PARLIAMENTARY FORUM FOR DEMOCRACY NEWS
PAGE 7
EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER
Let me be clear right from the start . What I can do and will try to do is put a couple of not so easy questions on the table . I do not have answers to present to you . I would not dare to be so postcolonial .
Because it is my firm belief that the people of Tunisia have given their confidence to you , as active members of political parties and some of you as elected members of parliament . I think that the majority of Tunisians do believe that in a democracy you will be the ones that will have to find and present answers to those questions . In the 15 minutes , I would like to put forward 5 items that we might discuss and they all have the same bottom line or green line , the important question : “ who is responsible for choosing the solution that will be taken ?”.
1 . |
The constitution |
2 . |
Parliament |
3 . |
Separation of powers – “ trias politica ” |
4 . |
Justice system |
5 . |
Police / law and order |
All 5 items are of course very interconnected . |
Let ‟ s start with the Constitution As I understand there is a constituent assembly at work , where the new constitution is being discussed and as my information goes it takes a lot of time and some are getting worried it will take too much time . “ Ben Jaafar , head of the Ettakatol party and speaker of the constituent assembly , said that the constitution would be complete within a year as promised before the last elections ”. ( quote from Reuters ) I do hope that he will not follow the example of Egypt , were there was so much pressure from a specific side to finalize the process that the majority party forced an end to the discussion and more than a hundred articles were adopted in one long session , while the microphones of those voicing opposition were just shut down . That was contrary to the promise made to give the opportunity to all parties for a substantial discussion .
I have been reading your constitution of December 1959 and I can ‟ t find much that I do not agree with . art1 establishes Tunisia as a free , independent and sovereign republic , with Islam as its religion and through art2 as a part of the great Arab Maghreb A constitution is being considered the mother of all laws , or to rephrase :