Tunisia: Understanding Conflict 2012 - Johns Hopkins School of ...

insufficient to prevent the demonstrations from spreading to Tunis and growing in size,
Ben Ali ordered the Army Chief of Staff, General Rachid Ammar, to have military units
open fire on the protestors. Ammar refused the order, and was subsequently relieved of
his command by Ben Ali. Nonetheless, Ammar’s refusal to defend the regime, along
with evidence on the street that the Army was clearly siding with the protestors, played a
crucial role in convincing Ben Ali that his position was untenable. Some media reports
even suggest that Ammar himself may have told Ben Ali that the only option open to him
to guarantee his safety was to flee the country (Barrouhi 2011).
In the days following the departure of Ben Ali, the Army played a pivotal role in
providing security throughout the country. It deployed troops to protect public buildings,
control looting, and even hunt down elements of the domestic security forces that
remained loyal to Ben Ali and continued to engage in violence against civilians
(Kirkpatrick 2011). With the total collapse of the domestic security forces operating
under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Interior, the Tunisian military was the only force
able to provide security in the country. Following the reinstatement of General Ammar
by Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi, the Army for the first time began to play an
overtly political role as well.
On 24 January 2011, General Ammar addressed a large crowd of demonstrators in
Government Square in Tunis. Ammar outlined the four principles that would guide the
actions of the Tunisian military in the post-Ben Ali era. First, “We are faithful to the
Constitution and we will not move outside that framework.” Second, “We are guarantors
of the revolution of the youth and we will see to it that it succeeds in a smooth and sound
manner.” Third, “We will not repress the peaceful demonstrators, but the latter should
not end up creating a void, because a void would lead to a return of dictatorship.” Fourth,
“We must allow to function [sic] this (enlarged) government, or another one.” (Barrouhi
2011) Although Ammar was reportedly urged to make his remarks by Prime Minister
Ghannouchi, whose ouster was a primary demand of the protestors, these remarks remain
the most expansive statement by any Tunisian military official regarding the military’s
view of its role in the transition. Although no doubt hastily drafted and delivered,
145