Government: Tunisia is a current republic, whose legal system is based on the French model as well as Islamic law. 3
Currently, the Tunisian Head of State is president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, working with 29 members in a council of ministers including a prime minister that manage all kinds of various departments, and 17 secretaries of state. 2
In 1881, hostility was established when a cluster of neighboring Algerians crossed over into Tunisia and ambushed some native tribesmen. They sought out Tunisia as "an ideal military campaign," when prevailing French powers began to move into North Africa after being driven out of Rome. France had high hopes of sustaining its authority within the surrounding nations, knowing all the while they had a backup of European power to oblige them. On the down side, the Tunisian government was unknowingly vulnerable in sealing their fate with what was to come of the French. Negotiations with Algeria after the recent ambush turned violent and France saw the perfect opportunity to intervene. Officials deemed it imperative to also cross the Tunisian border in order to establish some sort of control amidst the battling forces. Troops continued to keenly push their way further inland, occupying additional Tunisian cities until they came to Bardo where they met with the mayor of Tunis, Larbi Zarruk. The French proposed to Zarruk the Bardo Treaty, which insisted that their officials were needed throughout the entire republic to establish peace and order. The treaty also proposed that all outside relations with Tunisia be ruled under command of the French general. The small nation had almost no choice but to yield to France’s authoritative military powers. 1
At the turn of the century, several rail systems were erected that connected cities with the capital Tunis, to allow further extensions of business for cultivation and trade that French colonization had brought on after establishing a protectorate. With the increasing opportunity came more buildings for education, where young Tunisian students attempted to attend school along with other French civilians. Soon, however, the French officials greedily began to realize that “educating Tunisians simply endangered the privileged position the settlers had monopolized since the protectorate.” And so, enrollment of native Tunisians in the schools regretfully declined, and while very few still attended with European students, they were surely not given equal opportunity and forced into learning traditional trades and vocations rather than more modern skills like their European counterparts. 1
Islamic Christian and Western secular education systems were gradually overtaking Tunisia and overwhelming traditional African methods of education at this time of colonization. In early 20th century, quaranic schools, of a religious ideology, were available as an option aside from the European education, designed primarily for the colonizing forces in the nation. The main aspirations of the young, revolting Tunisians was their right to a better education and indeed it should be. 1910 marked the initial student uprising against the current curriculum, and ten years following, "the Destour party"—meaning constitution in Arabic— was established.4
The thought of young Tunisians having much power was nowhere in the minds of French officials, but their voices were surely heard in an outbreak at the Muslim cemetery of Jellaz in 1911. A survey by the municipal council was scheduled at the cemetery one day and then cancelled when a Tunisian council member suspected Muslims would take offense to the procedure. Still, a crowd of young Tunisians was staged at the cemetery that scheduled day, in protest. French soldiers were made aware of the scene and upon entering, began to shoot into the crowd. It quickly turned into a riot with dozens of Tunisians and Europeans alike, fatally injured or wounded. Relations with the French worsened after the outbreak and Tunisians began brewing a boycott against them, in hopes of expressing their concern for equal opportunity like their European counterparts. The boycott grew and eventually led all protesters to be arrested and expelled from the country. And that was the end of that boycott. 1
But is it over yet?
More and more organizations formed throughout the 20th century, all with a common thread and sovereign goal of uniting the Tunisian culture and disbanding the colonial power they were forced to obey. April 1938 was perhaps the largest radical struggle, when nearly 40 students were killed in willful protest, while hundreds more were arrested. All were in demonstration for their independence. What’s most inspiring is that the stir was brought about by the youth and it was these protests that awoke the rest of Tunisia to fight until they gained independence in 1956. 4 Tunisian independence led the country in becoming a very liberal Arab state, especially since present rule is based on a combination of Islamic law and French government. The Western influence has been a very important part of Tunisian history and continues to impact the citizen's and tourists behavior alike. However, the European base can also be viewed as a part of history that still holds power over Tunisians, left in a state of oppression.
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