Tunisians vote for new parliament at tough economic moment

Tunisians vote for new parliament at tough economic moment
Tunisians vote for new parliament at tough economic moment

Tunisians began voting on Sunday for a parliamentthat must address chronic economic problems at a moment when political newcomersare mounting a challenge to the established parties.

Voters queued outside polling stations in the capitalTunis, only eight years after rising up to throw off autocratic rule andintroduce democracy in a revolution that inspired the "Arab Spring".

But the failure of repeated coalition governmentsthat grouped the old secular elite and the long-banned moderate IslamistEnnahda party to address a weak economy and declining public services hasdisillusioned many voters.

"After the revolution, we were all optimisticand our hopes were high. But hope has been greatly diminished now as a resultof the disastrous performance of the rulers and the former parliament,"said Basma Zoghbi, a worker for Tunis municipality.

Unemployment, 15% nationally and 30% in some cities,is higher than it was under the former autocrat, Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, whodied last month in exile in Saudi Arabia.

Inflation hit a record 7.8% last year and is stillhigh at 6.8%. Frequent public sector strikes disrupt services. Financialinequality meanwhile divides Tunisians and the poverty of many areas has becomean important political theme.

Any government that emerges from Sunday's electionwill face the competing demands of improving services and the economy whilefurther reining in Tunisia's high public debt, a message pushed byinternational lenders.

Whilethe president directly controls foreign and defence policy, the largest partyin parliament nominates the prime minister, who forms a government that shapesmost domestic policy.

Related Stories

No stories found.
logo
Ajel
english.ajel.sa