Tunisia: Transitional Justice Bill presented at National Constituent Assembly

Tunis – Brussels, 22 January 2013


 
Today the Minister of Human Rights and Transitional Justice, HE Samir Dilou, has formally submitted to the National Constituent Assembly the draft legislation on transitional justice after discussions and amendments by the Cabinet of Ministries. On 12 December 2012 NPWJ’s Secretary General, Niccolo’ Figà-Talamanca had the opportunity to discuss the draft legislation in a private  meeting  with the Minister.
 
Statement by Alison Smith, Legal Counsel of No Peace Without Justice:
 
“No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) and the Nonviolent Radical Party, Transnational and Transparty welcome the advancement of the legislative process in relation to the draft legislation on transitional justice. The first draft legislation was presented to HE Dilou by the Commission for the National Dialogue on Transitional Justice that he created and is composed of the Transitional Justice Academy and other four key Tunisian NGOs working on transitional justice.
 
“We congratulate the Minister for submitting to the National Constituent Assembly the Government’s draft legislation after amendments decided by the Cabinet of Ministries. The future adoption of the draft legislation and the establishment of a transitional justice mechanism in Tunisia will ensure accountability and redress for victims after decades of dictatorships.
 
“This draft legislation is an important step forward in Tunisian democratic transition and we call on the National Constituent Assembly to involve citizens and consult with them on those important legislations such as this one, which will affect Tunisia ’s future. We urge the National Constituent Assembly to continue to adopt a participatory approach to transitional justice encouraging consultations in the various regions in relation to the draft text and accepting submissions by all relevant stakeholders, including civil society.
 
“Transitional justice cannot be used for political gains but it must be a concerted effort of all political parties and segments of society to ensure Tunisia establishes a transitional justice process that truly responds to the accountability needs of its people.Tunisia can only achieve a new, open and democratic society where citizens trust State institutions by ensuring past violations are fully addressed and victims are redressed.”
 
For further information , please contact Greta Barbone on gbarbone@npwj.organd +216 28385079 or Nicola Giovannini on ngiovannini@npwj.org   or +32 2 548-39 15.

For more information about NPWJ and KADEM’s work on transitional justice in Tunisia, please click here