The Making of the Tunisian Revolution

Kaboub, Fadhel

doi:10.1142/9789814596015_0004

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Within a very short period of time, the Ben-Ali-Trabelsi entourage accumulated a wide portfolio of companies, which cut through almost every sector of the economy. Their economic influence was built under crony capitalism and gained momentum after Ben Ali intensified his control over the political arena in 1992, dissolving all political opposition [16]. In a quantitative study, Rijers et al examine 214 Tunisian firms owned by the Ben Ali clan that were expropriated after the Jasmin Revolution, which 'accounted for 5% of all private sector output and 16% of private sector profits' [34: 53].…”

Section: The Growth Of Crony Capitalism In Tunisiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Liberal Economic Reforms and the Rise of Crony Capitalism in the MENA Region

Gierowska¹

2022

JPSIR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article examines how the economic liberalisation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region created a ripe climate for crony capitalism. The incomplete character of the neoliberal program that was encouraged by Western governments and international financial institutions in the 1990s resulted in selective liberalisation and allowed for the tightening of state-business relations. The implementation of the liberal economic agenda facilitated the takeover of state resources and privileged access to the domestic market by dominant political-economic coalitions and produced a novel regime whereby hopes of a plural political system and a de-regulated free market were replaced with a version of Arab 'crony capitalism'. The evolvement of this phenomenon is analysed and explained by appealing to the example of economic reforms that took place in Egypt and Tunisia, two countries which, between the 1990s and 2010s, were hailed as success stories of the neoliberal reforms in the Arab World. Although the façade of the countries' respective economies became apparent as deregulated, new reforms became a powerful instrument for the foundation of a novel network of preferential beneficiaries leading to the reshuffling of alliances among the country's major players. The overarching argument of this paper is that liberalisation efforts in Egypt in Tunisia, rather than eradicating distributional coalitions, have merely rearranged them by reshuffling the existing alliance among the countries' major players.

show abstract

Section: The Growth Of Crony Capitalism In Tunisiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Liberal Economic Reforms and the Rise of Crony Capitalism in the MENA Region

Gierowska¹

2022

JPSIR

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Zine el Abidin Ben Ali was a key figure in the Bourguiba regime (particularly in the state security apparatus) and most infamously served as the Director General of National Security 1 , amongst other posts (Kaboub 2014). During the late Bourguiba era, he was first appointed as Minister of Interior in 1986 and then as Prime Minister in October 1987.…”

Section: Tunisia's Authoritarian Neoliberal Experience Under Ben Ali mentioning

confidence: 99%

From Dictatorship to “Democracy”: Neoliberal Continuity and Its Crisis in Tunisia

Erol¹

2020

NMES

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A decade after Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution in 2011, this article assesses Tunisia’s neoliberal political economy from a critical and historical perspective; from Ben Ali to its current political and economic impasse. It argues that despite the country being shown as the only democratic example to have emerged from the “Arab Spring”, the continuity of neoliberalism puts significant limits on its democratisation. Domestic and international ruling classes insisted on the implementation of further neoliberal reforms since the 2010s which curbed democratic processes, interventions and demands. Hence, despite limited democratic reform in the political sphere initially, it is not plausible to argue that the post-2010 era delivered the demands of the masses that led to the ousting of Ben Ali. In recent years, the country has experienced significant economic and political crises accompanied by deep societal unrest and labour resistance. Indeed, high unemployment persists, inflation and the cost of living have worsened, foreign debt has soared, wages have remained stagnant and state austerity is prescribed by the country’s creditors. This leaves the future of Tunisia’s political economy uncertain and crisis-prone, and makes the case for a break away from neoliberalism an urgent necessity.

show abstract

“…Yet, ironically, in his role as a pro bono attorney, he did not apply the precedent: he did not consider that those who looted during the demonstration had much in common with the thief exonerated by exigent circumstances during the era of Caliph ʿUmar; he did not recognize the possibility that the looters of the US Embassy were also destitute, political protestors. Tunisian lawyers—even those affiliated with Islamist political groups—continue to protect the very economic inequality that contributed to the revolution because they accept neoliberal economics (Kaboub 2013b). Just as Tunisian political lawyering is limited to legal liberalism, Islamist politics in Tunisia is limited to political liberalism.…”

Section: Epilogue: the Limits Of Political Lawyering In Post‐uprisingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tunisia's “Revolutionary” Lawyers: From Professional Autonomy to Political Mobilization

Gobe¹,

Salaymeh

2016

Law soc. inq.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

On January 14, 2011, after twenty‐three years in power and one month of popular protest demanding his resignation, President Ben Ali fled Tunisia. Lawyers, wearing their official robes, had marched frequently in the uprising's demonstrations. By engaging with and supporting the uprising, lawyers—both the profession in general and the bar's leadership—gained considerable symbolic influence over the post‐uprising government that replaced Ben Ali's regime. This article outlines the various forms of political lawyering undertaken by Tunisian lawyers and their professional associations from Tunisia's independence to post‐uprising transitions. We demonstrate that economic concerns, professional objectives, and civic professionalism contributed to the collective action of Tunisian lawyers before and after the uprising. Tunisian lawyers moved beyond the realm of their profession to adopt a role as overseers of the post‐uprising government.

show abstract

The Making of the Tunisian Revolution

Cited by 6 publications

References 0 publications

Liberal Economic Reforms and the Rise of Crony Capitalism in the MENA Region

Liberal Economic Reforms and the Rise of Crony Capitalism in the MENA Region

From Dictatorship to “Democracy”: Neoliberal Continuity and Its Crisis in Tunisia

Tunisia's “Revolutionary” Lawyers: From Professional Autonomy to Political Mobilization

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About