Tunisia: Understanding Conflict 2012 - Johns Hopkins School of ...
Tunisia: Understanding Conflict 2012 - Johns Hopkins School of ...
Tunisia: Understanding Conflict 2012 - Johns Hopkins School of ...
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trust and confidence in a population that has long feared its police. For the time being, the<br />
majority <strong>of</strong> reform has come in the form <strong>of</strong> idealistic rhetoric, and it remains to be seen<br />
how its objectives will be achieved. This is especially pertinent as the government faces<br />
renewed protests over unemployment in underdeveloped areas and the police are forced<br />
to demonstrate their new sense <strong>of</strong> restraint and respect for human rights that have been<br />
touted by politicians.<br />
Conclusion<br />
Legitimacy is one <strong>of</strong> the most important elements <strong>of</strong> a successful government, but so too<br />
is citizen welfare and the relationship between the government and its people. The former<br />
seems to have been satisfied, for the time being, by the success <strong>of</strong> October’s free and fair<br />
elections to the Constituent Assembly, the body charged with drafting a new constitution.<br />
However, the latter remains ambiguous. As <strong>Tunisia</strong>ns continue to test the bounds <strong>of</strong> their<br />
nascent democracy and express open discontent with the pace <strong>of</strong> economic recovery, the<br />
temperance <strong>of</strong> the state security system will again come under scrutiny.<br />
This presents a serious challenge to the beleaguered police force, which has not<br />
yet fully implemented the changes sought after the revolution and must deal<br />
simultaneously with the glacial pace <strong>of</strong> bureaucratic reform and the mounting impatience<br />
<strong>of</strong> the people. After issues <strong>of</strong> identity and economic recovery, security will be the primary<br />
logistical question confronting the new government as it seeks to define its relationship to<br />
its people.<br />
The most serious challenge would arise in the event that the new government<br />
were to feel threatened and were to be tempted to employ the police to suppress dissent or<br />
to condone police excesses in the event that they align with regime priorities, especially<br />
concerning ideological matters. After all, it is a fine line between the enforcement <strong>of</strong><br />
peace and the oppression <strong>of</strong> freedom, a balancing act with which <strong>Tunisia</strong> has had little<br />
institutional experience.<br />
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