Tunisia faces mounting criticism over rights crackdown

Human Rights Watch is sounding the alarm about the crackdown on political opponents and rights activists by Tunisian authorities, echoing concerns expressed by UN experts and civil society organisations during the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, as reported in Africa News on July 9th.

According to HRW, the situation has significantly worsened five years after Tunisian President Kais Saied assumed extraordinary executive powers. HRW says repression has become increasingly systemic across civil society, among journalists, political opponents, independent lawyers, and migrants, as the rule of law erodes.

Concerns intensified on 7 May 2026, when the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, issued a warning that Tunisian authorities were widening repression through the use of criminal proceedings and administrative impediments against dissenting voices.

During the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, which concluded on 7 July 2026, UN experts and civil society representatives echoed concerns about deteriorating human rights conditions in Tunisia.

HRW, which documented the UN statement, criticised “the continued silence from UN member states all but signalled a free pass for Tunisian authorities to continue escalating their crackdown on civic space.”

HRW also highlighted the recent sentencing of eight human rights defenders to prison terms and substantial fines over charges linked to their human rights work, urging UN member states to publicly condemn the escalating repression. The concerns extend beyond political opponents and activists, with the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination also warning of the treatment of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, citing collective expulsions towards the Algerian and Libyan borders under life-threatening conditions.