2 yıl önce

Tunisia announces referendum on political reforms, elections

President Kais Saied says the parliament, suspended almost five months ago, will remain so until elections in December 2022 and calls a referendum on constitutional reforms in July.

AP

Kais Saied says the parliament will remain suspended until a new one is elected.

Tunisia will hold a referendum on constitutional reform on July 25 and new parliamentary elections on December 17, 2022.

Changes to the constitution would follow a public online consultation starting in January, President Kais Saied announced on Monday, adding the parliament would remain suspended until a new one was elected.

This July 25, Saied ousted the government, suspended parliament, and assumed executive authority.

While he argued these exceptional measures were meant to "save" the country, his critics accuse him of orchestrating a coup.

Tunisia, the birthplace of the Arab Spring revolutions, has been seen as the only country that succeeded in carrying out a democratic transition among Arab countries which witnessed popular revolutions toppling ruling regimes, including Egypt, Libya, and Yemen.