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Amnesty International Calls on Tunisia's President to Stop Imposing Arbitrary Travel Restrictions

Amnesty International Calls on Tunisia's President to Stop Imposing Arbitrary Travel Restrictions

Amnesty International (AI) issued a statement documenting the situations of at least 50 persons who have been barred from leaving Tunisia unlawfully in the previous month.

President Kai Saied used travel prohibitions often in the first month after assuming extraordinary powers, according to AI data. According to AI, the number of individuals held might be far higher, with judges, state officials, civil workers, businesspeople, and a legislator among those detained. None of the tourists received a written reason for their prohibition, nor did they receive any legal order to that effect. Furthermore, they were not told that the prohibitions were still in effect.

The prohibitions, according to Saied in a speech earlier this month, are part of a larger attempt to keep people suspected of corruption from fleeing the nation. However, according to AI, none of the 50 people were the subject of any complaints or investigations. This, according to AI, is a blatant takeover of the courts and an arbitrary disregard for the freedom of movement of the people.

The exclusive authority to issue travel restrictions in Tunisia is reserved for judicial authorities under Tunisian Law no. 75-40. The legislation mandates that the grounds for the ban be published as soon as possible, and that the prohibited individual be given the option to appeal the judgment.

AI asked the president to stop imposing arbitrary restrictions and to respect the right to freedom guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and People's Rights, both of which Tunisia is a signatory to.

Finally to reiterate, following the president's acquisition of extraordinary powers and the suspension of parliament, Tunisia has been in political instability for the last month.