Rédaction Africa Links 24 with satarbf
Published on 2024-03-04 20:48:44
Visiting the French Prime Minister on February 29, the Tunisian head of government took the opportunity during a joint press conference to denounce, in very undiplomatic terms, the broadcast on M6 of an “Exclusive Investigation” entitled “Tunisia: between dictatorship and misery, the big step backward” dedicated to his country.
On Sunday, March 3, at 11:15 pm, almost all Tunisians were in front of the small screen to watch on the French channel M6 the program “Exclusive Investigation” dedicated to their country and entitled “Between misery and dictatorship, the step back”. A title not very intriguing as it reflects what the population feels thirteen years after the revolution.
A journalist, Nejib Dziri, had contributed to increasing curiosity; outraged by the use of the word “dictatorship” in a brief presentation of the report broadcast on social networks, he dedicated a whole chronicle to it on February 27, live on Radio IFM. Without knowing anything about its content.
The controversy was also fueled by the Prime Minister, Ahmed Hachani, during the joint statement with the French Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, which concluded his working visit to Paris.
“Inconsiderate act of our French friends”
During a speech that will go down in history as a lunar moment, Ahmed Hachani made numerous blunders and categorical statements. He praised the long and solid friendship between the two countries, forgetting the 70 years of protectorate and the Tunisian soldiers who died for France without ever being honored.
But he also took advantage of this speech to complain about a television channel that was about to broadcast a documentary inspired by “assuredly malevolent enemies of Tunisia”, mentioning “an inconsiderate act by our French friends” and regretting the deplorable image that this report gave of Tunisia, while Gabriel Attal, visibly dismayed, was restraining some annoyance.
Ahmed Hachani only demonstrated that he was not aware of diplomatic practices, of what is proper to publicly say and what is discussed – or even negotiated – behind the scenes. His speech, tinged with a certain paranoia, created discomfort and did not do any service to Tunisia.
Not a word about investments, immigration, embezzled funds…
During his ten-minute speech, he did not address any of the issues discussed during his working visit, nor any of the ongoing issues, which are very numerous, with France.
“He could have mentioned investments, revisited the 2008 migration agreement that was never implemented, talked about embezzled funds or the energy file, and he could have relied on a communication expert to draft a text that he would have read,” commented a former communication officer who points out that “we experience things live and from the inside. Therefore, a Tunisian’s perspective is much more critical than that of a foreigner.”
As a consequence of this unexpected publicity: the program, broadcast in the late evening on Sunday and which would not have generated much interest under normal circumstances, was massively watched by Tunisian viewers, who usually do not watch M6.
But those who thought the content would fuel controversy were disappointed. “It’s the mountain giving birth to a mouse,” mocks a post on Facebook. Convinced that the investigation in question would lead to revelations, some even imagined that at the time of the broadcast, the internet would be cut off. This shows the image that the authorities have in the eyes of Tunisians.
Testimonials from relatives of opponents
In terms of content, there were no revelations, nothing that Tunisians did not already know, since the report took stock of everyday life, society and its aspirations, as well as the political situation.
“A simple chronological narrative without relief with many shortcuts,” summarizes a political scientist, who remembers programs on M6, especially in the years 2012-2016, with much more subjective content that had outraged the public.
Non-Tunisian viewers may have found it normal for relatives of imprisoned opponents to speak, but in Tunisia, they have earned respect because they have put themselves in danger and are therefore more likely to face prosecution since they spoke in front of a foreign camera, which can fall under the law punishing the transmission of information to a foreigner.
Desperately seeking communicators
On social media, some still believed that there was a desire to harm President Kaïs Saïed. But the journalists had only reproduced and translated statements he had made, especially towards migrants, statements that had provoked, a year ago, violence against Sub-Saharan Africans, causing international outrage. The same people still do not accept the term “authoritarian” to describe the current regime.
The incident caused by Ahmed Hachani showed the need for Tunisian leaders to call on communication services in order to better control certain subjects, to learn to develop arguments, and to become familiar with public speaking. Blunders at such a high level are disorderly.
To avoid these embarrassing situations, Haythem el-Mekki, a famous columnist for Mosaïque FM, suggested another solution: “The best way to avoid giving rise to criticism is to all be democratic and free.”
Read the original article(French) on Tunisie Focus
