“Five Years after the Tunisian Revolution, Political Frustration Doesn’t Diminish Progress”

Author: Laryssa Chomiak

Publisher: Washington Post

Date Published: 14 January 2016

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Article Summary

Writing five years after the Tunisian Revolution occurred, Laryssa Chomiak (2016) argues that, even though many point to the political instability in Tunisia after the revolution as evidence of its failure, the Tunisian Revolution was a success because it opened the political climate in Tunisia. Chomiak’s primary argument is that the Tunisian Revolution succeeded in its goals by opening the political and social climate in Tunisia; Chomiak (2016) captures this argument succinctly when she states that “[p]ublic expressions of citizen demands and new political actors have transformed a previously tightly controlled political space and represent a radical rupture from country’s dictatorial past. […] It is this moment that Tunisians are celebrating and commemorating today” (para. 3). Chomiak frames her argument in terms of the quality of life in Tunisia. Chomiak (2016) points at that most observers mistakenly judge the Tunisian Revolution based on its successes in creating a democratic government or creating a peaceful environment for people and business (para. 5). When not focused on these positive changes in Tunisia, detractors paint the Tunisian Revolution as a failure which only established a weak government unable to address issues such as terrorism, government repression, lack of security, and unstable political parties (para. 6). She claims that, by focusing their evaluations of the Tunisian Revolution’s success on the development of liberal democracy or the country’s social and economic ills alone, those analyzing the revolution’s effects have created a line of thinking which emphasizes the need for economic and security reforms in order to sustain the growth of a democratic government in Tunisia (Chomiak, 2016, para. 7). This line of thinking has caused frustration among the Tunisian people, who have even started making calls for the old political order to return and are accepting of members of Ben Ali’s regime returning to public life (para. 7). While many focus on economics and stability in Tunisia, Chomiak (2016) argues that “[t]he most notable achievement of Tunisia’s Jan. 14, 2011 revolution — one that astonishingly seems to have been forgotten — is the space for political critique, assembly and speech that the revolution carved and has protected” (para. 10).  Such thinking obscures the true success of the Tunisian Revolution, the opening of Tunisia’s political and social climate to dissent and open discussion, including artistic pieces and museums criticizing the old regime and intense political debate. As Chomiak (2016) argues, the Tunisian Revolution was successful because it “has opened space for the outpouring of ideas, political ideologies, criticisms of policy and politicians, commentary and free speech” (para. 13).

Chomiak, in regards to the Tunisian Revolution, appears to value freedom of expression the most. Chomiak clearly places freedom of expression over economic growth and sociopolitical stability, even expressing the opinion that focus on those aspects over freedom of expression is undermining the Tunisian Revolution’s long-term success. Chomiak similarly values political struggles, and places more importance on the process of a country confronting its past politics and social structures than on the rapid development of democracy or stability.

Guiding Questions

Was the Tunisian Revolution successful?

What policies should the people of Tunisia now pursue?