According to data from the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, the month of March 2025 was marked by a significant drop in protest activity. Whereas January saw 483 mobilizations, and February 432, March saw just 217. This slowdown was mainly due to the fact that the month of Ramadan coincided with the month of March, a period which, historically, is not conducive to collective mobilizations in Tunisia. However, from April onwards, the pace of protests picked up significantly, reaching almost 422 actions. This trend continued in May, with an even more marked intensification: 451 social movements were recorded across the country, bringing the total number of protests since the beginning of the year to 2008.
The forms and demands of these movements were as diverse as their contexts. The most striking event in April was undoubtedly the mobilization in the town of Mazzouna, triggered by the collapse of an elementary school wall that claimed the lives of three children and injured several others. The tragedy rekindled a long-standing feeling of marginalization in this region, which is perceived as being relegated to the periphery of the State's priorities. The anger aroused by this tragedy has fed a deep sense of injustice and revived memories of territorial inequalities.
Beyond this emblematic case, socio-economic and professional demands structured a large part of the protest dynamic during the month of April, with an intensification during the month of May. These mobilizations were largely fuelled by President Kaïs Saïed's recurring promises, often perceived as catalysts for discontent. His rhetoric, strongly imbued with populist rhetoric, tends to denounce administrative slowness as the main obstacle to his social justice project. This discrepancy between presidential declarations and the actual implementation capacity of ministries and administrations has placed public institutions at the heart of the conflict, as in the case of the protests led by contract teachers awaiting tenure.
The month of May was particularly busy, with a variety of forms of engagement, including a hunger strike in front of Parliament in Bardo by staff from the International Center for the Advancement of People with Disabilities. At the same time, the fragility of public services, particularly in the transport and health sectors, fuelled a series of protests in several regions, underlining a growing deterioration in living conditions.
One of the most important events of May was the protest surrounding the law to abolish the use of subcontracting. After the law was passed on May 21, hundreds of precarious workers demonstrated, denouncing the lack of clarity over its application and the delay in publishing the implementing decrees. Despite the government's declarations of its commitment to implementation, the lack of concrete information fuelled concern and mobilization.
On the environmental front, demands for access to drinking water and a healthy environment also took center stage. In Redeyef, residents demonstrated in front of the local delegation headquarters to demand water, the right to a healthy living environment and job opportunities. In Gabès, a large-scale mobilization took place on May 23, calling for environmental justice and energy sovereignty. These mobilizations, like so many others, were met with indifference or repression by the state, including the arrest of two young people and a minor following the Gabès movement.
Legal and political mobilizations were not to be outdone. The verdict handed down in April in the case of the plot against state security sparked a series of demonstrations denouncing the severity of the sentences and calling for the release of political prisoners. The arrest of former magistrate Ahmed Souab crystallized cross-party indignation, leading to an unprecedented convergence of political players in joint mobilizations.
In addition, rallies have been organized, such as the one held on May 4 at Sidi Abdelaziz Park in La Marsa, to demand the release of human rights defenders prosecuted for their work with migrants.
Internationally, the Palestinian cause also continued to mobilize the streets, confirming its central place in the national protest imagination.
What particularly distinguishes the mobilizations of April and, above all, those of May 2025, is the central role of the presidential discourse in triggering social tensions. In a skilful political strategy, Kaïs Saïed singled out the administration as an obstacle to his project of social transformation, while at the same time dissociating himself from it. This indictment had the effect of transforming public institutions into symbolic and concrete sites of confrontation, where the majority of demonstrations were concentrated.
