San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
World watches warily as leader stokes turmoil
TUNIS, Tunisia — Days of political turmoil in Tunisia over a crippled economy and surging coronavirus infections have unnerved allies in Europe and the United States, while garnering the support of key Mideast partners watching to see if Islamists and Tunisia’s fragile democracy will survive.
European countries — most notably nearby Italy — worry about a flood of migrants should Tunisia slide further into chaos.
Autocratic leaders from Egypt to Saudi Arabia hope last week’s power grab by Tunisian President Kais Saied spells doom for the region’s Islamists. But they also fear a reignited Arab Spring, like the regionwide uprisings kindled by
Tunisia a decade ago.
And around the world, prodemocracy campaigners wonder if a country they held up as a beacon is losing its promise of democratic rule, as other nations roiled by Arab Spring protests have.
“The ball is now in the people’s court,” said Egyptian activist elGhazaly Harb in a Facebook post. “They are able to correct the path without abandoning the peaceful democratic model that we all hope they can see to the end.”
Without warning last Sunday, Saied froze the nation’s parliament, fired top ministers and took over executive powers and supervision of public prosecution, saying he had to save the country, which is suffering from its worst outbreak of the virus to date and a failing economy. While many Tunisians welcomed his move, critics called it a coup. Media and human rights groups expressed alarm at the closure of the AlJazeera news bureau in Tunis.
In recent days, Saied has moved against allegedly corrupt lawmakers and tycoons and strengthened military oversight of the nation’s response to the coronavirus. He and his aides held a flurry of meetings with foreign allies, promising that his power grab is temporary. But his next steps are unclear.
Progovernment voices in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are celebrating the moves as a victory over political Islam, which they see as a threat to their governing systems — notably in Gulf states.
Egypt is watching carefully; It was the first to follow Tunisia in an outburst of mass protests in 2011. In the aftermath, the highly organized Muslim Brotherhood rose to power, but was ousted in 2013 amid a militarybacked popular uprising led by Abdel Fattah elSissi, who was supported by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.