Mustapha Ben Jaafar, the president of the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) (the Tunisian parliament) and the Secretary General of the Democratic Forum for Labour and Liberties (Et-Takatol), speaks about the legislative priorities of NCA after the end of the constituent period, the future electoral alliances of his party, his stances regarding the political scene in the country and some of the active players in Tunisia.
President Jaafar, after the completion of the constituent tasks, does the NCA still have a role to play?
Mustapha Ben Jaafar, the president of the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) (the Tunisian parliament) and the Secretary General of the Democratic Forum for Labour and Liberties (Et-Takatol), speaks about the legislative priorities of NCA after the end of the constituent period, the future electoral alliances of his party, his stances regarding the political scene in the country and some of the active players in Tunisia.
President Jaafar, after the completion of the constituent tasks, does the NCA still have a role to play?
Yes, the NCA still has roles to play and it still has priorities. The setting of a date for the elections, in my opinion, is among its most important priorities.*
There are also the draft laws which the government is requesting the NCA to urgently review, especially those that have direct impact on the social conditions, the revival of the economy and the promotion of investment: the investment bill, which will be amended, the supplementary finance law, and the anti-terrorism bill. It should do all this in addition to the supervising the government.
With the alliance held between your party and another three small and progressive centrist parties, is the Takatol looking for more alliances with more parties that are intellectually close to it?
The idea of alliances is an old and new one. Following the flight of Ben Ali in 2011, we noticed that the political discourse has become based on identity and this is wrong. It is the same discourse that was previously used by Ben Ali to create a kind of estrangement and intimidation between political parties.
This has created tensions between the Tunisian people and divided them into two factions. It is for this reason that we have warned against this discourse and spoken about the importance of national reconciliation.
Unfortunately, we have noticed that the development of the political scene is primarily based on bipolar mobilization and there are parties and gatherings that were formed with the main goal of opposing other parties’ projects.
Is the political scene however not more balanced?
The positive thing about this, and which one cannot deny, is that there is indeed a better balance in the political scene, i.e., there is no longer one big party and small and medium sized parties.
There are partisan blocs such as the Nidaa Tounes or the Union for Tunisia which came close to each other to oppose a certain project and a certain party. We want to make it clear that as much as the political scene needs political balance it also needs more political and social peace.
This cannot be achieved unless we are able to gather all centrist parties together to revive a pole that has its own project and which can create other traditions in the political discourse that seeks to reduce the size of tensions and which is capable to act as a referee in the social and political arena.
There are two big parties in Tunisia: the Nidaa Tounes and the Ennahda Movement. What is your take on this development?
Yes, there is a big party which has proved its worth in the ballot boxes in previous elections— the Ennahda Movement.
And there is another party rising, and the media and the opinion polls process have contributed to the polishing of its image. We consider that the practice on the ground is the cut-off point.
For example, the Takatol went through a “dwarfism” phase in the opinion polls process and other parties were able to achieve high numbers in October 2011, but then they returned to their true size after the elections. What is certain is that there are two opposite poles in their political discourse at the media level and at a certain stage there has been a convergence—discourse has calmed down between them.
What I fear most is that the next election phase becomes based on the idea of a collision. This would be a disaster for the country as a whole and not for one party or the other.
Are there other parties with which you could form alliances?
We can form an alliance with the Democratic Alliance and the Tunisia Afaq Party, although there are major disagreements with it on the level of its economic project.
There are indirect consultations with some factions of the Republican Party, but it seems that they have a specific position on the issue of an alliance with us. We are ready for dialogue with all political parties and we are still in the beginning of the process. We are setting the grounds, the programmes and the means for coordination.
It is possible that we prepare a joint list although the election law does not encourage parties to come together.
The Republican Party has its presidential candidate for the elections. Takatol is a part of an alliance. Will each party nominate its own candidate or will you agree on one candidate?
I consider that the essence of the subject is to set a common ground and coordinate field actions. I have a message for the public opinion which I must deliver. There is a rising force which is in the process of formation. It is playing the mediator role between the various political parties.
As for individuals, the ballot boxes will be the judge. We can agree on one candidate who may have better chances to win in these elections but not on one who would be nominated to push for the legislative election campaign of his party, which is also legitimate.
When there are dialogue channels, especially trust bridges between parties, and when it is not just a personal or individual issue, solutions become possible, at least from our side.
Is there a possibility of rapprochement with the Nidaa Tounes Party in an electoral or strategic alliance?
I personally rule out the possibility of rapprochement with Nidaa Tounes because there is no agreement, neither with a program nor on the bipolarity strategy; not to mention the hostilities shown by this party towards the Troika, of which we were a part.
In contrast, we do not hold animosity toward any party but we fear the return of the tyranny system and this is a threat to the Tunisian experience, which could lead to the relapse of the revolution.
Will tyranny return through the Nidaa Tounes Party?
Yes, if there isn’t enough awareness inside the party. Twenty or thirty years of tyranny have become deeply rooted among many members. It is difficult to convince them of democracy but the premise of the evolution of thought and practices remains alive.
You strongly defended chapter 167 in the election law, which excludes the participation of Ben Ali’s government officials from participating in the legislative elections. Are you going to strongly support the immunization of the revolution law?
On more than one occasion we have said that we are against collective punishment and exclusion and we have always insisted on the principle of national reconciliation. The first and main goal is to be loyal to the revolution and its martyrs. More important is to disengage with the tyranny system and this goal can be achieved without violence.
Chapter 15, which was approved by the High Independent Election Commission, is a preventive measure, which stipulates that those involved with the former regime shall be dealt with according to the Transitional Justice Law.
Chapter 167 includes the same stipulation. It is a preventive process less burdensome than chapter 15 because it cancelled the exclusion phrase. It is different from the immunization of the revolution law with an injunction nature and it lacks a preventive philosophy.
Everyone remembers that I did not allow passing it because I was afraid that it would disrupt national consensus in the country.
Why do you oppose the immunization of the revolution law and support chapter 167?
I personally voted for chapter 167. The fallacy is that some of the media outlets did not well distinguish between the immunization of the revolution act and chapter 167. They considered our voting in favour of this chapter as a repudiation of our position against the immunization of the revolution bill, although our stances are firm and are in harmony with our previous stances.
I personally consider that chapter 167 is the least to be done to protect the goals of the revolution and give more chances for the breaking up with the tyranny project. History will show if we were wrong or right.
Is there a possibility to renew the dialogue with Ennahda in the future?
The dialogue is open with all parties and I consider that we have lived through a model experience which we should today objectively assess. There were mistakes on several occasions. Perhaps, some leaders of the Ennahda Movement became conceited when they won the elections. However, our observation of the development of the movement throughout its ruling period show that it was well interacting with those who opposed it and even with its enemies. This is very positive.
Even those who used to criticize the movement acknowledged its pioneer role in some issues. Sheikh Rashid Ghannouchi has played a decisive role in bringing the country out of the tensed situation. This development in dealing with the situation opens reassuring prospects for Tunisia because it has gained experience in crisis management.
Will you resign from the presidency of the Constituent Assembly in case you run for the presidency?
The country’s experience has shown that the stability of the entire country revolves around the Constituent Assembly. It is the source of power, but if the assembly is dissolved, what will be the institution which will perform its tasks in the coming period? We consider that the NCA is making parties who never accepted the October 23 system unhappy. Those who call for the dissolving NCA have bad intensions.
Regarding the resignation from the presidency of NCA, this is not a legal rule for the presidential elections’ candidacy. It is not obligatory. Within the context of the on-going competition, if I stay in my position, I will be accused of using the NCA privileges and my influence as its president. I want to avoid all this in order not to threaten and disrupt the stability of the country and this is why I will leave my duties in the NCA. I consider that these calls and this excessive insistence are inappropriate.
What is the reason behind your recent visit to Washington? Were you seeking to reap the consensus of Tunisia’s friends to support your nomination for the presidency?
It was a private visit which falls under what is called parliamentary diplomacy. I went there because I was invited together with other civil society organizations. It was an opportunity to make contacts with some US organizations and some Congress members. We reached some agreements and I met with the Tunisian community in the US.
Have you been happy with your performance throughout the constituent period?
My conscience is relieved. Perhaps there were a few setbacks but I put in a lot of effort during this period. I am proud because I was able to bring the Tunisian people closer to each other and, to a certain extent, I contributed to easing tensions and brought the country out of some crises. Much of this was not publicized but it happened and it benefited the country. We were able to come out of this delicate phase with the least possible costs.
*This interview was conducted before Tunisia’s election authority proposed election dates for this autumn: parliamentary elections on October 26, 2014 and presidential elections on November 23, 2014.
