Tunisians Mark Five Years of Emergency Rule With Renewed Calls for Saied to Step Down

Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Tunis on Sunday to mark five years since President Kais Saied suspended parliament and imposed emergency measures, calling for the president to leave office and for a return to democratic governance. The protest, held along central arteries of the capital, reflected persistent public frustration over what critics describe as a steady erosion of political freedoms and institutional checks since the measures were first introduced.

Five Years Under Emergency Measures

Saied’s initial decision to freeze parliament and invoke emergency powers in mid-2021 reshaped Tunisia’s political landscape, prompting accusations from opposition groups, civil society organizations, and international observers that the country was veering away from the democratic gains of its 2011 revolution. Over the intervening years, successive extensions of emergency rule have continued to grant the executive expanded authority, while critics say the parliament has remained largely sidelined and the judiciary has faced mounting political pressure.

Anger on the Streets

Sunday’s demonstration echoed the chants and grievances that have periodically resurfaced in Tunis and other major cities since the emergency declaration. Protesters carried banners and chanted slogans calling for the fall of the regime, a phrase that has historical resonance in Tunisia and harks back to the uprisings that toppled long-time leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali more than a decade and a half ago. Marchers also demanded the release of detained political figures and the restoration of constitutional order.

Government Position and Political Divide

Saied and his supporters have consistently defended the emergency measures as necessary tools to confront political instability, economic strain, and security threats. The presidency has argued that the actions taken since 2021 reflect a popular mandate to recalibrate the political system. Opposition voices, however, counter that the prolonged state of emergency has concentrated power in the executive, weakened oversight institutions, and deepened the country’s political and economic difficulties.

As the fifth anniversary of the emergency declaration passes, Tunisia remains deeply divided over the direction of its political trajectory. Organizers of Sunday’s rally said the movement would continue through additional demonstrations and civil initiatives in the coming weeks, while the government has given no indication that it intends to reverse course. The coming months are likely to test whether the renewed public pressure can translate into a meaningful political opening, or whether the standoff between the executive and its critics will continue to define the country’s troubled post-revolutionary era.

Source: read the original report.