Is Tunisia about to be the next Iran?

[Voltage]

The Western press is trying to spin it about Western values as usual, but the streets of Tunisia give a different picture...they are screaming for an Islamic state

la ilaaha ila laah, al khaliifah wadculaah

One of sister's professors was a visiting professor from Tunisia she became very close with and invited to her our house several times. Basically ever since French rule and post-independence, in fact Tunisia was let go with conditions of being a strict secular state where abortion could be legal, polygamy outlawed, and girls could not wear scarves in school. The people have always wanted to practice their religion which was denied to them by extreme secular leaders..now as usual, we are seeing what happened in Iran where the people who have been denied from practicing are wishing for religious rule in itself.

[Voltage]

Clerics leading the protests...watch how the people suddenly rise when he calls for the Khaliifah

[Cali_Gaab]

Lol@ islamic state

Where will we be going on holiday now

[Voltage]

I think the French are asking themselves since this was literally their tourist playground in the Arab world after Lebanon went into civil war in the early 80's. Ben Ali was within French territory when Sarkozy denied entrance fearing repercussion from whoever takes over in Tunis.

Probably the most fearful people in the world tonight are Husni Mubarak and his groomed son.

[FAH1223]

its also about hunger and shaaqo la'aan... they need to eat, work. I wrote this in the other topic.

The story of the Tunisian youth Mohamad Bou’Aziz who put himself in flames in desperate protest against unemployment after attaining a university degree, not finding appropriate work, then resorting to selling from a fruit cart, and having that fruit cart stolen from him by government authorities because it is part of the illegitimate market – reminds me of the boys I saw every day in Masr.

These are the guys who push street carts with fruits and veggies. The ones who, as soon as anyone hollers, pack up their stuff and drag their merchandise through the street, running as fast as their load will allow them to get away from the Egyptian police who will ticket them or jail them while confiscating their merchandise without mercy. It was explained to me that it’s illegal to sell merchandise without an actual store so this is happens on the daily. I saw dozens of of these guys running a stampede through the busy sha3bi areas of Alexandria around Maghreb time, after the police have finished their tea, ready to snatch these boys and their rizk in seconds. You see their fathers and mothers making way for these boys, sneaking them into their stores and moving their children out of the way so that someone else’s child can feed his siblings and his parents. You also see it with the taxi drivers you talk to and hear about, the ones who graduated from the top disciplines in their respective universities only to find their presence and their degree unwelcome – only to find themselves having to rent a taxi for a few hours daily from an elder, driving it around Alexandria for dollars a day. These guys are doctors, engineers, lawyers, you name it... they graduated it with it and are driving taxis.

What’s happening in Tunis isn’t isolated, it’s not temporary, and it’s definitely not going to go away. The fear of becoming another Somalia is going to subside when you get hungrier and hungrier... while the folks in power continue the same track as the previous decades.

[new-york24]

I dont know what to make of this.Lately i been noticing this khilafah fever spreading like wild fire.Never thought a middle eastern leader would vacate a seat that easy.

[fisabililah]

Assalamu acelykum,

I dont think Tunisia will turn Islamic at the moment, i think the Army will crush any Islamic uprising. Futhermore most tunisians dont even know about religion they have been abused by ben Ali for years, they just want to eat. Im guessing the Algerian and Egyptian leadership had a sleepless night, i think these populations might get a bit of hope.

For me the most significant thing that happened was when Zarkozy hung ben Ali to dry and didnt let him enter France(despite France supporting his tyranny for years0, who looked after him and welcomed him. Saudi Arabia, which has become the retirement home for all tyrants.

[new-york24]

For me the most significant thing that happened was when Zarkozy hung ben Ali to dry and didnt let him enter France

The love affair is over and ben ali is no longer useful to his master.T his awaits mubarak and the rest.

[Kanada]

Tunisia is in its own league when it comes to the destruction of islam. No other goverment in the muslim world has put so much energy into wiping away islamic principles from its people. You are clueless if you think t anything close to islamic revolution is taking place. This is only emotional empty talk by a minority.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2 ... amist_free

[James Dahl]

Tunisia has the highest standard of living in Africa, with a large and growing middle class. A capitalist democracy is more likely to occur than a theocracy, but I would imagine that Islam will make a big comeback.

[new-york24]

Everyone is worried about something,gaalada ayaga waxaa u daran "islamist".

The weakness of Tunisia's Islamist opposition also makes it difficult to forecast how other Middle Eastern regimes would react to similar protests. It is unthinkable, for example, that Mubarak would not choose to crack down more viciously on protesters given the very real possibility that, if overthrown, Egypt would become an Islamist state. Given the unique nature of Tunisian society, observers hoping that Ben Ali's fall will portend a similar fate for other Arab autocrats may be left waiting a lot longer than they might now think.

[Murax]

Time will tell but sometimes You have to be careful what You ask for. I know Tunisia had major issues that needed to be addressed but hopefully this vaccum can be filled very quickly, and the Country doesn't decent to anarchy. Its easy to get emotional and be estatic but I do not see anyone asking where the wax garads, civil leaders, business community etc. of Tunisia if they have a plan to make the Country a better place. Take Somalia late '80s, the Country was in horrible shape, there was a lot of unrest, poverty, unemployment, etc. and a Beleagured Gov that was not able to adequetely provide for its people. That being said, I'm sure the overwhelming majority of Somalis would take all that in a nanosecond over the chaos that ensued for the next 20 years after that and counting. The people that overthrew that Gov did not have any plans to improve the Country or at the very least keep the status quo. The absolute best of these rebels in Somalia had a very narrow and primitive agenda to create little tribal enclaves in the middle of deserts, while the others were fighting for various other dubious causes. Inshallah the people of Tunisia fall on better times and I hope they do not take our misery.



Lol @ the Khilafah talk. Lets be real, the people of Tunisia have not opened a Kitaab in 50 years, most of them have not even learned the very basics of the Religion (How to pray properly, etc.) Hopefully they can learn about their Religion a little bit, establish the prayer finally in Masaajidio, and then go from there.

[LobsterUnit]

a couple of folks shouting on the streets and you compare this to the Iranian revoultion?

[Garaad_LQ]

the reasons for the protest these past weeks was mainly the rise of food prices, corruption, and unemployment worsening .
But don't also forget that WikiLeaks exposed the corruption of Tunisia's President's family and the details noted in the cables was the trigger for this turmoil
The Trabelsi family , or "the family" the In-laws of the President control most of the economy

1. (S) According to Transparency International's annual
survey and Embassy contacts' observations, corruption in
Tunisia is getting worse. Whether it's cash, services, land,
property, or yes, even your yacht, President Ben Ali's family
is rumored to covet it and reportedly gets what it wants.
Beyond the stories of the First Family's shady dealings,
Tunisians report encountering low-level corruption as well in
interactions with the police, customs, and a variety of
government ministries. The economic impact is clear, with
Tunisian investors -- fearing the long-arm of "the Family" --
forgoing new investments, keeping domestic investment rates
low and unemployment high (Refs G, H). These persistent
rumors of corruption, coupled with rising inflation and
continued unemployment, have helped to fuel frustration with
the GOT and have contributed to recent protests in
southwestern Tunisia (Ref A). With those at the top believed
to be the worst offenders, and likely to remain in power,
there are no checks in the system. End Summary.

¶3. (S) President Ben Ali's extended family is often cited as
the nexus of Tunisian corruption. Often referred to as a
quasi-mafia, an oblique mention of "the Family" is enough to
indicate which family you mean. Seemingly half of the
Tunisian business community can claim a Ben Ali connection
through marriage, and many of these relations are reported to
have made the most of their lineage. Ben Ali's wife, Leila
Ben Ali, and her extended family -- the Trabelsis -- provoke
the greatest ire from Tunisians. Along with the numerous
allegations of Trabelsi corruption are often barbs about
their lack of education, low social status, and conspicuous
consumption. While some of the complaints about the Trabelsi
clan seem to emanate from a disdain for their nouveau riche
inclinations, Tunisians also argue that the Trabelsis strong
arm tactics and flagrant abuse of the system make them easy
to hate. Leila's brother Belhassen Trabelsi is the most
notorious family member and is rumored to have been involved
in a wide-range of corrupt schemes from the recent Banque de
Tunisie board shakeup (Ref B) to property expropriation and
extortion of bribes. Leaving the question of their
progenitor aside, Belhassen Trabelsi's holdings are extensive
and include an airline, several hotels, one of Tunisia's two
private radio stations, car assembly plants, Ford
distribution, a real estate development company, and the list
goes on. (See Ref K for a more extensive list of his
holdings.) Yet, Belhassen is only one of Leila's ten known
siblings, each with their own children. Among this large
extended family , Leila's brother Moncef and nephew Imed are
also particularly important economic actors.

http://wikileaks.ch/cable/2008/06/08TUNIS679.html

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

My mums friends were a couple of North africans from morocco, tunisia and algeria and she was shocked about how little of the religion they knew . Did you know the Hijab was illegal in tunisia and school-girls were beaten by their teachers if they wore it? They told us they only learnt about Islam after they'd arrived in britain. I swear secularism is almost like communism in it's irrational hate for anything religious.