Imams in Tunisia protest against arbitrary dismissal

Tunisia’s National Council of Mosques and Imams organised a protest in front of the Ministry of Religious Affairs in the capital Tunis yesterday to protest against what they called the “ministry’s arbitrary decisions to dismiss a number of imams”.

One of the dismissed imams, Ridha Jaouadi, from the city of Sfax, told Turkey’s Anadolu Agency that the ministry should change its arbitrary decisions which include the closure of several mosques without legal justification and the dismissal of a number of imams.

“The exclusion of moderate imams will feed terrorism and provide justifications for extremists,” he said.

According to Jaouadi more than 10,000 people who attend the mosque where he used to work have signed a petition demanding he stay in his position.

General Labour Union Secretary-General Mohamed Laasaad Abid told Anadolu that the ministry should change its decision and provide his organisation with a detailed report proving that these mosques actually encourage terrorism.

Another dismissed imam, Shihab Al-Din Tleis, said the minister did not fulfil his promises to improve the imams’ conditions, shut down all channels of communication with them and issued several arbitrary decisions against them.

Ministry official Salim Sheikh said the ministry will not change its decisions.

Sheikh said: “The former imam of Sfax mosque, Ridha Jaouadi, has committed several violations including the organisation of trade union meetings inside the mosque and calling to unify mosque sermons which is outside his mandate.”

“The ministry is not carrying out an organised campaign to isolate the imams as Jaouadi tries to promote; the ministry’s role is to maintain the law.”

According to the official, the ministry has only dismissed 20 of the 18,000 imams in the country over the past five months.

The Tunisian Ministry of Religious Affairs has recently isolated several imams including the former Minister of Religious Affairs Noureddine El-Khademi.