N°10-31/01/2021 For several days, demonstrations have shaken the working-class neighborhoods of Tunisian cities. These demonstrations are marked by the youth of the participants who express their anger at a situation which continues to deteriorate.
Rising unemployment and rising prices are the fuel for this surge of anger. The health crisis and a curfew promulgated by the government at 4:00 p.m. aggravate the economic and social crisis. Tourism, one of the major job providers, is at a standstill. Tunisia already has more than 5,000 deaths linked to Covid 19 and yet in interviews with demonstrators, what comes up most often is the demand for work and food. This deep economic and social crisis particularly affects young people who are increasingly doubting their future in Tunisia.
The government is trying to violently crush these demonstrations through police and military intervention; there have already been more than 600 arrests. These riots take place in the midst of a political crisis and are a painful reminder of the actions that ten years ago led to the dismissal and flight of dictator Ben Ali. Since the overthrow of Ben Ali, the political parties of the Tunisian bourgeoisie have struggled in endless disputes to maintain their "gains": the prebends obtained to the detriment of the people during the previous regime. Islamists and right-wing forces sharing and vying for power have done nothing to improve the situation of the popular layers nor of the youth. Today's revolt is therefore not, as the politicians in power claim, a set-up against democracy, but rather the tide of anger of those who cannot take it any longer! This dimension is highlighted by Hamma Hammami, secretary general of the Workers’Party (the former Communist Workers' Party of Tunisia): "The social explosion in Tunisia was expected, because the social and economic conditions of the country have deteriorated. Reality is pushing for a new revolution because of insecurity and hunger." Thus, in Tunisia as elsewhere, the ravages of capitalism and imperialist domination are being felt. In the absence of social forces capable of developing a hegemony of such a nature as to stimulate a national development of agriculture, industry and trade in the interest of farmers, workers and the people, a crisis with no apparent solution is developing which pushes Tunisia into an impasse with unforeseeable consequences.