#TUNISIA: Third Government Sworn In In Less Than A Year

[world politics news]

Tunisia's Parliament has approved Prime Minister-designate Hichem Mechichi's government - the country's third administration in less than a year.

Following a 15-hour session that started on Tuesday, Mechichi's cabinet - dominated by independent technocrats - won 134 votes out of the 217 members of parliament.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: Vote of No Confidence In New Gov't Planned

[world politics news]

Tunisia’s Assembly of People’s Representatives, or parliament, decided to hold a plenary session for the vote of confidence in the government of Prime Minister-designate Hichem Mechichi on Sept. 1, Tunis Afrique Presse (TAP) reported on Tuesday.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: Independent Law Professor Wins Presidential Election

[world politics news]

Independent law professor Kais Saied looked set to win Tunisia's presidential runoff, as exit polls forecast an overwhelming victory against his rival.

Polls carried in Tunisian media on Sunday projected that Saied would win with between 72 and 77% of the vote. His opponent Nabil Karoui, who was in jail for most of the campaign, was forecast to win between 23 and 27%.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: PM Bans Niqab In Gov't Offices After Bombing

[world politics news]

Tunisia has banned the wearing of the niqab in state-run buildings, citing security reasons following the terror attacks last month.

The Muslin-majority country's Prime Minister Youssef Chahed signed a government circular "banning access to public administrations and institutions to anyone with their face covered... for security reasons."

The ban on the face-veil comes following the double suicide bombing that shook Tunis on June 27. The attacks left two people dead and several others injured. Witnesses at the time claimed that one of the bombers was donning niqab, however, Tunisia's Ministry of the Interior has denied this.

The ban has been criticized as restricting freeom, but concerns that the nation's booming tourist trade would br affected by the violence has trumped those concerns.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: Agreement Between Gov't And Gov't Workers' Union Heads Off Walk-Out Of 700,000 Workers

[world politics news]

A difficult round of negotiations between the government and the General union of Tunisian workers (UGTT) on the salary increase requested by some 700,000 State employees has ended with the signing of an agreement, heading off a two-day strike later this month. Minister for Social Affairs Mohamed Trabelsi described the agreement signed by the prime minister, Youssef Chahed, and the secretary general of UGTT, Noureddine Tabboubi, as ''historic."

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: Parliament Makes Hate Speech, Incitement To Hatred, And Racial Discrimination A Crime

[world politics news]

Tunisia’s parliament has adopted a law criminalizing racist speech, incitement to hatred and discrimination, in a vote hailed as a historic first in a country with a significant black minority. The legislation was approved on Tuesday night after a lengthy debate with 125 members of parliament voting for it, one against and five abstaining.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TUNISIA: President Proposes Law To Allow Equal Inheritance Rights For Women

[world politics news]

Tunisian president Beji Caid Sebsi says he will push for a new law to ensure equality in inheritance between men and women, in a first for the Arab world where legislation derived from Islam gives male descendants twice the share of females. In a nod to religious feeling in the Muslim country, he said any legislation – which would have to be debated and approved by parliament – should allow those who wanted to apply Islamic rules instead to pass down their property according to their wishes.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#TUNISIA: Capital City Elects First Female Mayor, Backed By Moderate Muslim Party

[world politics news]

The capital of Tunisia elected its first-ever female mayor this week. Souad Abderrahim, 53, ran as an independent but was backed by the Islamist Ennahda (Rebirth) Party. Abderrahim works for a pharmaceutical firm. Shortly after the country's 2011 Arab Spring movement, Abderrahim was elected to the Constituent Assembly of Tunisia, where she served until 2014. After her victory, she was cautious about the use of the "Islamist" label to describe herself and Ennahda, saying she wanted to work with all parties to improve Tunis.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#TUNISIA: First Local Elections Held Since 2011

[world politics news]

Tunisians are heading to the polls on Sunday to vote in the country's first free municipal elections since the removal of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and his government in 2011.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#TUNISIA: New PM Chahed Says "Sacrifices" Needed To Fix Economy As Cabinet Presented

[world politics news]

Tunisia's premier-designate called for "sacrifices" on Friday when parliament met to vote on his new cabinet line-up. A majority of parliament's 217 members were expected vote in favor of the line-up, making Youssef Chahed, at 40, the country's youngest prime minister since it won independence from France in 1956. Members of parliament were reported to say they'd keep Chahed on a "tight leash" and most oppose serious austerity measures.

#TUNISIA: PM Essid Ousted After Overwhelmingly Losing Confidence Vote In Parliament

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Habib Essid has been ousted after overwhelmingly losing a vote of confidence in parliament. In power for a year and a half, Essid failed to tackle the country's economic and security problems, his opponents say. A total of 118 members of parliament voted late on Saturday to unseat Essid; three voted for him to stay at the helm; and 27 abstained. The results were largely expected, with several ruling coalition party members declaring ahead of the session that they were not going to renew their confidence in the prime minister.

#TUNISIA: Ennahda Becomes Largest Pty After Lawmakers Resign

[world politics news]

Tunisia's Islamic Ennahda Party became the biggest party in parliament on Monday after more lawmakers in President Beji Caid Essebsi's party resigned over the role of his son, saying they feared a return of hereditary transfers of power. The rift poses no immediate threat to the coalition government, which includes Ennahda, but comes at a delicate time as the North African state struggles to contain militant violence and revive economic growth.

#TUNISIA: 24 To Stand Trial Over 2013 Assassination Of Oppo. Ldr.

[world politics news]

The trial of 24 people suspected of involvement in the Feb., 2013 murder of opposition leader Chokri Belaid, whose death triggered a political crisis, will open on June 30. Belaid, who was gunned down outside his home, was a staunch critic of the then ruling Ennahda party, often seen as Tunisia's branch of the Muslim Brotherhood.

#TUNISIA: Citizens March Against Terrorism After Museum Massacre

[world politics news]

Over 12,000 Tunisians marched Sunday against terrorism through the capital following the massacre of foreign tourists at the country's national museum. Many waved Tunisian flags to chants of "Tunisia is free! Terrorism out!"

TUNISIA: Lawmakers Approve Groundbreaking Coalition Gov't After First Free Election

[world politics news]

Parliament has approved a coalition government led by the secular Nidaa Tounes Party and including its Islamist rivals, following landmark free elections last year. Of 204 MPs attending, 166 voted in favor, 30 against and eight abstained, after PM Habib Essid withdrew an earlier list that excluded moderate Islamists Ennahda.

#TUNISIA: Watchdog Group Condemns 3-Year Sentence for Civilian Blogger By Secret Military Court

[world politics news]

Media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders expressed "deep concern" after a secret military court sentenced a Tunisian blogger to 3 years in jail for "defaming" military officials. Blogger Yassine Ayari had accused them of financial abuse. He was not in attendance, and learned of it only upon returning to Tunisia.

#TUNISIA: In Free Elections, Tunisia Elects 88-Year-Old Moderate Beji Caid Essebsi President

[world politics news]

Veteran politician Beji Caid Essebsi has been confirmed as winner of Tunisia's first free presidential election. He secured 55.68% of the vote in Sunday's run-off, defeating Pres. Moncef Marzouki (44.32%.) Essebsi, 88, has urged all Tunisians to "work together" for stability.

#TUNISIA: Secularist Essebsi Wins Second Round of Pres. Elections

[world politics news]

Tunisian secularist Beji Caid Essebsi beat incumbent President Moncef Marzouki in the first round of the country's presidential election, but a December run-off is needed since Essebsi received less than a majority, 39.46% of the vote. Marzouki got 33.4%. The nation's Islamist party sat out the presidential election.

#TUNISIA: High Turnout Expected for Sunday's Pres. Election

[world politics news]

Nov. 15th rally for the Nidaa Tounes party 

#TUNISIA: Secular Pty Defeats Islamist Party in Parliamentary Election

[world politics news]