Hundreds of lawyers demonstrated on Friday, October 16 in Tunis and went on general strike to protest against pressure on the judiciary, mainly exercised by police associations.
as reported from Tunis Lilia blaise
It’s tired, expressing a deep problem, according to lawyers meeting on Friday morning in front of Tunis’ courthouse. The attack on a colleague in August last year by a police officer at a police station caused a rift between the two professions, especially as the investigation has so far been ruined by procedural shortcomings, according to lawyers. They also condemned this Friday an increasingly tense connection between citizens and the police, a discomfort felt in the judicial work exposed to pressure from the security body.
Most lawyers say they have no direct problems with the police on the spot, but rather with their unions, whose representation and organization remain unclear. It is, therefore, an entire judicial system that is doing poorly, according to the lawyers, who are asking for a Republican police force and the independence of justice to preserve the rule of law. This demonstration comes after a bill on the protection of the armed forces was presented to Parliament, which also triggers demonstrations by civil society condemning police impunity in the face of abuse and, in particular, police violence.
The bill has been withdrawn in the meantime, but lawyers and NGOs warn of a possible traceability against a police state, more oppressive than protective.
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