The fiercely secular dictatorship of Zine Al-Abidine Ben Ali trampled its citizens for 23 years before it was finally overthrown by those formerly trampled on. Despite steady GDP growth and slashing the poverty rate from 7.4% in 1990 to 3.8% in 2005, many Tunisians still suffered from high rates of unemployment and a staggering amount of censorship. The proverbial cards were stacked high against them: even their constitution stated that \u201cliberties of opinion, expression, the press, publication, assembly, and association are [\u2026] defined by the law.\u201d <\/p>\n
Yet the movement came directly from the people who suffered the most: the stakes were high, the future was uncertain, yet it was the Tunisians\u2019 firm resolve that led them to the recently held free elections. They moved quickly, independently, and relatively peacefully, all of which help to explain why their transitions and successes lack the media coverage that Tunisia\u2019s neighbors in Egypt and Libya have received. When things go well, no one cares.<\/p>\n
In fact, things have gone so well that as soon as an earthquake rocked Turkey, everyone forgot about the stunning sea change that continues to sweep through Tunisia in great numbers. Over 90% of registered voters\u2014men and women\u2014went to their local polling stations to participate in what many saw as a celebration. Mohammed Naceur Ben Abdennebi from Gabes, Tunisia, said the following: \u201cWhen I entered the voting booth, I realized the full extent of my new citizenship, because in previous years I never really tasted its worth. Thank God for this opportunity made available to me in my life. These are the first signs of the radiant future awaiting Tunisia.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rise of the Tunisian \u201cRenaissance\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Many others echoed Abdennebi\u2019s enthusiasm, and rightfully so. As the day wore on and polls began to close, ballots cast from around the country were sealed and delivered to the Sousse Electoral Observatory as precious cargo. Amid the \u201cmobile\u201d environs that greatly contributed to Tunisia\u2019s successful revolution, the votes were counted by hand, not by machine. While there were the inevitable claims of \u201cvote buying\u201d, international leaders like President Barack Obama and United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon declared the election to be remarkably free and fair, the result of which was the moderate Ennahda party\u2019s gain of 90 out of the 217 seats in its Constituent Assembly<\/a>. <\/p>\n Despite receiving over 41% of the vote, there have been several concerns raised by Ennahda critics in recent days, some of which resulted in more protests. Its critics worry of the resurgence of religious politics that could potentially dismantle the fledgling \u201cdemocracy,\u201d and many secular Tunisians fear Islam\u2019s integration into social and political spheres that could further stunt the nation\u2019s economic growth (unemployment rates have only risen after Ben Ali fled to Saudi Arabia). Yet the vocal criticism is not something about which to be wary, it is something to be praised: there is little more indication of a political system\u2019s strength than being able to actively engage in unbridled criticism of it. And worry not, the Ennahda party has made no effort to silence it.<\/p>\n While the criticism has been present, its size and spread has been few. Why? The Ennahda party is moderate and has firsthand experience of persecution. Throughout the Ben Ali regime the Ennahda party, or \u201cRenaissance\u201d party, was banned and many of its members were arrested, tortured, and imprisoned by the secular government. They have claimed, obviously, that they do not seek to repeat that. As spokesperson Samin Dilou stated in an interview, the Ennahda party \u201c[does] not want a theocracy. We want a democratic state that is characterized by the idea of liberty. The people are to decide for themselves how to live \u2026 we are not an Islamist party, we are an Islamic party.\u201d<\/p>\n The Party has cited Christian democracy in Germany and Italy as well as the Justice and Development party of Turkey in how it wishes to implement the mores of Islam. It pledges to have a multi-party system that rules via consensus, is committed to pluralism, democracy, and gender equality. These are long-term goals, and it is with these goals that a transitional party should concern itself.<\/p>\n As such, the unrealistic promises of thousands of jobs, free healthcare, and new factories did not result in the Popular Manifesto party\u2019s aspirations of assembly majority but rather in the anger of its members. As a consequence, many have taken to the very streets where the revolution began in order to exercise their right to protest:<\/p>\n![\"Tunisian](\"http:\/\/www.prosebeforehos.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/11\/blue-fingers-tunisian-voters.jpg\" "\\"blue-fingers-tunisian-voters\\"")
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