Tunisia’s trial of 40 opposition leaders sparks outrage
A court in Tunisia has started a big trial against 40 people, including top opposition leaders.
These include politicians, journalists, lawyers, and human rights activists.
They are accused of plotting against the state but activists say the charges are false and part of a government effort to silence critics.
Nine of the accused were not allowed to appear in court because the authorities said they were too dangerous to be released from prison. Their lawyers and protesters outside the courthouse demanded they be given the right to defend themselves in person.
Some have already spent more than two years in jail waiting for this trial, while others have fled the country.
Some of them could face the death penalty if found guilty of charges including plotting against state security, terrorism, and having secret links with foreign diplomats.
Critics say President Kais Saied is using the courts to get rid of his opponents.
Since taking full control of the government in 2021, Saied has been accused of rolling back Tunisia’s freedoms.
There are also accusations that his crackdown has destroyed the democracy Tunisia fought for during the Arab Spring.
Saied has however denied this, accusing those on trial of being “traitors and terrorists.”
His supporters say he is trying to fix the country, which has serious problems like high prices, unemployment, and corruption. They argue that the old political leaders are to blame for Tunisia’s struggles.
International human rights groups have condemned the trial. The International Commission of Jurists said the way the accused were treated before the trial was unfair and that this raises serious questions about whether the court is truly independent.
