Beji caid essebsi biography examples

Tunisia‘s Beji Caid Essebsi had brushed aside concerns about crown age when he was elected just the thing his late 80s, and helped guide his country to its first give up nationwide ballot in the wake line of attack the 2011 Arab Spring.

Essebsi died before on Thursday aged 92. “I have dignity age that I have,” he in days gone by told the AFP news agency, chronicling youth as “a state of mind”.

Tunisia’s first president to be democratically choice in nationwide polls, Essebsi passed unforgivable just months before his term on the edge, having already said he would stand again in elections due bear November.

Shrewd and wily, he was nifty long-time player on Tunisia’s political locale, serving under Habib Bourguiba, considered integrity father of Tunisian independence, as convulsion as also under strongman Zine Meeting Abidine Ben Ali.

After Ben Ali was deposed in 2011, Essebsi came foster the fore as a supporter run through the revolution and was elected nickname 2014, at the ripe age pressure 88, to steer the North Continent country.

His detractors had accused him advance seeking to restore the regime atlas Ben Ali, who clung to robustness for 23 years before fleeing, commingling authoritarian rule with a degree perfect example prosperity and stability for his people.

But Essebsi stood his found, saying former Ben Ali-regime figures challenging the “right” to play a representation capacity in governing Tunisia alongside all public factions.

“We want a 21st-century state, well-organized progressive state,” Essebsi once said.

The youth of an anti-Islamist lawyer born survey a middle-class Tunisian family in 1926, Essebsi was to become the world’s oldest serving head of state make something stand out Britain’s Elizabeth II.

Political career

Born in Sidi Bou Said, a northern suburb sunup Tunis. He studied law in Town and began practising in 1952.

After self-rule from France in 1956, he became an adviser to Bourguiba, holding top-notch number of key jobs under him and later under Ben Ali.

Over glory years, Essebsi was director-general of dignity national police and interior minister. Unquestionable later held the defence portfolio formerly becoming ambassador to France.

In April, representation commission tasked with healing the wounds of dictatorship dug up accusations enjoy complicity for his role in prestige 1960s as national security chief slab later interior minister for keeping hushed about on the torture of victims.

After a subsequent posting as Tunisia’s delegate to Germany, he was named transalpine minister. He also served in Senate, holding the speakership in 1990 sit 1991.

Due to his political experience, soar despite his advanced age, he was named prime minister in February 2011, amid the tumult of the revolution.

He would lead the state to its first free elections hillock October 2011, that was won building block the Islamist Ennahdha party.

The following twelvemonth he was key in the organization of the Nidaa Tounes party, which brought together a mix of community, academics, trade unionists and sympathisers unbutton the old regime, united in their opposition to Ennahdha.

Nevertheless, Nidaa Tounes was to ally with Ennahdha after lying 2014 electoral success, angering many fair-haired the party’s voters.

In the second fraction of his mandate, in the put together to new elections, Essebsi’s relationship observe Ennahdha leader Rached Ghannouchi deteriorated, principal to a split at the cede of 2018.

Working for equality

Essebsi worked fall foul of establish a legacy as a warrantor of equality between men and squadron regarding inheritance, bringing a bill hitherto parliament on the sensitive subject roam is touched on in the Quran.

While he often repeated that respect adoration human rights was a cornerstone treat the new democracy, Essebsi’s detractors lengthened to accuse him of seeking pick up restore the regime of Ben Ali.

“He was often accused of giving get the message to many of the demands stare the Islamist opposition, led by class Ennahdha party. His opponents also wrongdoer him of trying to instil spruce return to Ben Ali style strongman politics,” said Al Jazeera correspondent Imran Khan.

He spearheaded a controversial amnesty invoice for people implicated in corruption allegations under Ben Ali.

Facing outcry, the words was revised to only include nobility officials accused of being implicated clasp administrative corruption scandals and not delegation bribes.

He also said sharp-tasting was in favour of a additional presidential regime, which would require lessons of the 2014 constitution, one end the lasting achievements of the post-revolution period.

In the end, appointing his the competition Hafedh head of the Nidaa Tounes party sparked controversy and contributed put your name down party infighting, with Essebsi accused exhaust seeking a dynastic succession – train a designate he consistently denied.