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Tunisia vote marks a death of a dream fo

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Wael and Jewaher locked eyes and ran towards each other. He'd just been released from a police cell, and she'd spent the last 20 hours outside, singing protest songs while she waited for his release.

As they hugged tightly, someone in the crowd handed him a fresh t-shirt to replace the torn one he'd been wearing since his arrest at an anti-referendum protest the night before.

On Monday, Tunisians will vote in a referendum on a new constitution that gives President Kais Saied far more power. While he has some support, many Tunisians reject the constitution and say it's illegal.

Tunisia is no stranger to demonstrations. Back in 2011 the Arab Spring was born here, before spreading across the Middle East.

Mohamed Bouazizi, a young man without a job, was selling vegetables on the street to make ends meet. When the police told him he had to stop, he set himself on fire. It was an image of desperation which resonated so deeply that crowds of people began to gather together. They too were sick of economic hardship, political corruption and their autocratic ruler.

After 23 years in power, President Ben Ali was forced out, and a new chapter began for Tunisians.

Now though, the country's freedoms are moving in reverse. A year ago, in July 2021, Tunisia's President Kais Saied made sweeping changes. He sacked the prime minister, dissolved the government and suspended parliament. On Monday Tunisians will vote on a new constitution that gives him even more control over the country.

That's why Wael and Jewaher are demonstrating once again.

"We were in a parliamentary system," Wael tells me. "Now we are in a presidency, a system for Kais Saied to hold all the power in his own hands."

The pair protested together in the original Arab Spring marches in 2011, as a young couple, not yet married. Now they have a son, Yasar, which translates in English to "left", in honour of their political views.

"We have been protesting for 11 years for the same demands," explains Jewaher. "That is what's frustrating. It's a pattern we have to repeat. Here every year we have to protest for our freedom and dignity and rights.

"The regime is in power with the force of the police, with the force of dictatorship, with the force of violence. So nothing ever really changed".



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Wael and Jewaher locked eyes and ran towards each other. He'd just been released from a police cell, and she'd spent the last 20 hours outside, singing protest songs while she waited for his release.

As they hugged tightly, someone in the crowd handed him a fresh t-shirt to replace the torn one he'd been wearing since his arrest at an anti-referendum protest the night before.

On Monday, Tunisians will vote in a referendum on a new constitution that gives President Kais Saied far more power. While he has some support, many Tunisians reject the constitution and say it's illegal.

Tunisia is no stranger to demonstrations. Back in 2011 the Arab Spring was born here, before spreading across the Middle East.

Mohamed Bouazizi, a young man without a job, was selling vegetables on the street to make ends meet. When the police told him he had to stop, he set himself on fire. It was an image of desperation which resonated so deeply that crowds of people began to gather together. They too were sick of economic hardship, political corruption and their autocratic ruler.

After 23 years in power, President Ben Ali was forced out, and a new chapter began for Tunisians.

Now though, the country's freedoms are moving in reverse. A year ago, in July 2021, Tunisia's President Kais Saied made sweeping changes. He sacked the prime minister, dissolved the government and suspended parliament. On Monday Tunisians will vote on a new constitution that gives him even more control over the country.

That's why Wael and Jewaher are demonstrating once again.

"We were in a parliamentary system," Wael tells me. "Now we are in a presidency, a system for Kais Saied to hold all the power in his own hands."

The pair protested together in the original Arab Spring marches in 2011, as a young couple, not yet married. Now they have a son, Yasar, which translates in English to "left", in honour of their political views.

"We have been protesting for 11 years for the same demands," explains Jewaher. "That is what's frustrating. It's a pattern we have to repeat. Here every year we have to protest for our freedom and dignity and rights.

"The regime is in power with the force of the police, with the force of dictatorship, with the force of violence. So nothing ever really changed".



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