Tunisia: the wounded of the revolution still in search of recognition

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By: Lilia Blaise Follow

The death this year of an injured in the Tunisian revolution due to poor treatment of his wounds has rekindled the debate. The wounded and martyrs of the revolution still do not have official recognition or a list that lists them. This highly political issue has been the subject of much controversy since the 2011 uprising.

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In El Fahs, a town in northern Tunisia, the revolted cries of the mother of Tarek Dziri, wounded in the revolution who died on January 18, echoed in the bereaved house. In a wheelchair since the revolution, Tarek had serious injuries that required daily treatment, but he couldn't afford it. One of his friends tells how he was neglected until his last days.

“  He didn't ask for anything, just an ambulance, as his injuries were getting worse. But no one came , he recalls. This infection is due to negligence on the part of everyone and also on the part of the government, which no longer sent him aid for his drugs for six months.  "

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Makram, Tarek's brother, still remembers how Tarek went out to protest in January 2011 and was shot twice. “  I remember during the revolution, 30 minutes before he went out into the street and was shot, my brother said to me, ' Makram, be careful, there are soldiers all around the house. “.  "

A controversial and political subject

The tragic case of Tarek, who died of septicemia, reveals the failings of the Tunisian state in monitoring the families of the wounded and martyrs of the revolution. Today, the subject is very controversial, because there is still no list of names published in the Official Journal and complaints and trials have been linked since 2011 around this question.

Taoufik Bouderbala, president of the human rights committee, has been working on the subject since 2012. He denounces mismanagement of the state. "  The carelessness of the state, the lack of will, they are all concerned with policies, tensions, being ministers,  " he enumerates.

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His committee finally published a list in October 2019, in which 129 people are considered martyrs and 634 injured, figures far removed from the first assessment established after the revolution where some had obtained compensation and others not.

The hope of families on the shoulders of President Kaïs Saïed

For Donia Ben Osman, lawyer for certain families, the final list is still a problem for politicians. “  There are people who think they should have been on this list, they are not on this list. So the list is not complete and they are, I think, afraid to enact it, because in enacting it there is a risk of a lot of bad feedback.  "

Today, as the 10th anniversary of the Tunisian revolution approaches, the hope of families rests on the President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed. He had promised since his presidential campaign to pay tribute to those who had made the revolution and to answer their demands.

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