France expressed its “concern” on Tuesday after the arrest of lawyer and writer Sonia Dahmani in Tunisia due to statements deemed offensive to the country and state.
Deputy Spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Christophe Lemoine, stated that the arrest came “in the context of other arrests, particularly against journalists and members of associations.”
He added, “Freedom of expression and freedom of association, like judicial independence, are principles guaranteed by the Tunisian constitution as well as United Nations agreements to which Tunisia and France are parties.”
Dahmani had sarcastically questioned during a program broadcasted on May 7th, “What exceptional country are we talking about?” in response to another journalist who stated that migrants coming from sub-Saharan African countries seek stability in Tunisia. This statement was widely circulated on social media and considered by some as “insulting” to the country.
On Saturday evening, lawyer and writer Sonia Dahmani was arrested at the headquarters of the Bar Association in the Tunisian capital, where masked men attacked lawyers and journalists before detaining the lawyer, according to video clips and witnesses.
Dahmani’s lawyers stated that she is under investigation, especially on charges of disseminating “false information with the aim of harming public safety… and incitement to hate speech,” based on Decree 54.
This decree, issued by President Kais Saied in September 2022, “punishes with imprisonment for a term of five years” and a fine of up to fifty thousand dinars “anyone who intentionally uses information networks and systems to produce, disseminate, publish, transmit, or prepare false news, data, rumors, or fabricated or forged documents attributed falsely to others with the aim of infringing upon the rights of others or harming public security or national defense.”
