The Comité pour le respect des libertés et des droits de l'homme en Tunisie (CRLDHT) expresses its full support for the Ligue tunisienne des droits de l'Homme (LTDH) and its president, Maître Bassem Trifi, in the face of the attempted intrusion at the meeting of its National Council. This intervention is no mere internal incident: it is a dangerous political maneuver aimed at undermining the credibility of one of the last independent institutions still embodying the memory and future of the fight for human rights in Tunisia.
The CRLDHT denounces this attempt at intimidation, which seeks to sow division within the League and hinder its autonomous action, at a time when the LTDH - alongside the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES) - has called for the holding of the "National Conference for Rights, Freedoms and the Democratic State", scheduled for the end of May.
This courageous project takes place in a dramatic context: the arrest of former judge Ahmed Souab, the iniquitous verdicts against numerous opponents, the instrumentalization of the judiciary and the closure of civic space. It's no longer just a question of denouncing - it's a question of resisting, coming together and building democratic alternatives to the current authoritarian drift.
The announced congress aims to unite all civil, political and social forces that reject the authoritarian order, to collectively develop a united and sustainable response, and to breathe new life into a democratic dynamic based on rights, freedoms, social justice and the rule of law.
Attempts at internal sabotage or instrumentalization must be understood for what they are: attacks against the will to federate resistance, against the return of democracy, against the very freedom to think and organize. These practices, which we thought were a thing of the past, are part of a strategy of division, fear and chaos perpetuated by groups with opaque agendas and close ties to power.
The CRLDHT affirms:
- its solidarity with the LTDH, its president and its legitimately elected board;
- its support for the joint call by the LTDH and the FTDES to hold an inclusive national conference, open to all democratic components, all families of thought and all sincere defenders of rights and freedoms;
- its commitment to defend the independence of the human rights movement against all forms of interference, manipulation or division.
This is not just another congress, but a crucial moment to prevent the definitive collapse of our public space, our rights and our democracy.
Authoritarian practices are returning, but civil society is rising again. The right to have rights is non-negotiable.
Vive la Ligue tunisienne des droits de l'Homme.
Vive les luttes solidaires et démocratiques.
