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Tunisian Authorities Detain French Researcher on Orders From Military Judiciary

Tunisian authorities have arrested and detained Frenchman Victor Dupont, 26, on orders from the military judiciary while he was conducting sociological research on Tunisian youth.

French researcher Victor Dupont was arrested on Saturday, October 19, in the city of El Kram (northern suburb of Tunis), where 18 police officers stormed the small apartment he was renting. He was accompanied by several other people, including a French-Tunisian friend, who was temporarily detained before being released and then re-arrested and placed in custody in the women’s prison of Manouba.

Charge of “harming state security”

Victor Dupont is a doctoral student in political science who joined the Institute for Research and Studies on the Arab and Muslim World (IREMAM) – a joint research unit between the University of Aix-Marseille and the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS). His work focuses on history, sociology, geography, anthropology, law and political science in the Arab and Islamic worlds – and he was conducting a routine “sociological study” in Tunisia on unemployed graduates. His research is part of a scientific program funded by the European Research Council (ERC), and does not appear to be political or related to the opposition to the regime. He spent several weeks in Jendouba (northwest Tunisia) before returning to France, and then returning to Tunisia as part of his academic work. 

On October 19, Dupont was placed in custody by the National Guard, and on October 21, he was transferred to the military court on charges of “harming state security”. He is currently being held in Mornaguia prison due to a lack of space in the military prison. It is worth noting that this prison has been hosting more than 60 political prisoners since February 2023, most of whom are opponents of President Kais Saied. His parents arrived in Tunis on the evening of October 28, where several meetings were held with the support of Ambassador Anne Guéguen, who is following the developments in the case. 

The arrest of a non-dual French citizen is a warning to foreigners working in Tunisia, whether academics or journalists. The Tunisian Ministry of Justice had previously warned the international press, ahead of the presidential elections held on October 6, that they would be subject to the same penalties as Tunisians if they published “fake news”. NGOs, especially those receiving foreign funding, are also facing increasing restrictions, with several civil society activists concerned with migration issues imprisoned. 

Since the exceptional measures taken by President Kais Saied on July 25, 2021, Tunisia has been undergoing radical changes far from the West. Major European countries have not commented on his re-election last October, in which he won 90.7% of the vote with 72% abstention.

Link to researcher Victor Dupont

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Call to Action

Website petition: Freedom for prisoners of conscience and activists in Tunisia!

Tunisia is no longer the Arab exception that inspired the world in 2011 with a heroic revolution that overthrew the rule of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who ruled for nearly 23 years after seizing power on November 7, 1987, in a coup against Habib Bourguiba.

In a similar and perhaps more dangerous move, on the night of July 25, 2021, Tunisian President Kais Saied carried out a “constitutional coup” in accordance with his personal interpretation of Article 80 of the 2014 Revolutionary Constitution, announcing that he had taken a set of exceptional measures due to the “imminent danger” that threatens Tunisia without providing any details or reasons.

In accordance with these measures, Saied dismissed the government and the prime minister Hichem Mechichi who was present at the National Security Council that night at the Carthage Palace, and claimed that he had contacted the Speaker of Parliament Rached Ghannouchi (leader of the Ennahdha party) to consult with him in accordance with what is stipulated by the constitution, a claim which Ghannouchi denied since the call was general and did not include anything about exceptional measures or any consultation on the matter. The president suspended Parliament and later dissolved it in March 2022.

Not only did Saied seek to bypass his powers and the articles of the Constitution, which he swore to protect before the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, but he went on to dismiss and change the composition of the Supreme Judicial Council after redefining the judiciary it as a “function” rather than an independent authority. He further replaced members of the Supreme Electoral Commission in preparation for the referendum he held in order to vote on a constitution that he wrote himself after dismissing the proposals of the drafting committee he had himself appointed. Then legislative elections were held over two rounds, in which the participation rate did not exceed 8% of the total number of voters, with the Election Commission later announcing that it had reached 11%, which is the lowest participation rate in Tunisia and globally.

On February 11, President Saied’s regime launched a campaign of protests that has not stopped since, against political leaders, media figures, journalists, judges and senior officials and civil servants, for charges of “conspiring against the security of the state and committing an offensive act against the President of the Republic,” in addition to other charges that were referred to the military prosecution, leading one to wonder about the implication of the Tunisian army in the actions taken by Saied.

The arbitrary arrests were marred by several procedural violations amid criticism from prominent international organizations and observatories in the field of human rights. The standards of litigation and detention period and conditions were not respected. Prosecution and harassment sometimes extended to the detainees’ families, and no evidence, and in many cases, no charges against them were presented.

Moreover trade unions and political parties continue to be subjected to constant harassment and restrictions. Saied continues to target all “intermediary bodies” accusing them of “collaboration” or “treason”. Civil society associations have also been subjected to prosecution, arbitrary arrests and deprivation from representation, in a context of of increasing violence in society due to the authorities’ adoption of racist and discriminatory speeches and rhetoric inciting infighting and violating human dignity.

In light of the above, we, the undersigned, demand the following:

Call for the immediate release of all political detainees, immediately and unconditionally. We also urge the Tunisian authorities to recognize the national and the international human rights treaties they have ratified.
Call on the Tunisian authorities to stop dismantling the nascent democracy and put an end to unfair trials and prosecutions against political opponents of the regime and anyone who criticises it.
Call on all activists and observers to join the national movement for restoring democracy and ending authoritarian rule that has taken Tunisia back to despotism, injustice, and violations of rights and freedoms.