Press Release

In Support of the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women and Against the Policies Criminalizing Civil Action

Tunis, October 25, 2025

The Tunisian authorities have decided to suspend the activities of the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women (ATFD) for a period of one month.
This decision is part of an ongoing series of measures aimed at criminalizing independent civic action and further restricting civic space in Tunisia, affecting dozens of independent associations.

The suspension of numerous associations and their subjection to financial and fiscal audits — despite their full compliance with legal procedures and the submission of all required documentation — reflects a deliberate policy to criminalize civic engagement and repress civil society activists.
These are politically motivated measures intended to weaken independent organizations and intimidate the broader civil society.

Decree No. 88 of 2011, once a democratic milestone that enshrined the freedom of association and organization, is now being instrumentalized selectively to settle scores with independent organizations.
Likewise, the law on counter-terrorism and anti–money laundering is being misused in a context marked by an accelerated closure of public space, prosecution of civic actors and human rights defenders, and their stigmatization under the guise of administrative, judicial, financial, or fiscal accountability.

Targeting the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women means undermining women’s right to organize and participate in public life, as well as denying victims access to essential support and counseling services.
For decades, the ATFD has been a stronghold of feminist, social, and civic struggles—at a time when speaking out came at a high cost, while silence and complicity were the easier choices for many.

Civil society organizations are, of course, not above the law and must comply with it.
However, these decisions can only be interpreted as part of a continued policy to drain the resources of civil action and dismantle the mechanisms of protection and advocacy built by the civic and feminist movement over decades of struggle.

The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES):

• Expresses its full solidarity with the Tunisian Association of Democratic Women and supports all legal and activist actions undertaken by its members;

• Holds the Tunisian authorities responsible for the deterioration of freedoms and the erosion of constitutional guarantees related to the freedom of association and expression;

• Calls on civil society and human rights organizations to strengthen solidarity and coordination in the face of policies that close civic space and criminalize independent action.

The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, itself facing similar attempts at criminalization and stigmatization, reaffirms its unwavering commitment to defending civic space and will continue all forms of peaceful resistance to uphold social justice, equality, and human dignity.

Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES)
President: Abdelrahman Hedhili