Conference by Sophie Bessis
Tunisia in the turmoil of populism
septembersept 21
Saturday september 21
15h30
After a decade of chaotic but richly experienced democratic apprenticeship, Tunisia found itself plunged into a new cycle of its post-colonial history from 2021 onwards. From that date onwards, Kaïs Saïed, who was democratically elected in 2019, assumed all the powers, transforming a fledgling democracy into an autocracy.
The Tunisian case is not unique and is part of a worldwide populist wave, from India to Hungary, whose paradigms take up the rhetoric of the most extreme conservatism based on identity, xenophobia and religion. We will attempt to explain this drift in the case of Tunisia. We will also explain why and how the European Union is accommodating the Tunisian head of state because of his focus on the migration issue, which has become an obsession with the rise of the extreme right across Europe.