".

The president promised to lower prices of basic commodities such as milk, bread and sugar.
"This speech opens up possibilities," declared Mustapha Ben Jaafar, head of the Democratic Forum for Work and Liberties.

He added, however: "These intentions still have to be applied."

Member of Parliament Ahmed Ben Brahim, head of the former communist Ettajdid party, said: "It's positive, the speech answers questions that were raised by our party."
Human rights militant Bouchra Bel Haji, said Ben Ali had "freed us and freed himself".

But not everyone was so positive, with another human rights defender Mohamed Abbou declaring he did not believe the president and that Ben Ali was "fooling the Tunisians with promises that have no tomorrow".

This is how the New York Times described Tunisia in 2006

I did a quick search in the archives of the New York Times on Tunisia and found this from the Herald Tribune, October 30th, 2006 written by Stanley Weiss:  "In Tunis, President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali sticks to the "Tunisia model" - repressive politics alongside progressive economics. Claiming an absurd 95- percent victory in the last election, Ben Ali's regime argues that Tunisia's reputation as a leader in women's rights and the most open economy in the Arab world - with a robust middle class, low poverty and high literacy - show that you can give people dignity without democracy."

Posted by As'ad at 8:24 AM

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