Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali (in Arabic, زين العابدين بن علي; September 3, 1936, Sousse - September 19, 2019, Jeddah) was a Tunisian politician, soldier and dictator, president of his country for more than twenty-three years. After having served as prime minister and finishing his military career, he came to power on November 7, 1987 when he deposed the previous president, Habib Bourguiba, another Tunisian leader, through an institutional coup. Between 1987 and 1989, he dismantled the Desturiano Socialist Party regime imposed by Bourguiba in 1957 and replaced it with his own corporatist and neoliberal one, creating his party, the Agrupación Constitucional Democrática, in 1988. Over the next two decades, Ben Ali was re-elected with percentages that exceeded 90% of the votes, in elections considered fraudulent by the international community.
During his long presidency, especially in the last years of his dictatorship, multiple human rights violations were committed, frequently silenced by the international press in part due to the close relationship between the Ben Ali regime and Western powers, such as France and the United States. Since 2013, complaints have been issued for more than 62,000 incidents related to torture and rape committed during the Ben Ali dictatorship. On the other hand, on the socioeconomic level, his government was characterized by an increase in poverty, unemployment, corruption and backwardness. In this context, and within the framework of the economic crisis that has affected the country since the Great Recession of 2008, Ben Ali was forced to resign for a sudden popular rebellion on January 14, 2011. His overthrow laid the foundations for different revolutions to break out in neighboring countries, most of them in a similar situation, starting the Arab Spring. However, for the present time, Tunisia is apparently the only country that has managed to consolidate a democracy after the overthrow of Ben Ali.
After his expulsion of power, Ben Ali and his family were exiled in Saudi Arabia, where he resided until his death, despite having been convicted in absence by a Tunisian court for theft and illegal possession of large sums of money and Jewels. In November 2016, through his lawyer's office, Mounir Ben Salha, Ben Ali issued a statement recognizing the "mistakes, abuses and rapes" during his government, producing said statement in the midst of the judgments perpetuated by the Tunisine government to clarify what happened during your regime.
Biography
first years
Ben Ali was born in Susa on September 3, 1936, when his country was still a French protectorate. Ben Ali studied electronic engineering, and then devoted his efforts to a military career, joining the Tunisian army in 1958, newly founded after the country gained independence from France in 1956, and became a republic in 1957.
Military career
The young Ben Ali trained at the French military academy of Saint-Cyr and, later, at the Senior Intelligence School at Fort Holabird in the United States, already as a Tunisian military officer. During the regime of the dictator Habib Burgiba, Ben Ali joined the General Security Directorate in 1964, dedicating himself to police and counterintelligence functions, and organizing the "Military Security Directorate" that he would direct for ten years, until in 1974 he was sent as a military attache to Morocco and then to Spain. During the conflicts of January 1978 between the Bourguiba government and the unions, Ben Ali led the government's military and police actions in the repression, earning the trust of the dictator, who promoted him to higher positions. In fact, Ben Ali was appointed as Minister of Public Security until April 1980, when he was sent as ambassador to Poland. He was there for four years
Back in Tunisia in 1984 to suppress new demonstrations against the regime, Ben Ali is reappointed Minister of Public Security in 1985. Finally, he was appointed Prime Minister under Habib Bourguiba on Wednesday, October 7, 1987, alleging that Ben Ali he was emerging as Bourguiba's successor due to the dictator's advanced age and illness, who had already been in power for exactly thirty years that year.
Presidency
Coup of 1987
Only a month after Ben Ali became prime minister, on November 7, 1987, the doctors treating Bourguiba declared him incapable of holding the presidency, so in a bloodless coup, Ben Ali took it upon himself to depose him and took office. From then until his overthrow, the day he came to power was celebrated as 'New Age Day'. Names used to refer to the coup Ben Ali are "The Medical Coup" and the 'Tunisian Revolution', the latter being Ben Ali's favourite. Despite being considered a coup, the transition of powers was peaceful and took place in accordance with the Tunisian constitution. At that time, the country was facing 10% inflation, a 46% external debt accounting and a 21% drop in GDP.
In 1999, Fulvio Martini, former head of the Italian secret service, testified before a parliamentary committee that "Between 1985 and 1987 a kind of coup was organized in Tunisia, to weigh down Ben Ali as Head of State to replace Bourguiba, who wanted to flee". Although Bourguiba was initially a symbol of anti-colonial resistance, he considered himself unable to lead the country any longer, and his reaction to fighting the region's growing Islamic fundamentalism was considered "too forceful." 3. 4; by Martini. Bourguiba's threat to execute suspected Islamist insurgents could have received a highly negative response from neighboring countries. Acting in accordance with the directives of Bettino Craxi, Prime Minister of Italy, and Foreign Minister Giulio Andreotti, Martini claimed to have negotiated with Bourguiba for the peaceful transition of powers to Ben Ali.
After that, Martini would deny that the Italian secret service had an operational role in Ben Ali's rise to power, but he did organize a political movement to financially assist the new government so that it would not have to directly confront the fundamentalists and a full-scale Islamist insurgency breaks out, as happened in Algeria in 1992.
Constitutional changes and re-elections
Upon coming to power, Ben Ali initially promised democratic reforms. One of his first acts upon taking office was to loosen press restrictions, and Tunisian newspapers published opposition statements for the first time in years. In 1988 he changed the name of the Neo-Destour Party to the Democratic Constitutional Rally (RCD). and approved constitutional amendments that limited the mandate of the Presidents to five years with the possibility of a single re-election.
Despite the initial atmosphere, however, the 1989 Tunisian presidential election was not much different from previous ones. The ruling party won all the seats in the legislature, with Ben Ali appearing as the sole candidate. Despite the fact that opposition political parties had been legal since 1981, candidates required a minimum of thirty major political figures to approve them. Given the RCD's utter dominance on the political scene, the opposition found that their nomination papers could not be signed. The years following Ben Ali's election saw the return of the same Bourguiba-era restrictions. The press had long been expected to practice self-censorship, but this time it became official censorship. Amendments to the Press Law allowed the Home Office to review articles in all newspapers and magazines prior to publication.
In 1992, the president's older brother, Habib Ben Ali, was tried In Absentia in France for laundering the proceeds of drug trafficking, in a case known as the "Couscous Connection" 3. 4;. French news was blocked by the Tunisian government during the trial.
In the 1994 elections, the opposition parties achieved 2.25% and won 19 of the 163 seats in Parliament, eventually gaining entry into the chamber. However, Ben Ali was unopposed in the presidential elections because he was the only candidate with sufficient support. The turnout in the elections was 95%, and Ben Ali obtained 99.91% of the vote. By 1999, Ben Ali became the first President of Tunisia to have to face an opponent in the elections, after the repeal of the requirement of thirty political figures a few months ago. However, he won a third term (which was already unconstitutional, due to his self-imposed two-term limitation), with an implausible 99.45% of the vote. The opposition denounced massive fraud.
In 2002 a controversial constitutional referendum was held, which authorized the President to be re-elected in perpetuity, changing the age limit to seventy-five years, and established a two-chamber parliament, creating the Chamber of Advisors. These changes with the clear objective of keeping Ben Ali in office. Again facing the 2004 presidential election, Ben Ali won again with 94% of the vote. The Ben Ali regime in Tunisia was accused of massive human rights violations, including freedom of the press, highlighted by the treatment of journalist Taoufik Ben Brik, who was harassed and imprisoned for his criticism of Ben Ali. During the government By Ben Ali, Tunisia generally ranked near the bottom in most international rankings for human rights, democracy, and press freedom.
Economic policy
As president, Ben Ali instituted economic reforms that increased Tunisia's growth rate and foreign investment. During his long administration, Tunisia's GDP per capita increased from $1,201 in 1986 to $3,786 in 2008. Although growth slowed in 2002 due to drought and a drop in tourism, it began to grow by 5% around 2003. A report published in July 2010 by the Boston Consulting Group listed Tunisia as one of the "lions" Africa, giving eight of these countries 70% of the continent's GDP. Steady increases in GDP growth continued through positive trade relations with the European Union, a revitalized tourism industry, and sustained agricultural production. However, expectations were lowered by increasing privatization, foreign investment and trade deficit, not to mention government corruption and general inefficiency of the authorities.
Despite all this, the Global Competitiveness Report ranked Tunisia first in Africa and thirty-second worldwide out of 139 countries surveyed between 2010 and 2011. It slipped to forty in 2011 due to the political crisis, and was not surveyed in 2013. External prosperity aside, Tunisia experienced high youth unemployment for most of the Ben Ali dictatorship, and small and medium-sized businesses declined, impoverishing mainly the poor. rural population. Both this and the blockade of freedom of expression were triggers for popular discontent that would cause the end of the regime in 2011.
According to a 2014 World Bank report, many of the regulations adopted by the government were designed to favor a circle of businessmen close to power. After the fall of the regime, a commission of inquiry was created that drew up a list of 114 people, including Ben Ali, his relatives and his sons-in-law, who had benefited from this institutionalized corruption. The seized assets included some 550 properties, 48 ships and yachts, 40 stock and bond portfolios, 367 bank accounts and some 400 companies. Commission experts estimate the value of the package at $13 billion, or more than a quarter of Tunisia's GDP in 2011.
Foreign Relations
During the long dictatorship of Ben Ali, Tunisia maintained a moderate foreign policy that promoted the peaceful resolution of conflicts. Tunisia focused on contributing to the establishment of definitive peace in the Middle East and Africa in general, hosting the first dialogue between the United States and the Palestinian National Authority, especially supporting the Palestinian cause. As host of the Palestine Liberation Organization, between 1982 and 1993, the Ben Ali government tried to moderate the views of that organization. Tunisia, since 1990, called for a "concerted" international effort; to end terrorism. It was also a key partner of the United States in combating Islamic terrorism through the Trans-Saharan Counter-Terrorism Initiative.
Ben Ali retained most of his predecessor's pro-Western policies, even as he improved his ties with the Arab-Muslim world. He took various initiatives to promote dialogue, solidarity, and cooperation among nations. Ben Ali initiated the creation of the United Nations World Solidarity Fund to eradicate poverty and promote social development based on the successful experience of the Tunisian Solidarity Fund. He also played an important role when the United Nations proclaimed the year 2010 as "the Year of Youth".
The Ben Ali regime also encouraged the organization of the Arab Maghreb Union, which included Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania and Libya. The latter at that time was the Great Socialist Popular Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, under the leadership of Muammar Gaddafi, who would also be overthrown in 2011 within the framework of the Arab Spring. Ben Ali normalized relations with the Gaddafi dictatorship, very tense during the previous administration, upon coming to power.
Due to the reluctance of Ben Ali and his government to step down from power and establish a true democracy in Tunisia, together with their tolerance of neighboring dictatorships and in the rest of Africa, there was a great repercussion of this in their international relations. His government was considered authoritarian and undemocratic by independent international human rights groups, such as Amnesty International, Freedom House, and Protection International. The Tunisian authorities were criticized for failing to respect international standards of political rights and interfering in the local work of humanist organizations within the country. The 2010 The Economist Democracy Index rated Tunisia as an "authoritarian regime" ranked 144th out of 167 countries surveyed. Previously, in 2008, it had ranked 143rd out of 173. Since 2012, Tunisia has held the 57th position, becoming considered a "flawed democracy".
Overthrow
Ben Ali was last re-elected, for a fifth term, on October 25, 2009, with 89.62% of the vote. The African Union sent a group of observers to cover the elections. The delegation, led by Benjamin Bounkoulou, described the elections as "free and fair." However, a spokesman for the United States Department of State indicated that the Tunisian government had not authorized international observers to cover the elections, although it clarified that the United States was still committed to relations with the Ben Ali regime. During the elections, an opposition candidate was mistreated.
The fifth and last term of Ben Ali was characterized by an increase in unemployment, close to 15%, strong corruption as in the previous ones, and an unusual worsening of the economic situation. On Friday, December 17, 2010, Mohamed Bouazizi, 26, burned himself to death in the tourist town of Sidi Bouzid to denounce administrative abuses, after the police confiscated the fruits and vegetables he sold on the street, on the grounds that he did not have a permit for that activity. From that day on, the social revolts began, led by young people who shouted anti-government slogans, threw Molotov cocktails and stoned the police. The places that received the most damage from demonstrators during the protests were bank branches, the headquarters of official organizations, and police stations.
Initially, on December 28, Ben Ali criticized the protests against him, claiming they were Islamic extremists and blaming Western media for passing defamatory and false information and sparking civil disobedience. Their allegations were not heard and the protests continued. By Wednesday, January 12, with Ben Ali still in power, the authorities had acknowledged twenty-one deaths and hundreds of arrests. However, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) he assured that he had identified sixty-six dead as a result of the riots. The police harshly repressed the demonstrations, which only inflamed and intensified the protests.
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Between 10 and 13 January, Ben Ali promised several times that he would leave at the end of his last term in 2014, and that he would allow the opposition to participate freely in the elections, without modifying the constitution but faithfully respecting it. The protesters, however, did not listen to him and the violence increased notably between the 12th and 14th. That same day, in response to these demonstrations, Ben Ali declared a state of emergency, ensuring the advancement of the elections to the next six months if the riots stopped. This did not happen, since now the demonstrators demanded the immediate resignation of Ben Ali, the call for free elections, and the reform of the constitution.
Ben Ali by then had already lost the confidence of key sectors of his cabinet and the armed forces, so on January 14, at 4:00 p.m., he resigned from the presidency and left as chief of interim status to its Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi, fleeing the country for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with his family that same day. The presidential plane initially headed for France, but the French government refused to receive the deposed dictator. Other relatives and associates of the Ben Ali family tried to flee Tunisia through the Tunis-Carthage International Airport, but were detained by the authorities. In 2022, recordings of Ben Ali's phone calls, made from the plane in the who fled from Tunisia, to his subordinates.
Ghannouchi's interim government declared, two hours after Ben Ali's resignation, that the president had taken "a temporary break due to health problems" and that the prime minister would assume presidential duties. However, this arrangement was short-lived, as in the early hours of January 15, the Tunisian Constitutional Court ruled that Ben Ali's retirement was permanent, and that the presidency was, in fact, vacant, declaring the arrangement unconstitutional. with Ghannouchi. That same day the president of the Parliament, Fouad Mebazaa, was appointed interim Constitutional President of the Republic.
Exile and sentences
After his ouster, Ben Ali fled with his family to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where they remained until his death in 2019. On January 26, 2011, the Tunisian interim government issued an international arrest warrant for Ben Ali to accuse him of illicit enrichment. Several videos showed that the president hid money and jewelry in the government house. The money was later distributed to the people by the new government.The Swiss government announced the freezing of the accounts of Ben Ali and his family, which contained millions of dollars. Interpol issued an arrest warrant for Ben Ali and his wife Leila on January 28.
After their flight from Tunisia, Ben Ali and his wife were tried in absentia for their alleged involvement in some of the country's largest companies during their twenty-three and a half years of rule, being sentenced to thirty-five years in prison on June 20, 2011. The verdict also included a $91 million fine against Ben Ali. This verdict was taken as a farce by some Tunisians dissatisfied with the process, and as a joke by Ben Ali's lawyer. The sentence took immediate effect, but Ben Ali and his wife took refuge in Saudi Arabia, and the Saudi government refused to respond to extradition requests from the Tunisian government.
Death
In September 2019, Ben Ali's lawyer reported his death, which would have occurred on September 19 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Family
Ben Ali was married to Na'ima el-Kafy between 1964 and 1988, when he divorced to marry Leila Trabelsi, doing so in 1992. Both he and his wife are accused of serious corruption offences, which it was an important incentive for the revolution that ousted him from power in 2011. Leila and her family of ten siblings have been perceived as corrupt by the Tunisian population, accused of illegally appropriating public funds through their influence, and then using said funds in private business. The book The Regent of Carthage (The Regent of Carthage) describes cases of corruption carried out by her and her immediate family members, taking advantage of their power and influence in politics to hoard state funds for personal purposes, buying with these various companies (from telephone services to fishing industries) and getting rich through these companies, accused of financing themselves with money from the national budget. According to Le Monde Diplomatique, Leila Ben Ali symbolizes the "enormous greed" of the presidential family for Trabelsi's insistence on summoning his brothers and cousins to participate in all kinds of businesses, evading Tunisian laws and relying on the influence of Leila Trabelsi. A leaked US cable by WikiLeaks describes how US Ambassador Robert F. Godec reported to his government that he had often heard the fierce criticism of Leila Ben Ali's lack of formal education, her low social status, and her high level of greed and waste.
During protests between December 2010 and January 2011 in Tunisia, protesters attacked property they believed belonged to Leila Ben Ali's family. The daily Le Monde has published revelations that Leila Trabelsi withdrew 1,500 kilograms of gold bullion from the Tunisian central bank (almost 20% of the national reserves) shortly before fleeing the country, although the Tunisian authorities denied this.