As Tunisia’s Truth and Dignity Commission (TDC) prepares to hear the testimonies of thousands of citizens about their experiences under the country’s former dictatorship, women’s groups and organizations are making preparations of their own to make sure women’s voices are heard in the process. New networks of civil society groups—both in Tunis and in the interior—are forming, hoping to guide the work and approach of the TDC to ensure women’s experiences under dictatorship and during the revolution are included.
ICTJ’s Tunisia office continues to work with local women’s groups and civil society organizations working on women’s issues to strengthen the capacities of women to incorporate a gender perspective into the work of the TDC. The “Transitional Justice is Also for Women” network idea was launched last year to aid these groups and associations in understanding the purpose and functions of the TDC, to aid in the monitoring of TDC’s work, and to encourage collaboration within and between the various groups working on these issues. Assisting women’s groups with how best to communicate with victims and to encourage them to share their stories with the TDC is also of central importance to the work of the network.
Background
In 2011, Tunisia’s growing discontent with the government finally erupted in massive protests that swept the country—and ultimately the region—in what became known as the “Arab Spring” demonstrations.
Alongside others, women took to the streets in droves, calling for an end to authoritarian rule, rampant corruption, and daily violations of their basic dignity. Under the reign of former President Zeineddine Ben Ali, women were subjected to specific patterns of human rights violations, including sexual violence, torture, and social and economic marginalization. Many women were denied their rights to education or to work.
After the fall of the Ben Ali regime, the country seemed to embrace the concept of transitional justice as an instrumental element of transitional to a human rights-respecting society. Following a national consultation process, the Transitional Justice law calling for a truth commission and special chambers passed through the National Constituent Assembly.
Challenges to the Participation of Tunisian Women in the TDC
Although transitional justice mechanisms like the Truth and Dignity Commission have already been set in motion, including women’s voices in truth-telling has been particularly difficult. According to Salwa El-Gantri, ICTJ’s Program Associate in the Tunisia office, immediately after the revolution there were several organizations that were able to meet with women victims and record their testimonies; this allowed many cases to be documented.
However, the cultural stigma attached to sexual violence made it difficult to document the extent of women’s experiences, especially in some parts of the country.
| Randa Saidi, an activist from Sidi Bouzid who works with Amnesty International explains: “The main difficulty facing the organizations that deal with women victims regarding documentation is the dominance of an inherited Tunisian cultural heritage. This is especially present in some regions such as rural areas that did not accept the idea of having women testify about their personal experiences of violations, whether it was economic, social, or even rape, because families are conservative and fear shame.” |
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Bakhta El Cadhi, a member of the Tunisian Association for Democratic Women, agrees. According to El Cadhi, when groups are able to make contact with women victims, rather than discuss their own suffering, they often speak of what happened to their sons, husbands or brothers. “Women used to talk about rape incidents over the phone, but once we met with them in person, they refused to discuss this topic. And even when a woman was willing to speak, she was contacted by her tribe, family and even city representatives and pressured not to talk about the rape,” El Cadhi adds.
Supporting Women Victims in the TJ Process
In March, ICTJ held the second preparatory meeting of the network which was moderated by El-Gantri. After providing a brief summary of the discussions and agreements made during the network’s first meeting in November 2014, many of those present voiced their continued concerns about the uncertainty about the transitional justice process under the new political atmosphere in the country.
El-Gantri reiterated the importance of following through with Tunisia’s transitional justice efforts as an important element in the country’s progress to a right-based and democratic society, and key to maintaining the support of the country’s international partners She stressed the fact that working with the TDC does not mean signing off on all of the commission’s decisions.
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“Explaining the nature of the TDC, its role, the added value of women’s testimony for the whole process is not the same as supporting it blindly,” El-Gantri pointed out. “Civil society organizations must play an active role in monitoring the TDC’s work to ensure its success—this includes the possibility of criticizing any decisions that these organizations disagree with. Indeed, this is the best way to make the TDC responsive to women’s issues.” |
During the March meeting, participants agreed on a number of goals for the network that will guide their work in the future. These include taking local contexts into consideration when implementing activities, taking advantage of existing expertise within the NGO network, and creating a plan for managing and coordinating the overall work of the network. Of critical importance will be the establishment of a robust communications strategy to publicize network’s activities as well as to provide an avenue for additional women victims to become involved. This issue is particularly salient, as many believe the majority of media to be hostile to the TDC.
By the close of the meeting, participants had agreed on principal goals, the need to have a moral chart for the first working period of the network, and a nominations process for future members. According to El-Gantri, the network may focus its efforts on the regions outside of Tunis, with groups from the capital playing a supporting role.
"For the most part, the women’s groups from Tunis are already equipped with the knowledge, networking capabilities, fundraising opportunities and contacts necessary to move forward, while those in the regions lack the same capacity," El-Gantri explained. "Women outside the capital are in dire need to know that there is even a truth commission in the country—and that their testimonies so deeply matter not just for its success, but to prevent recurrence of past violations."
Two more preparatory meetings followed by a final retreat are expected before the network officially launches during the first week of September.
Watch a video of the training ICTJ organized with Tunisian civil society and women’s groups who are advocating for a gender-sensitive commission:
PHOTO: A woman votes at a polling station in Tunis. (Ezequiel Scagnetti © European Union/Flickr)
