Summary

With the news that Rached Ghannouchi has gone on hunger strike alongside two of his fellow incarcerated opposition figures, we must stand with him and other popular political prisoners in Tunisia. Write to your foreign ministry demanding they pressure Tunisia into releasing them.

 

Background

Rached Ghannouchi, alongside and Issam Chebbi, have joined Jawhar Ben Mbarek in going on hunger strike, to protest against his continued imprisonment. This is beautiful act of solidarity between prisoners, especially as Ghannouchi himself is still imprisoned for his peaceful opposition to the Saied regime.

In the last few years Tunisia has seen large scale repression of political opposition, directed at both politicians and the media. This has resulted in the arrest of many figures involved in the traditional political parties that had dominated Tunisia from the 2011 revolution, up until Saied dismissed the government in 2021. The parties targeted include the “Islamic democratic” party Ennahda, which had the most seats in the parliament at the time of its removal.

Below are the profiles of two important political prisoners whose release IHRC are campaigning for.

 

Rached Ghannouchi, 84, was arrested on 17^th April 2023 on charges of incitement against state authorities. He has been questioned in relation to 19 different investigations. The crimes he is currently accused of can be punishable by execution. On 1^st February 2024 he was sentenced to three years for allegedly accepting money from foreign sources, a claim he denies, and on the 5^th February 2025 he was given a further 22 years, in addition to the four years he had been handed in another case in 2024. Ghannouchi has refused to attend court for what he says only do as they are told by President Saied.

 

 

Said Ferjani, another high-profile opposition figure, was arrested on February 27^th, 2023, and imprisoned. He was accused of being involved with a media company called “Instalingo”, and despite the judge admitting that there was no evidence to support the allegation, under pressure from the regime he was sent to prison. He is still imprisoned over two years later.  For the first ten months of his incarceration, he shared a cell with 120 other prisoners, many of whom had mental health issues which manifested in violent ways. He has witnessed a prisoner having his eye gouged out by a fellow prisoner, and another eating his own flesh. After two years of unlawful detention, he was sentenced to 13 years’ imprisonment on February 5^th this year.

 

Requested Action

We are requesting that you write to your ministry of foreign affairs, demanding that they pressure the Tunisian government to release these prisoners. (Template letter below)

Stay up to date with our Tunisia Campaign here

For more updates from IHRC you can follow our WhatsApp community here

 

Model Letter

 

Dear [INSERT NAME],

Re: Said Ferjani and Rached Ghannouchi

I am writing to you following the latest reports regarding the worsening conditions of incarcerated opposition figures in Tunisia, against the backdrop of some of these figures going on hunger strike. I am deeply concerned about the way in which the President, Kais Saied, is continuing to clamp down on all peaceful opposition. Many opposition activists have been arrested without any evidence of crimes being committed, and Saied has even created laws specifically to target them. Two prominent popular opposition activists are among the victims of this vicious witchhunt, 81-year-old Rached Ghannouchi and Said Ferjani.

Ghannouchi has been given various sentences, all of which appear to be politically motivated, the latest on February 5^th gave him 22 years on top of the three years he was already serving for another dubious case.

Another opposition activist Said Ferjani, was also handed 13 years, after spending two years in jail without any evidence of his alleged crime, that of being involved in an outlawed media channel.

Ghannouchi and Ferjani are both senior politicians and also long-term residents of the UK, who made positive contributions to civil society in the UK and globally. Their imprisonment is disgraceful, and the silence from our government deafening. If our government truly stands for democracy and human rights, then it must take a strong stand against their continued imprisonment and make clear that we will defend the rights of the Tunisian people.

 

Yours sincerely,

[If posting, your signature]

[Your name]

 

 

Addresses

 

United Kingdom:

Rt. Hon Yvette Cooper

King Charles Street
London
SW1A 2AH
United Kingdom

 

Alternatively, you can email her at fcocorrespondence@fco.gov.uk

 

 

Canada,

The Honourable Anita Anand

House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada
K1A 0A6

Alternatively, you can email her at Anita.Anand@parl.gc.ca

 

Australia,

Penny Wong

RG Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
Barton ACT 0221 Australia

 

Alternatively, you can contact her on this link

 

The Seychelles:

Louis Sylvestre Radegonde

P.O. Box 656
Maison Quéau de Quinssy
Mont Fleuri,
Mahé,
Seychelles

 

Alternatively, you can email him at ps@mfa.gov.sc

 

Denmark:

Lars Løkke Rasmussen

Asiatisk Plads 2

DK-1448

Copenhagen

CVR nr. 43271911

 

Alternatively, you can email him at udenrigsministeren@um.dk

 

United States:

Marco Rubio

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,

Washington,

DC 20500

 

Alternatively, you can contact him on this link