The oversized graffiti of presidential candidate Beji Caid Essebsi in the center of Barcelona Square in Tunis’ central train station can be seen by thousands travelling through the capital’s hub. “We Love our Bejbouj,” a nickname used by Essebsi’s supporter adorns the image.

Many Essebsi opponents were provoked by the mural because the two artists who created it are known for their opposition to the regime and their faith in art as a means of resistance.

The oversized graffiti of presidential candidate Beji Caid Essebsi in the center of Barcelona Square in Tunis’ central train station can be seen by thousands travelling through the capital’s hub. “We Love our Bejbouj,” a nickname used by Essebsi’s supporter adorns the image.

Many Essebsi opponents were provoked by the mural because the two artists who created it are known for their opposition to the regime and their faith in art as a means of resistance.

One of the two artists justified his actions with a post on Facebook: “We are poor and the regime is making us poorer. It is ok if we steal some money from it.” This sparked controversy between Essebsi supporters, who support the grafitti, and his opponents, who believe the graffiti artists are merely selling out.

On social networking sites, where election campaign pages resort to all kinds of tactics like distorting images of opponents, using any piece of information to promote a candidate or undermine his opponent, one of the graffiti artists manipulated the Essebsi graffiti to look like a mummy under which read: “Vote for the mummy.” Essebsi is 87 years old.

A group called New Generation posted its disapproval of Essebsi’s graffiti: “The art of graffiti is a rebellious art against all restrictions. It is an art of resistance, which has been transformed from criticism to political and electoral publicity; it was transformed from the marginal back alley to influence and dazzle centers in an intersection between capital and politics.”

Twenty-four-year old Hilmi Daroum, an artist, told Correspondents: “We do not care about those who attack us.  We were the ones who started the graffiti art.” Defending his own choices and those of his friends, he added “We can draw a line between our political views, which generally drift away from the prevailing politics and the regime, and they will always be against the regime, capital and politicians, and between our work from which we make our living.”

Daroum considers himself and his colleagues as professionals who work with production companies, and their work includes not only graffiti but also drawing and decoration. 

“We did not sign a contract with Essebsi, but rather with a production company which contracted us to prepare this huge graffiti. We will also do graffiti on the wall against Essebsi, when it is necessary for us to do so,” said Daroum.

Rap music was also present in the election campaigns and political celebrations, as it attracts the participation of young voters and children.

By chairing the African Football Club, one of the oldest sports clubs in Tunisia,Slim Riahi, the Free Patriotic Union Party leader was able to attract a large number of the African club football fans, including rapper Kavon.

Yet Kavon was subject to condemnation for aligning himself with Riahi. Many accused Kavon of not being loyal the principles of his songs, and users of social networking sites expressed regret for supporting Kavon when he languished in prison for nine months on charges of consuming a narcotic substance before his release in March 2014.

With the acceleration of the rhythms of the presidential campaigns, the candidates’ programmes and popular meetings revealed the names of other rappers who stepped inside the political arena, such as Balti, a rapper, who sang in one of Beji Caid Essebsi’s popular meetings. 

Support and backing of presidential candidates was not limited to popular celebrations.  Some rappers produced new songs calling people to vote for certain candidates. 

Among the supporters of presidential candidate Mohamed Moncef Marzouki, the interim president, is a song by rapper El General entitled ’24,’ which is the electoral number of Marzouki, which has started to spread. Famous for his song ‘Rais Lebled’ El General’s lyrics were critical of then President Ben Ali and led to his imprisonment until the 2011 revolution.

Rappers Clay PPG and Armada Bizerta, for example, resisted the trend of participating in the elections.  Clay produced two songs, the first was entitled ‘We are not for sale,’ which describes his stance regarding political parties and politicians and makes fun of those who have joined them.

Malek Khamiri, Armada Bizerta group, told Correspondents: “We are a resistance art group, and we do not justify that some of the rappers earned their living through politics. We understand how some artists may use such methods in the absence of a structured sector, which guarantees a decent life to rappers as well as other artists. There are no music companies and no music industry!” he said. 

“Despite that, we have been forcibly implicated in political bickering. The Anta al-Sawt (You are the Voter) song, produced by the United Nations in the 2011 elections, which brought together committed artists during the election meetings of Slim Riahi, Beji Caid Essebsi and Moncef Marzouki, was used without consulting us or asking for our opinion,” he added.

Badiaa Bouhrizi, a politically committed singer, said that artists have the right to have their own political affiliations. However, she admitted that political alliances can prove complicated. “An artist may lose many of his fans because he disagrees with their political opinions, and he cannot deny certain political stances which he takes or his support to certain politicians.”