Tunisia: National Salvation Front supporters begin open sit-in

Supporters of the Tunisian National Salvation Front have decided to start an open sit-in at the headquarters of the Al-Irada party in Tunis from this Monday, to demand the release of all political detainees, said the Front’s president Nejib Chebbi.

Speaking at a press conference, Chebbi was quoted by TAP news agency as saying that the sit-inners essentially demand explanations from the judiciary regarding the case of conspiracy against the internal security of the state and the criminal acts attributed to the political figures detained in this case.

They demand that the detainees in this case be classified as political prisoners in order to benefit from decent conditions of detention until their release.

Nejib Chebbi insisted on respect for the dignity of these prisoners and their right to meet their families in good conditions.

The head of the Front deplored the “indecent and inhumane” conditions of detention of those accused of conspiracy against the State, who are not separated from ordinary prisoners.

When announcing the protest movement last week, the NSFT called on the judiciary to address the detentions, emphasizing that the sit-in would continue until the demands were achieved, and that it may escalate to a hunger strike.

According to press reports, besides NSFT members, political and human rights figures and families of the detainees are participating in the sit-in.

The defense committee of the detainees had also denounced their detention conditions, that were made worse “following instructions from higher authorities,” accusing President Kais Saied of managing the case personally.

The detainees have been transferred to filthy, pest-ridden rooms that do not meet the minimum health and safety conditions, in an effort to abuse and humiliate them, the committee had said.

However, TAP reported, the pressure exerted by civil society, in particular the Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH) and the Organization Against Torture in Tunisia (OCTT), has borne fruit. Indeed, many of these prisoners are now in much better conditions.

For his part, Abdellatif Mekki, a member of the National Salvation Front, said that considering the detainees in the case of conspiracy against state security as political prisoners would greatly improve their conditions.