Tunisia Live (Tunis)
Farah Samti
26 November 2011
Many Egyptians perceive the Tunisian elections as a role model to follow, especially given the challenging and critical period Egypt is currently facing.
Sara Mojadidi, an Egyptian freelance broadcast journalist, believes the elections in Tunisia “were a golden milestone in the Arab Spring.”
Egypt’s Parliamentary Elections are scheduled for November 28th. However, due to unrest between protesters and police forces in Tahrir Square in Cairo, the elections might be postponed.
Protesting against the Military Council and its leaders, Egyptians have been expressing their anger and dissatisfaction by peaceful demonstrations, which took an unfortunate and bloody turn as many were killed and thousands were wounded by security forces.
Due to the Tahrir Square clashes, several Egyptians decided to boycott the parliamentary elections. Mojadidi, for instance, will not participate, stating that “These elections do not represent a democracy. I won’t be a part of it as long as the Military Council is still ruling the country.”
Mojadidi explained that several Egyptians share her opinion. “They’re numb because of what’s going on in Tahrir Square. They’re not in the right spirit or mentality to vote.”
Egyptians in Tunisia are supposedly able to vote via the Egyptian Embassy in Tunis, after they register electronically on a website, which, however, was hacked in what many perceive as a sign of protest against the “illegitimate” elections.
Mojadidi believed the elections will end up being postponed given the current unrest in Egypt. She also said that “Egyptians who are willing to vote, would do it out of obligation to their country. I don’t think they’re convinced that these elections will be fair.”
She also stated that most Egyptians are worried about the future of the country. Some of them are afraid that violence might engulf rural areas, others feel threatened by a possible future Islamic rule.
“We can’t compare the situation in Tunisia with that in Egypt. There was a civil transitory government after the revolution and there is a legitimate interim government now. However, in Egypt, the army took over from the beginning.”
The Constitutional elections in Tunisia were successfully held on October 23rd. After the final announcement of the results on November 14th, representatives of Tunisians formed the Constituent Assembly, which started its mission on November 22nd during its first session. Despite all challenges, Tunisia’s democratic experience seems to be successful so far.
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