Oct. 23, 2009
Tunisia balancing Islam against Islamists
Secular Tunisia lets Islamic values rise in apparent bid to placate opponents
Named after Tunisia's most famous mosque, the radio airs recitations from the Quran for half the day and discusses Islamic values and culture the rest of the time.
Funded by the son-in-law of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and broadcasting from a plush house next to the presidential palace, Zitouna says his station has become the single most popular private radio in Tunisia, with over 12 percent ratings - and clear government backing in a country where any form of public speech is tightly controlled.
"I think our success proves to the people how well the government treats Islam in Tunisia," beams Sheik Machfar, a cleric who graduated from the prestigious Zitouna religious university.
The radio's spectacular rise over the past two years illustrates the Tunisian regime's apparent knack for placating popular sentiment while keeping a tight grip on power.
Ben Ali, in place since a bloodless palace coup in 1987, seems assured of a landslide victory in Sunday's presidential and legislative elections. He is running against three officially approved candidates.
The president's Constitutional and Democratic Rally, or RCD, party - which dominates all state structures, unions and media - should also see an easy victory in its bid for parliament's 214 seats. A handful of small, left-of-center parties fielding candidates are expected to win about a quarter of the seats.
Besides the radio station, there are other apparent concessions to Islamic values, like alcohol-free zones in Saudi-funded housing projects spreading around the capital and an increased tolerance for female headscarves. Headscarves were banned by decree from public buildings in 1981. However, a court ruled in December 2006 that the ban was unconstitutional.
"Tunisian Islam is very secure, so it's fine," Machfar said.
Even Ben Ali's opponents acknowledge he has steered tiny Tunisia toward economic growth, a large measure of stability and comparatively good social welfare.
But when they are out of earshot of the near-omnipresent police, many Tunisians say the trade-off is increasingly hard to bear: little or no freedom of speech, few public liberties and next to no alternative political choices.
The Islamists have been enduring the brunt of this pressure over the past decade. Thousands are behind bars and their political parties are outlawed - even though authorities now allow much of what they had sought.
"The regime is very good at sensing the mood of the people and letting go of just enough to keep the calm," said Zied Daoulatli, a leader of the banned Hizb en-Nahda movement, who spent 14 years in jail for belonging to an unauthorized political party. "But look at how they do it," he said, pointing at three plainclothes police who had tailed him into a hotel lobby.
Even moderate Islamist parties are outlawed, but officials say it's fair because Islam is the state religion and no group can claim it for itself. And authorities contend that some other forms of freedom are gaining ground.
"Some cases of human rights violations can be noticed, but these cases don't constitute a systematic violation," Justice and Human Rights Minister Bechir Tekkari told reporters. He claimed that numerous Web sites were blocked because they publish either "terrorism, pornography or pedophilia." However, the AP saw that these include Youtube, Dailymotion, and the Reporters Without Borders media watchdog.
There are no more political prisoners or prisoners of opinion in Tunisia, Tekkari claimed, although some 3,000 Islamists are estimated to be behind bars. Most were arrested in a crackdown after a 2002 terror bombing on the tourist island of Djerba that killed 21 people, mostly German tourists.
The government's few outspoken opponents say the slow-paced reforms are above all a facade to soothe Western partners.
"They let go of some crumbs to keep the system rolling," said Ahmed Brahim, the only presidential candidate who voiced criticism during his campaign.
Tunisia is a strong U.S. and European ally. It managed a 3 percent GDP growth rate this year despite the global recession. The small country of 10 million deprived of any significant natural resources fuels its economy with millions of tourists pouring to its seaside resorts, and industries or services outsourcing from Europe. International benchmarks show it has greatly reduced poverty, achieved strong literacy rates and promoted the role of women in society like no other Arab country, although unemployment remains at 14 percent.
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Associated Press Writer Bouazza Ben Bouazza contributed to this report.
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