Tunisian Presidential Elections 2009

14/10/2009

Welcome to this special section on Magharebia.com, devoted to presenting articles and reader feedback on the October 25th, 2009 presidential elections in Tunisia. This space will provide in-depth reporting and analytical coverage of the elections, short biographies of the four candidates, and comments from now through the close of the polls on Election Day.

Ahmed Brahim

Secretary-General of the Ettajdid Movement Born on June 14th, 1946, Brahim is a professor of comparative linguistics at University of Tunis. He was forced to go into early retirement several years ago for political reasons. In the mid-1960s, he joined the Tunisian Communist Party, where he was elected to the central committee in 1981 and the political bureau in 1987. In 1993, he and other progressive activists belonging to various leftist currents founded the Ettajdid Movement. During the movement's founding congress in 2001, Brahim played a prominent role in the decision to adopt an opposition role, and was elected assistant secretary-general. In 2007, Brahim played a key role in the movement's second congress, which saw Ettajdid Movement leaders and independent progressive democratic figures close ranks. During that congress, he was elected secretary-general. Brahim pledges to ensure full transparency in economic dealings, bring about tax reform for the benefit of workers and middle-income people, prioritise dealing with unemployment, reform education, and reinstate the values of freedom, solidarity and respect for others nation-wide.

Ahmed Innoubli

Secretary-General of the Unionist Democratic Union (UDU) Born October 21st, 1958, Innoubli is a lawyer. He joined the UDU in 1992 and became a member of the political bureau of the party in 1995. In 2004, he was elected UDU secretary-general, a post to which he was re-elected in 2006. In the presidential election of October 2004, Innoubli called on members of his party and citizens in general to vote for President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. In October 2008, the party announced that it was nominating Innoubli for the post of president. Innoubli has served as a UDU parliamentarian since 2004. He is also a member of the General Secretariat of the Arab Parties Congress, the General Secretariat of the Democratic Revolutionary Arab Dialogue Forum, and the Maghreb Parties Forum. Innoubli pledges to develop Tunisia's media, especially the state media, and expand political plurality and the right to voice dissenting opinions. He also pledges to boost the gains made by the national reform movement in order to support inter-generational communication. According to Innoubli, this is to be achieved through defending Tunisia's Arab and Islamic identity in the face of Westernisation, as well as preserving gains in terms of compulsory and free-of-charge education. He also pledges to enhance progressive advances and legislation for women, defend the private sector, and ensure the right to work, health care and education as the basis for human dignity.

Mohamed Bouchiha

Secretary-General of the Popular Unity Party (PUP) Mohamed Bouchiha was born on June 21st, 1948 in Tunis. He obtained a bachelor's degree in history and geography, and a supplemental certificate in sociology. His past jobs have included working as a journalist for government newspaper La Presse, as a press attaché in the Tunisian Bureau of Family Planning, as a regional representative of the Tunisian Bureau of Family Planning and Human Development, as a manager of the National Company for Inter-city Transport, as general manager of the Cross-Desert Pipeline Transport Company (TRABSA) and as general manager of the Tunisian Industrial Cement Company. Since January 2000, Bouchiha has served as the PUP secretary-general. Bouchiha attaches great importance to parliamentary work based on the political platform of his party, which proposes a parliamentary system for Tunisia instead of the presidential system. Before being elected to Parliament in 1999, Bouchiha headed the PUP list in every legislative election organised in Tunisia since 1981. Bouchiha bills himself as a supporter of reform and opponent of radicalism. He has made repeated calls for enhancing political and constitutional reforms to boost pluralism. He also supports the rule of law and is active on issues related to the public sector and employment. He backs protecting the purchasing power of the average citizen, supporting the agricultural sector, preserving the environment, developing modern technologies, implementing educational reform, expanding public freedoms and pushing forward with Maghreb integration and Arab solidarity.

Zine-El-Abidine Ben-Ali

President of the Tunisian Republic Member, Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) Ben Ali is the second person to hold the post of president of the Tunisian Republic since the country obtained its independence from France in 1956. Ben Ali was born on September 3rd, 1936. Prior to becoming president, he obtained a diploma from Saint-Cyr Military Academy and other credentials from institutions including the Châlons-sur-Marne Artillery School in France. He also obtained certifications from institutions in the United States in fields including intelligence and security. He holds a diploma in electronic engineering. On November 7th, 1987, then-president Habib Bourguiba was declared by physicians to be medically unfit to fulfil the responsibilities of his office. Under Article 57 of the Constitution, then-prime minister Ben Ali became the president of Tunisia. He has held that post to the present day. He is a member of the RCD. As president, Ben Ali pledges to boost local democracy, expand partnerships between the state and civil society, raise the average citizen's income, increase the coverage of social programs to 98% of the population, create 425,000 jobs in the next five years and enhance good governance.