Tunisian opponent: we need to unite protests to overthrow government

Hamma Hammami, Secretary-General of The Workers’ Party, said that the recent protests in the country “need a new political vision and a goal that unites them within one struggle, which is the overthrow of the government and the coalition it represents.”

This came on the sidelines of a press conference that The Workers’ Party held on Thursday in Tunis on developments in the political situation in the country and to present the outcomes of its fifth national conference, held last December.

Hammami is also a spokesman for the Popular Front; a coalition of several leftist and nationalist opposition parties that has 15 seats out of 217 in parliament.

Hammami called on “all the political, trade union, civil, youth and women’s forces that oppose the government’s policies to agree on a unified programme aimed at saving the country.”

He added that “the upcoming elections (presidential and legislative, scheduled in 2019) will be a political battle of great importance.

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We should prepare for it and unite with the forces that oppose the government.”Hammami pointed out that “there is a need for a new impetus for revolution, so as not to fail and not to be thwarted.”  He considered that “people on the street and protests are indicative of this.”

In recent times, several cities have witnessed night-time movements and protests that denounced and condemned the suicide of a photojournalist late last December due to the deterioration of his social conditions.

Labour sectors, including secondary and higher education, are also witnessing protests that demand higher wages and better working conditions. Tunisia has seen protests in different sectors throughout the year, but their pace is more intense in the winter.

Many people interpret this about the adoption of the new year’s budget and the return of the atmosphere of the 17 December 2010 revolution.

The economy has been in a severe recession since the 2011 revolution. Inflation stabilised at 7.4 per cent for the third consecutive month, and economic growth was 2.6 per cent in the first nine months of the year.

On 14 January, Tunisians celebrate the seventh anniversary of the revolution which saw the fall of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s regime.