Mohamed Bouazizi, a young Tunisian, set himself on fire Dec. 17, 2010 after policemen confiscated his vegetable cart in a small market in Sidi Bouzid in central Tunisia. The rest is history: Then-president of Tunisia Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was ousted from power, later to be joined by the leaders of Egypt, Libya and Yemen, who fell like dominos as a shocked world looked on. They called it the "Arab Spring." Bouazizi, in his protest of desperation, even managed to shake the foundations of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's floundering regime in Damascus. Ben Ali fled Tunisia on Jan. 14, 2011, as thousands of jubilant Tunisians celebrated the success of their Jasmine Revolution and an end to repression. But in the meantime, the Islamist Ennahda (renewal) Party swept the elections, much to the dismay of half of the population of one of the most modernized Arab countries, causing Bouazizi's act to be forgotten. Tourists stopped arriving, the once stable economy collapsed and the repression returned. This was not the outcome the heroes of the revolution prayed for. Just as occurred later in Cairo, there was one party in the North African country that had waited on the sidelines (inside a mosque, to be more accurate) and stole the revolution. A new name has replaced Bouazizi in Tunisia's streets. That name is most often uttered during the numerous protests: Chokri Belaid, the leader of the Democratic Patriot's Movement. Belaid, the opposition leader, was murdered last week by an assassin on a motorcycle who ambushed him. Belaid was one of the more vocal members of the opposition and a strident critic of the Islamists, who now control the country and have embittered the lives of secular students in universities. Belaid was also worried about the number of Salafists [ultra-conservative Sunnis] who suddenly sprung up in his country, the only Arab country to successfully spawn a real middle class. The night before Belaid's murder, he accused the Muslim Brotherhood on TV of calling their on followers to exercise violence, (Belaid, by the way, was also a big critic of Ben Ali). The secular party leaders who represent Tunisia's Left were not spared from violence themselves, but Belaid's case was the first political assassination in modern Tunisia since 1956. Tunisian protests reached their height at Belaid's funeral on Friday. President Moncef Marzouki called for new elections and Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali wanted to dismantle the current government and form a government of technocrats to lead the country. Strong as the pressure may be, Ennahda is not getting worked up over it. The leader of the Islamist party, Rashid al-Ghannushi, opposes a technocrat government, and he held a huge sermon on Saturday (as if spontaneous), during which he cursed the West, primarily France. It is important to note that in Feb. 2012 the Tunisian government fell due to civil protests. At the current rate they may well miss Ben Ali, but we are not there yet. The big question is where will Tunisia go? The country which served as the real mirror of Arab society. Will Belaid's death galvanize the country and bring down the regime as did Bouazizi's- Belaid's funeral was a major opportunity for a large portion of the population to say "no" to the radical Islam that has taken over the country that once allowed Israeli diplomats to visit and was very respectful toward Jews. In the eyes of liberal youth, Feb. 8, 2013 is the new Dec. 17, 2010. Tunisia has two paths it can take: the first, preserving the modern, secular, and historic achievements that the first president and country's forefather Habib Bourguib made for almost three decades or, regress a few hundred years back as the Muslim Brotherhood and their Salafist partners would like, and bring glorious Tunisia back to the 7th century. The issue is that the country does not have a single moral authority who can point in one direction or another. Another problem is that the Tunisian street is divided. Add to that the fact that Ennahda won the elections with absentee votes from Tunisians living in France(!), and you can see why the leaders of the Islamist party are not as eager to compromise as the prime minister they elected is. Tunisia's president Marzouki lost his moral authority a long time ago, despite being a part of the opposition to Ben Ali, he joined the Islamists Oct. 23, 2011 after their election victory. Tunisia's revolution has been called the Facebook revolution. Two million youth (out of a population of 10 million) are active in social media. They are not friends of Ennahda. They are not friends with the Muslim Brotherhood either.
