Tunisia at a political crossroads

Tunisia, the country that kickstarted the Arab Spring movement in 2011 and been its brightest hope ever since, stood at a crossroads yesterday following the assassination of a second opposition politician in less than six months.

Mohamed Brahmi, leader of a small leftist nationalist party and deputy in the Constituent Assembly, was shot dead outside his home in Tunis on Thursday.

There was a sense of deja-vu about the attack. Like Chokri Belaid, who was also killed outside his home in February, Brahmi was shot by gunmen travelling on motorbike.

The reaction to his death also followed the same pattern.

The victim’s family and the opposition immediately accused the ruling Islamist party Ennahda of having political responsibility. The party again emphatically rejected the allegations.

Interior Minister Lotfi Ben Jeddou blamed both attacks on radical elements. At a press conference yesterday he claimed the two men were killed with the same 9mm semi-automatic pistol and named a suspect.

But the rush to quickly identify a culprit failed to assuage the shock and anger at the silencing of another government critic.

Political violence is still rare in Tunisia, which prides itself on its tolerant tradition. Belaid’s killing was the first political assassination since 1961.

Brahmi, an observant Muslim, was not as virulent a critic of the ruling Islamists as the ardently secular Belaid.

But in recent days he had backed calls for the dissolution of the National Constituent Assembly, which is running over a year behind schedule on the writing of a constitution and organisation of new elections.

The shock at his death was compounded by the fact that he was killed on the 56th anniversary of the proclamation of the Republic.

In back-to-back interviews Ennahda’s leader Rachid Ghannouchi was at pains to convince Tunisians that the government had the most to lose from the attack. The party was already weakened by Belaid’s killing.

Ennahda clung onto power in the face of mass anti-government protests, but only after giving into demands that independents take charge of key ministries.

Tensions had bubbled up again in recent weeks, as the opposition seized on the military action against Muslim Brotherhood in nearby Egypt to press their demands for its Tunisian ally to fall on its sword.

The country has been praised as a relatively stable counter-example to Egypt. Brahmi’s murder has now placed the country on the precipice of chaos.

But if both the government and opposition show a more consensual approach, the  situation can still be saved. And it should be saved. The government and opposition should show maturity and work out a strategy so that the nation’s interests come before those of any group or party.