The Tunisian president announces two modifications to the constitutional draft to avoid "misinterpretations"

MADRID, 9 Jul. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The president of Tunisia, Kais Saied, presented late this Friday two amendments to the draft of the new Constitution related to the country's position on Islam and the rights and freedoms of citizens, with the aim of avoiding "misinterpretations" .

These modifications, however, do not change the articles that would grant broad powers to the head of state and that have been criticized by various organizations and by the Tunisian opposition.

"To err is human. Fortunately, there is the possibility of correcting and revising," said Saied in a statement picked up by Kapitalis FM, addressing the Tunisian people, stating that democracy "will not be threatened as critics claim."

International organizations, NGOs and even Tunisia's main opposition party, Ennahda, had been against the new constitutional text, considering that it grants disproportionate power to the head of state, which would put Tunisian democracy at risk.

Given these claims, Saied has announced two changes to the constitutional draft with the intention of "avoiding any misinterpretation."

Specifically, the new draft modifies article 5 of the constitutional text in which it is detailed that "Tunisia is an Islamic nation", introducing the mention "within a democratic system", as reported by Mosaique FM.

Amnesty International, as well as other organizations, had criticized that this article could "allow discrimination against other religious groups".

On the other hand, article 55, which determines the rights and freedoms of citizens, has also undergone changes. Previously, the constitutional text held that rights and freedoms could be restricted based on "the needs of public security and public morals." Now, the new draft ensures that "no review can harm the achievements and freedoms of Human Rights guaranteed in it."

The president of the High National Consultative Committee for the new Republic of Tunisia, Sadok Belaid, denounced last Sunday that the text published in the official newspaper and that will be submitted to a referendum is not the one that was presented to Saied and warned that the powers given to the president "could open the way to a dictatorial regime".

For his part, Saied has defended the draft Constitution that will be submitted to a referendum on July 25, emphasizing that it does not pose a risk to the rights and freedoms of the population, for which he encouraged citizens to vote 'yes'.

If approved in a referendum, the document will replace the Magna Carta approved in 2014 following the overthrow in 2011 of the then president, Zine el Abidine ben Ali, within the framework of a massive wave of popular protests in what is known as 'Spring Arab'.