Tunisia: Inter-Parliamentary Union calls on president to stop ‘abusing’ former MPs

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has called on Tunisian President Kais Saied to stop “persecuting, prosecuting and abusing MPs,” Al-Quds Al-Arabi has reported.

“I have great concern about the fate of 120 MPs who participated in the online plenary session to discuss the decisions of President Kais Saied,” said IPU President Saber Chowdhury. “The Parliament affirmed that the plenary session and the discussions are compatible with MPs’ parliamentary duties, and they cannot, in any way, be judicially or criminally prosecuted due to these duties.”

According to the statement published by Chowdhury’s assistant, the Speaker of the Tunisian Parliament, Maher Madhioub, the IPU official also called on the Tunisian authorities to stop all prosecutions of the MPs who participated in the online plenary.

The IPU president expressed the union’s “deep concern” about the situation of all MPs in Tunisia “who suffer from restrictions and abuse, the lifting of their parliamentary immunity and being banned from the basic right to freedom of movement. This is especially important for those who are ill and have to seek treatment abroad.”

Chowdhury added his “regret” for the Tunisian authorities’ refusal to receive the delegation of the union’s Human Rights Committee before the election scheduled for December. “Such a visit could have provided an opportunity for comprehensive dialogue for a return of the MPs to their regular work in the Republic of Tunisia.”

The IPU had earlier called on the Tunisian authorities to clarify why there is an investigation into former Speaker Rashid Ghannouchi, as well as a freeze of his bank account and the imposition of a travel ban.

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