Politics |
What I Did | |
| Wedneday Dec - 8th | Tunisia had been a dictatorship for 23 years | Holiday was cheap cos Tunisia is
nort a normal country with that kind of situation there is going to be a
risk for business .. hence low prices.
- started travelling a circuit around Tunisia |
| Dec - 31st | I first hear of demos when Italian on CS mentions it.
I found out that about a week earlier a Street trader had immoliated himself in protest after being harassed by police, and in follow up demonstrations another protester had been shot. | |
| Monday Jan - 3rd | By accident my bus passed through Sidi Bou Sid, it was packed with calm police, but I quickly realised that this must be the place where that guy set fire to himself | |
| Tuesday Jan - 4th | Again by coincidence I found myself at Thela, my bus stopped before down and evryone got off. I could see there was a demonstration with tear gas and stone hrowing 300m down the street, so I avoided it by walking through the west side of town. In 15 minutes I had got to the other side and taken a louage out to Haidra archaeological site. | |
| Sat - 8th January |
Took bus to Beja. Across the green hills, surprisingly similar to
Yorkshire peaks, so probably good for rambling.
Found a hotel near the market not listed in guidebook and named after
the saide Sidi Booti H. Walked around, museum in front of hotel. These
old saints shrines must have been pronounced haram as they seem
abandoned. Beja's Medina is typical rather than touristic. I barged my
way into the Kasbah, and found it's being restored for tourism. The
guardian showed me around he said it was Roman then Byzantine then
Ottoman. The huge blocks of the lower parts of the wall are untypical of
castles. Higher stones were obviously robbed from other Roman
buildings. Adel had said tourists had a stereotypical view of Tunisia,
and expect to see camels in the street, but this wasv the second time I
saw one in the street. A rather mangy pne outside the kasbah. Tried some
strange fruit drink, "good for the stomach" tasted terrible to me.
- Bought 0.8Dinar beer from the supermarkets beer part hidden down an
unmarked stairway.
Found the 100 Commonwealth graves, a much neater graveyard than is typical here. Italian graveyard next door is guarded by viscious dogs cos it's been vandalized. - Went to explore hills out of town. The ones in the north were too far, so turned back and walked south from townhall. From those hills a good view. There are quarries to the east so I walked west to the forest and I found it's being turned into a park. There I met a Korean aid worker teaching photography to 18 year old Kaisar. Met Hytham and his family | |
| Sun - 9th |
the guy in Sidi Bou Zid had died from his burns and 15,000 people demonstrated at his funeral.
- Reported that 5 people were shot in demonstrations in Thela including a 12 year old kid - like I tried to warn the kid I saw, it's not a game and children should not have been at demonstrations, where there are police with guns. |
- Ate lunch with Hythams Family
- bus to Matuar .. boring town - Bizerte |
| Mon - 10th | The day it kicked off all over the country - passed the main square at 5.30pm there were too many people standing around so I knew something was going to kick off - later kids got fire rock into Government office and made small fire |
- meet Chal all day - Spanish fort - Kasbah etc - fire at 5, Chall more 5 neighbours etc thank for washing |
| Tue 11th | saw vandalised banks and supermarkets | - bus to Corniche Maire, old cathedral, interesting stained glass, zayzoun boring, internet, chall, met mohammed |
| Wed 12th | - internet
Bus to Ariana to Marsa, whilst checking I was walking right way bumped into Arine,
Tourist at Carthage ruins - I'll tell you abou the tourist I saw who was jumped on by 20 police sometime | |
| Thu 13th | there were police and demonstrator battles in Tunis and Nabeul and kids set fire to selected supermarkets and banks, but we just stayed away from those streets | Tunis Medina - safe - shops mostly shut, museums all shut |
| Fri 14th | there were police and demonstrator battles in
Tunis and Nabeul and kids set fire to selected supermarkets and banks,
but we just stayed away from those streets
- Tension built until president fled at 4.30pm, sudden curfew first it was 6pm then 5pm - By evening the Lads and Dads neighbourhood barriers were organised (which turned into a party in Nabeul) .. Young lads turn from vandals on Thursday to Angels on Saturday ... it seems to us that the same young adults who were smashing up shops on Thursday are now standing at the barricades of every neighbourhood with their Dads enforcing security .. so now they are doing something positive which should hopefully keep them out of trouble | One museum in Tunis Medina open,
- Moved to Nabeul - shops and banks being smashed up, but I walked the other way .. Nabeul Museum and I was at the Archaeological site at 4.30pm when guardian said Ben Ali had left. That's when effects started to be felt by us, with confusion as the sudden 6pm then 5pm curfew was announced cos difficult to get food. - later hooked up with Harvey a 127 country traveller a history teacher from Chicago |
| Sat 15th | - first day of free country
- 10% of shops opened . | - we walked around to cemeteries and suburb |
| Sun 16th | all hotels were shut | - We bused to Kelibia .. saw same kind of vandalism Louage to Kelibia, also a problem as all cheap hotels had closed, still we managed to visit the Kasbah. we begged a place at the youth hostel |
| Mon - 17th | - Tense-ish Rumours all over. There was a story on the TV about some Swedish pig hunters who got stopped at a check point. | This story should have died straight away - but it was reported on TV as police had arrested 3 German
mercernaries
-was the worst day for us as the "foreigner mercenaries rumours" spread and some people got paranoid Got to the truth on that "foreigner mercenaries story" we were checked by a local then fully searched by the army as we boarded a bus, then the hotel in El Haouaria insisted on searching our bags then the next morning as we left the patesserie there was a sudden Miami Vice Style swoop on us by the army. I'd always stayed away from demos and photo-ing even remotely sensitive stuff as the photos are all over the internet anyway, Harvey had 4 photos of the burnt out supermarket in Hammermet and the army guy made him delete them. Eventually after 40 minutes the army gave us oranges and water bottles and released us. |
| 60% of shops open, new all party interim government announced, but top 3 ministers are all from old government |
-the road to El Haouaria was completely bogged down with Lads and Dads checkpoints The staff at Kerkoune Cathagian ruins refused to let us see the site (it would have been lucky if one of them would walk with us but you can't be lucky always) | |
| Tue - 18th | 6pm curfew on Monday was not taken so seriously by locals, Tuesday even less and today its 8pm. Tuesday apart from the Army search people relaxed more. | - Army swooped on us as we left
the pattisserie, full frisk etc. It took them 40 minutes to check we are
real tourists. Bit ridiculous we can't be spies we were both here weeks
before the first demos and don't speak Arabic, they did compensate us
with a bottle of water and an orange after. - We went to check the big hill with a view Jebel Abeod, but on the way a local told us we were going the wrong way, we found from the next guy weren't, but couldn't be bothered to walk all the way. - Then went to check the many tunnels of the ancient marble quarries, they are still being made safe so we couldn't enter then a local chancer 10 dinars to show us that's a full days wage so we said no. Chatted. |
| Wed - 19th | 1500 person demos in each town telling the old
governing party RCD to get out of the new temporary government, shops
now 80% open
only 20% of businesses remained closed here, transport all normal, no more daytime Lads and Dads checkpoints. We saw 2 different 1500 people demos against the RCD old government party no violence from demonstrators and police kept their distance. Mostly before we could buy all the food we needed and now very easily, airport seems normal. But now the situation is far from over with it not been easy to say when all things like schools will be running normally, could be next week, but maybe not. | - Bus to Kelibia - met Mr Bougron again, then bus to Nabeul and back to same cheap hotel, walked beach .. Boring.
- We keep meeting old secret police men, 1% of people were government informers before ...it will be tough for them to integrate into the new society. |
| Thu - 20th | Me and Harvey went to visit
Hammamet. Today we did see some tourists, but town was mostly closed.
Salem the teacher I know from CS Sousse drove us around a bit,
including the new museum a villa built by the Gabli family friends of
the ex-presidents wife. It's said they stole this prime beach front plot
from the proper owners in a legal fix. It's been completely stripped by
looters. Crowds of people visited it. - I would say actually it's only the same size as many suburban houses here, but it has a pool, and since half the plot is a sandpit was not completely finished. - There was still a Medina tourist shop hustler, so the Medina is probably terrible hassle in normal times. Highlight was eating fricasse again. Said goodbye to Harvey as he stayed and I returned to Nabeul cos hotel is cheap. | |
| Fri - 21st | New Govt declared 3 days of mourning and then back to school | went to explore small orange towns : Grombalia, Beni Khaddache, Menzel BZ boring cos hlls are further East, internet work |
| Sat 22nd | BBC reports some policemen join demos telling old ministers to get out of new government. | Writing, went 4Km to Beni Khiar nothing to see ...Nabeul Found a full service hotel for 15 Dinars TV, breakfast Nabeul Ville, central location between Medina and station 55 Hedi Chaker +216 72 222 379 |
| Sun 23rd | Marches against RCD converge in Tunis | Bored with the crap hotel in Nabeul so took the bus to Zaghouan, Hostel had been turned into an army base .. so had to travel to Zriba Hamman, by strange coincidence when I got back to Zaghouan and phoned Muneer the guy I met in Sfax it turned out he lives 4Km away from Zriba Hamman, visted the Old Roman Temple |
| Mon 24th | Students stage peacecamp in the Kasbah against RCD in new government | back to Zaghouan then Oudhna ruins then
Tunis.
- Someone recommended Zriba old town zriba oliya. ... Looks interesting - Hoping the situation was going to be more normal so I came back to Tunis Medina, but it turns out that my hotel is the nearest hotel to the Kasbah, where students are staging a peace camp until the old government goes... 2weeks ago those same streets were full of secret policemen, but now they are not visible and calm soldiers are guarding instead. |
| Tue 25th | Last night Army spoke to villagers March, warning the army might take over government | Tourist stuff |
| Wed 26th | something changed yesterday .. journalists said RCD supporters had turned up with guns and people had been shot Wednesday morning something changed, 9am too crowded to get near the medina, 10.30am tear gas was drifting into the medina. Later at 5.30pm I saw police in large numbers on Bld April 1938 on the west side of the Kasbah, the first time I have seen much police as the army had taken over most security in most places and clearly still has control of the Kasbah. After passing the police and coming to near the kasbah instead of peaceful protesters I saw a different type of person : many young men with faces covered and carrying sticks. It was safe to walk past them, but I could predict something was going to kick off. Indeed the Kasbah was different, army and peace camp protesters still had control, but large numbers of paving stones and slabs had been smashed up. I personally saw no guns, nor is any English language media reporting any, but later at 9pm 2 journalists told me they had seen people been shot. NYT has a good article http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/27/world/africa/27tunisia.html SOME OPINION :I have always said the optimism of Facebook kids was naive, and the situation is not simple like they think. Surely since so many people were connected to the previous RCD government a Peace and Reconciliation process is needed to include them in a new Tunisia ? | Tourist stuff walked around city, Belvedere Park, Zoo, hills etc I get a great view across the city. I can see on the south side of the city is another hill with a better view. I walk back to find this hill walking on the west side of the outer medina passing the 2 big gates, then I find another hill with the hospitals on, come round to another hill with a good view of the lake to the south, then I'm round the back of the Kasbah ..lots of police where before was only army. |
| Thu 27th | liberte : despite the idealism a free press is not a truthful press. As well as not reporting your positive stories the media never corrected the false story that Mohamed Bouazizi was a graduate. Other sources report he didn't even finish school | Tourist stuff - Still trying to find a hill I walk west towards Bardo... A huge ancient aqueduct stands abandoned. Trams are packed, cos ticket sellers aren't working Rain I can't find the Bardo museum, mirrored shop woman locks door, camera so she opens, find Bardo it's unmarked, 20 mins later a smoking man in uniform stops me in the street to try to interrogate me on this. I take tram west to working class suburb of Manouba.. Can't buy beer in Carrefour there... Walk back. |
| Fri 28th | Tourist stuff - walk to cemetery ..this is the big hill I saw before - great view from mosque on Northeast peak walk along ridge, can't get full view from southwest peak cos is fortress there and I don't want to go too close to jumpy soldiers. Walk down and come to north bank of lake for sunset view .. Come into squattertown suburb.. Find steps upto ridge then into park then around to north side of medina, spot badraggled protesters and realise Kasbah protest has been Violently broken up. | |
| Sat 29th | - no media seems to report violent breakup of peaceful Kasbah protest. | Tourist stuff - All 4 of us from the hotel went out to Sidi Bou Said. Looks nice, but I don't like it, it's horribly touristic, more Italian than the real Tunisia. Went out to La Goulette, more rundown than gritty ambiance... Roads closed some demo. |
| Sun 30th | Spanish guy came back cos flights to Egypt all stopped | Tourist stuff - Washing - I wanted to explore ridge above the squattertown to get sunset view. Walked with Judith, but as we entered that area where cars drove and people walked Mr Enthusiastic Soldier stopped us and told us to walk there only in morning, this shook Judith up. - Samuel back also Malaga tourist |
| Mon 31st | Tourist in the medina - Most Medina museums still closed like they have been for years - Visited heritage association - interesting building - Samuel didn't come back again | |
| Tue 1st Feb | Tourist stuff - discover nice village market street outside north of Medina - I walked back and Mr Enthusiastic Soldier stopped me again ... Actually realised that suburb has a few dangerous youths. Belgian tourist woman | |
| Wed 2nd - | - Kasbah seems to be open, except small bottom square. | Tourist stuff Couchsurfing meetup |
| Thu 3rd - | Tourist stuff - Met up with Kaiser and his friend walked till 5pm ...Malaga Guy was back | |
| Fri 4th - | - NMIT breaks story of US company to build cement factory in SBZ, but a check discredits this story. Now not only playing down negative stories, but relying on fabricated positives. | Tourist stuff - Locked myself out - Took tram upto Cite Olympic walked along highway upto Menzah - wow this city is huge ..whole of north is a mass of concrete buildings built in the last 20 years. Through university... Then too tram to north, but all concrete buildings. .. Beautiful French girl turned up, but that's 18 years too late for me. |
| Sat 5th | - Story of 2 shot dead when crowd attacks Le Kef police station breaks | Tourist stuff - Took tram to southern suburbs a contrast to north, this is more rough houses. First Moujah ..nothing .. Then in Ben Amous saw 2 things... First spotted a basilica, but then found it was a complex of facades a movie studio, then in a poor market area found a police station completely burnt even 1 wall had been smashed in. What a surprise Computer Teacher Adel turned up .. He was preparing to go on the Convoy of 10,000 people to SBZ. The 5 of us from the hotel plus 2 went to the bar, but only 1 beer before the bar had reached it's sales limit. |
| Sun 6th - | - Facebookers still pushing positive stories, but it becomes apparent since Friday police have killed 5 and maybe 7 people. | Tourist stuff - run -wasting time checking stories, lunch with Pascal - internet |
| Mon 7th - | - internet is off for some reason, there is a huge demo at Ministry of Education | Tourist stuff - Right decide to get out of Tunis it's boring. So take louage to Beja - like it, but cold. Go to buy beer, but every supermarket here has been destroyed ... So revolution has reduced liberty ... It's much more difficult to buy beer. Accidentally meet up with Hytham's friends : Chady and Medhia so spend a lot of time talking. Meet friendly fricasse seller. |
| Tue 8th - | Tourist stuff - | |
| Tue 8th - | Tourist stuff - It's souk day. Walk all the way north and up hill for view.. I come around hills to west and Kasbah to meet with Aymen and his sister the English teacher.. Meet up with the lads later. | |
| Wed 9th - | Tourist stuff - It's cold, write diary at park. | |
| transport | - for us transport has almost always run as normal, but I should think the train station fire will have effected trains, so check with the station. One thing we try to do is portray an attitude of calm to help the locals relax, but unfortunately the TV is the opposite often screening interviews with people panicking and shouting, but as I see most people have to have a normal life cos they have to earn money and take care of their families etc. Unbelievabley whatever the situation you can always get your haircut as the barbers is almost always open. | |
| GENERAL | For young Tunisian Facbookers it's all simple, but for old people like me it's very complex ; with the truth being hidden a Russian Doll inside another Russian doll etc. My Tunisia Opinions On Tunisian Politics |
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good BBC background on the tunisia situation from a UK professor http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12197343
interesting to see radio kalima is no longer banned some good English
Language stories in their archive
http://www.kalima-tunisie.info/fr/home.html?newlang=english
eg
Police Officers Push the Manger of a Coffee shop in Kef to Suicide
story says they never paid and intimidated other clients
http://www.tunisnews.net/ is agregating some stories also
I am worried about people chanting simplistic phrases like "tunisians are well educated", using it in a way to say life here should be the same as France. People here are just as intelligent as people in the rest of the world, and there is no reason why in the future it shouldn't surpass France in terms of wealth and lifestyle. But today even with a perfect government it won't be like France soon as certain culturtural attitudes hold the society back ...as regards the people who don't respect the enviroment, respect queues, respect other peoples time, and the small perecentage who overcharge etc. I guess we will say that people will have a fair platform to complete fairly with the rest of the world .. and then people will be able to prove how good they are by doing the job better than people in other countries.
An ex-cop whistleblowed on Employees of an American company training policmen in Sarajevo who were participating in woman trafficking .. how did their mprals become so twisted ? http://www.podfeed.net/episode/Kathryn+Bolkovac++The+Whistleblower/2886990
Radiolab 1. Children like rats can recognize left and blue, but can't combine them to recognize the blue wall on the left
- 2. clever way Shakespeare ignores rules and thus creates better more powerful new words and language e.g. Uncomfortable
- Radiolab on Science Mistakes - researching brainwashing techniques U.S. Comes with idea of roughly interrogating soldiers before they go to combat. In research for this they use Harvard students and use humiliation to "break" them ... One of the scientists was a sado-masochist and one of the subjects he worked on was a shy brilliant, but displaced loner student ... That student 12 years later became the Unibomber