Why a Tunisian prisoner was jailed for refusing to watch President Saied on TV
A prisoner in Tunisia has been sentenced to six months in jail after refusing to watch a television broadcast about the country’s President Kais Saied.
The man, who was already in prison for another case that was later dropped, had asked for the channel to be changed during a news segment showing the president’s activities.
His lawyer said he also shouted insults, blaming the president for ruining his life after he was deported from Italy.
The Tunisian League for Human Rights said the inmate’s protest was reported by another prisoner and led to an investigation.
He was first charged under laws that protect the dignity of the president, but prosecutors later changed the charge to violating public decency.
The human rights group condemned the ruling, saying it shows how far free expression has been restricted, even behind bars.
The man’s family only discovered he was facing another sentence when he was not released as expected after the original case was dismissed.
His lawyer, Adel Sghaier, said the man had lived in Italy without documents and was sent back under a migration deal between Tunisia and Italy.
Rights groups have raised alarm about shrinking freedoms under President Saied, who has ruled by decree since taking full control in 2021.
“This is a policy of gagging voices that even extends to prisoners in their cells,” the Tunisian League for Human Rights said in a statement.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
