Friends of Tunisia
(An Affiliate of the National Peace Corps Assoc.)
P.O. Box 25245
Washington, DC 20007
Tel. (202) 526-0897

February 2000

THE SAUDIS AND KUWAITIS LIVE IN A DIFFERENT WORLD FROM FOT.

A Saudi Arabian princess and the wife of the Kuwaiti ambassador have graciously invited Friends of Tunisia to attend a dinner and dance in May that will benefit Save the Children in Arabic countries. While the goal of the event, to be held here in Washington, is certainly laudable, the tickets range from $10,000 to $100,000!!! Since this is a tad more than the $30 FOT has budgeted for social events this year, we are throwing the invitation open to any member out there who is just dyin' to dance. Let FOT know, and we'll fix ya right up. (By the way, don't embarrass your fellow FOT members by cheaplng out at $10K. Your other choices are $25K, $50K, and, of course, the big Kahuna: $100K.)

The American-Tunisian Association has announced its annual series of free lectures on Tunisia this spring. All will be held at 6 pm at the opulent Meridian House, 1630 Crescent Place, NW, in Washington. For more info or directions, call: 202-939-5542.

Monday, March 11: Professor Mounira Charrad, Georgetown University. "The Making of a Book on Women's Rights in Tunisia: A Multicultural Journey."

Wednesday, April 5: Dr. Mark Habeeb, consultant. "Tunisia and the European Union: Ben Ali's Bold Initiative."

Tuesday, May 9: Jerry Sorkin, President, Tunis/USA. "North African Rugs as a Reflection of Culture."

For the next few months Tunisian art will be exhibited in Washington. Until April 1, contemporary Tunisian paintings will line the lobby of the WorldSpace Building, 2400 N Street, NW. Just drop in and take a look!

Starting in early April, the Tunisian embassy will put on an exhibit of Tunisian pottery at the embassy's new gallery in the rear of the embassy. If you wish to view the exhibit, inquire in the embassy, and someone will open the exhibit hall for you.

NEW FRENCH BOOK QUESTIONS FRENCH SUPPORT OF TUNISIAN REGIME.

A French book published in late 1999, entitled Notre Ami Ben Ali, seriously questions continued French support for President Ben Ali's administration in Tunis. Written by two French journalists, Nicolas Beau and Jean-Pierre Tuquoi, the book provides an account of President Ben Ali's life and career plus a detailed description of his government's actions against Islamic fundamentalists, foreign and domestic reporters, political critics, human rights advocates, and even members of former President Bourguiba's regime. The authors also claim that a Soviet-style cult of personality has been erected around the Tunisian leader, stifling any genuine political dialogue in the country. There--fore, in spirit and tone this book resembles an earlier one by French author Gilles Perrault, Notre Ami Le Roi, that questioned French support of the authoritarian regime of the recently deceased king of Morocco, Hassan II.

A major focus of this latest book is on French-Tunisian relations, and the authors claim that strong-arm tactics by the Tunisian police have begun to push even France, long a warm supporter of Ben Ali, into distancing itself from his regime. Claims about Islamist plots in Tunis no longer ring automatic alarm bells in Paris. Although conservative President Chirac remains supportive of Ben Ali, socialist Prime Minister Jospin is said to believe it's time for Tunisian authorities to cease harassing and jailing Ben Ali's critics.

Will Ben Ali rein in his security forces? Perhaps the example of Morocco will be a factor. Shortly after ascending the Moroccan throne last summer, the new young king, Mohammed VI, dismissed his father's long-time security chief. Furthermore, there have been recent reports of an improved situation in Tunisia. This book, however, points out that Ben Ali's political views derive largely from his long previous career in security-related positions.

Those who want to read this provocative yet informative book (the French isn't very difficult) can order it over the Internet from chapitre.com, a service for French-language titles similar to amazon.com.

Bob Prince, whose proposal to create a human rights committee within FOT was unsuccessful, has decided to translate French articles on human rights abuses in Tunisia into English and provide them to any FOT member who has e-mail. If you want to be on Bob's e-mail list, contact him at princer@mscd.edu

TOURS OF TUNISIA.

Do you or someone you know have a yen to visit or re-visit Tunisia? The American-Tunisian Association, composed mainly of former US diplomats in Tunisia, is organizing a ten-day trip to Tunisia in October. A group of 20 or so will likely meet with high government officials and is open to FOT members. If interested, contact Phil Jones at FOT. In general, the tour organizer most knowledgeable about Tunisia is Tunis/USA, located just outside Philadelphia in Wayne, PA. Call 800-474-5500.

FAMOUS HARVARD ECONOMIST ANALYZES TUNISIA'S FUTURE.

Jeffrey Sachs, the controversial Harvard economist and advisor to Russia, Poland, and other countries, sees competition from emerging economies in eastern Europe, rather than domination by the rich western European economies, as the largest threat to Tunisia's prosperity in the future global marketplace.

Speaking at a symposium sponsored by the Hannibal Club, Sachs outlined what he thinks Tunisia must do in the years ahead to succeed in a globalizing market. Maintaining that Tunisia's geographic location and past investment in education are huge advantages over sub-Saharan African countries, Sachs emphasized the need for improved university-level education ("North Africa should develop a world-class institution"), a commitment to science and technology similar to Israel's, and a build-up of infrastructure to allow the free flow of information. He even suggested that, if Tunisia builds up its infrastructure, it is ideally placed to become the headquarters for companies doing business in Africa. He also urged the Maghreb countries to establish a tariff-free union as fast as possible because all emerging countries are, in a sense, in a race toward prosperity. Time is of the essence; Tunisia has a head start that it must not squander. Key to development, however, is access to rich countries, and the Mediterranean, Sachs believes, offers Tunisia inexpensive sea-access to several. In the meantime, he is not worried about the lack of investment from rich countries in the Tunisian stock market. In fact, he praised the Tunisian government for controlling "short-term capital flows" and urged the country to continue that policy. The larger problem, in his view, is the very modest growth in foreign direct investment (FDI) in Tunisian manufacturing plants, tourist facilities, etc.

Another speaker, Judith Barnett, a former high Commerce Department official, stressed the need for openness to full competition in the bidding process for contracts. American companies, she said, have lost bids in the past "for reasons that haven't been clear." Out-and-out corruption, however, has been rather minor in Tunisia, according to the third speaker, Lorna Hahn, head of the Association of Third Wold Affairs. She cited Tunisians' flexible self-reliance as key to their success so far.

****TUNISIAN NEWS******NEWS FROM TUNISIA******TUNISIAN NEWS****

- The 1999 Tunisian census (a sampling of 130,000 families) indicates that the country's population is now 9.44 million and 624 urban. Ninety-four percent of the houses have electricity, 924 drinking water, 844 television, 794 radio, 674 a refrigerator, 274 a telephone, 184 a satellite dish, and 174 a car. Per capita income is now slightly above $2,000 a year.

- On January 21, former Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi, long under indictment by the government in Rome for mafia-related corruption, died of a heart attack at his plush villa in Hammamet where he lived in exile for many years.

- Mohammed Gammoudi, winner of gold, silver, and bronze medals at the Olympic games of 1964, 1968, and 1972 was voted by Tunisian sports writers "the Tunisian sports champion of the century."

His events were the 5,000- and 10,000-meter races.

- In January, Tunisia took a seat on the United Nations Security Council. Perhaps not so coincidentally two US Senate delegations plus Robert Walker, US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, visited the country in January and early February. One delegation, headed by Alaska's Ted Stevens, included Senators Cochran (R-MS), Roberts (R-KS), Spector (R-PA), and Hollings (D-SC). The other delegation was composed of Kay Hutchison and Phil Gramm of Texas plus Robert Bennett (R-UT). Tunisia will retain its seat on the security council for two years. Former foreign minister Said Ben Mustapha has just been named Tunisia's new ambassador to the UN.

- On December 31, a medical team of 50 at La Marsa University Hospital performed the third liver transplant in Tunisia's history. The recipient, a 27-year-old female, is doing well.

- On December 29, President Ben Ali met in Tunis with Morocco's new king, Mohammed VI. In 1996, both countries signed an agreement to create a tariff-free area by December 2007.

The US strongly supports the creation of a Maghreb economic union to increase the size of North African markets.

- Eighty-four percent of Tunisian women now receive pre-natal advice; 854 give birth in hospitals or health clinics. Birth fatalities have decreased from 134 per 100,000 in 1966 to 68 today. About 654 of women use contraceptives.

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