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Sonia Dahmani’s Trial Postponed in A Second Case: Decree 54 Targets Freedom of Expression Again

Tunis, June 9, 2025 – The Sixth Criminal Chamber of the Tunis Court of First Instance decided on Wednesday to postpone the hearing of the case against lawyer and journalist Sonia Dahmani until June 16. This is part of the investigation under Decree No. 54 on Combating Crimes Related to Information and Communication Systems.

The investigating judge at the Court of First Instance had previously decided to refer Sonia Dahmani to the court on bail. This was due to statements she made on a media program, which were deemed to constitute “false rumors” and “insulting others,” according to Article 24 of the same decree.

A series of prosecutions in a climate hostile to freedoms:

Sonia Dahmani was arrested in March 2024, amid an escalating crackdown on dissident voices for expressing critical views of the government’s policies. Since then, she has been subjected to several legal proceedings, most of which relate to politically motivated charges, most notably the use of information systems to spread “fake news” and “attributing false information to public officials.”

This trial comes within the context of ongoing harassment of Sonia Dahmani. In prison, she has been subjected to ill-treatment, denied her right to healthcare, and, at times, prevented from meeting her lawyer or contacting her family. This constitutes a clear violation of Tunisian law and international standards regarding the treatment of detainees.

The Freedom for Tunisia Observatory believes that Sonia Dahmani’s trial is part of a systematic process of criminalizing free expression in Tunisia, and that Decree No. 54 is being used as a legal tool to silence critics through vague charges that are not based on precise standards for protecting rights. The Observatory considers Dahmani’s continued detention and the deterioration of her conditions in prison to be a double violation of her right to freedom and physical integrity. It holds the judiciary responsible for any health or psychological harm she may suffer.

The Observatory calls for Dahmani’s immediate release, an end to the use of the judiciary to intimidate journalists and lawyers, and the repeal or revision of Decree No. 54 to ensure fundamental protection for freedom of expression and public debate in the country.

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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.