Speech by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali

on the 14^th anniversary of the Change

Le Kram, November 7^th, 2001

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate

Fellow citizens,

Today, we celebrate the fourteenth anniversary of the Change of 7 November, at a juncture in time when our country is enjoying security and stability and is progressing with assurance towards the radiant future to which we aspire.

With help from God Almighty, and thanks to the perseverance of our people and its adherence to the reform and construction effort, we have managed to attain the objectives we assigned to Tunisia on the day of the Change.

Despite developments related to globalization, the lack of natural resources, the vicissitudes of our climate and inadequate rainfall for many years, Tunisia was able to come out of the deplorable situation in which it was mired before 1987 and engage into a new stage that made it possible to attain an advanced position within the group of emerging nations. It has scored some of the best results in every field, achieved unprecedented results and gains that have drawn both respect and admiration to our country in the various international circles.

As I express my thanks to Professors Charles Brown and Jean-Pierre Ezin, Presidents of the Edouard Boucher-Abdussalam Institute, as well as to Professor Miguel Virasoro, Director of the World Physical Science Institute in Trieste, for the distinction to which they have just elevated me a while ago, on behalf of that famous institution. I perceive in the honor paid to me, a testimony of consideration towards Tunisia, its efforts, and outstanding achievements in the areas of modern technologies.

I would also like to congratulate the eminent Danish astronomer, Richard West, winner of the 7 November Creation Award, paying tribute to his scientific works, while expressing our consideration for the gesture with which he perpetuated his attachment to Tunisia, by conferring our country's name on the new celestial body he has discovered in the solar system.

Fellow citizens,

As you well know, on September 11th, the world situation received a severe blow that will unavoidably have multiple repercussions.

As we reiterate our condemnation of terrorism in all its forms, as well as our feelings of sympathy and solidarity with the American people and the families of the victims, we wish to stress that this shock, however violent, should not shatter the noble values on which universal civilizations were constructed and on which international conventions and pacts were established: the values of dialogue, tolerance, and understanding, lest humanity should be drawn into a spiral of confrontation and hatred between civilizations and religions.

In our country, we have endeavored to contain the dangers of extremism and erected a project for civilization founded on the notion of the golden mean, moderation, tolerance, and solidarity... just those values advocated by Islam, in which it joins the other religions. Values that have left their mark on the various eras of our country's history. Within the rule of law, we have managed to implement a comprehensive solution, at the same time political, economic, social, cultural, and educational, with which we have removed the dangers of terrorism and violence, consolidated the underpinnings of freedom, of democratic construction, of balance, and enhanced serenity in the hearts of the citizens.

In addition, we have consistently striven, within the framework of the United Nations, of regional organizations and international groupings, as well as with our brothers, friends, and partners, to consolidate all that could serve the principles of fraternity and peace in the world and help address extremism and its causes, and combat terrorism. We have endeavored to develop cooperation and solidarity with a view to eliminating the factors of frustration and deprivation in the world, and to finding solutions to problems, chiefly to the cause of the brotherly people of Palestine to whom we shall continue to extend our determined support and active solidarity, until it recovers its full rights.

The future of world security, stability, and development depends upon the consecration of the principles of mutual understanding and tolerance between peoples. We are determined, for our part, from our own standpoint, to support all efforts aimed at attaining this noble objective.

It was in Tunis, in 1995, that the Carthage Charter on Tolerance was adopted; Carthage, a symbol of the triumph of the ideals of peace and understanding.

It is also from Tunis that we voiced in 1999 our call for the setting up of a World solidarity Fund with the aim of consolidating this humanistic orientation. We are satisfied with the wide favorable international reception with which it was met and the unanimous UN stance concerning this proposal; we hope that this project will be brought to fruition in the near future.

Besides, we have also underscored the need, in the struggle against terrorism, to spare innocent lives. We urge world leaders, the forces of good, and men of wisdom and opinion to intensify their efforts to prevent that, under the effect of transitional events, public opinion or relations between peoples should imperceptibly veer towards the resurgence of the specter of confrontation between religions, which by their very nature and their noble objectives, are sources of tolerance, dialogue, and solidarity.

Islam has no relations with terrorism. The history of our sublime religion is indeed punctuated with attitudes and examples of dialogue and wisdom that best illustrate our noble civilization, its lofty values, and its infinite goodness towards men and mankind as a whole.

As Tunis will host within the next few days an international symposium on dialogue between civilizations, organized in cooperation with the Islamic Education, Science, and Culture Organization, ISESCO, we shall strive to make this event an important step in man's constant quest for the consecration of such noble principles, and for their protection from any potential threat.

Tunisia, the land of the Zeitouna Mosque and Kairouan will pursue its efforts in this direction, with determination and assurance, for the logic of understanding and dialogue to prevail over the logic of conflict and confrontation. For Islam is a religion of moderation that reproves violence and extremism and advocates fraternization and mutual understanding. The Tunisia of the Change is one of the bastions of Islam where peace and security reign, and one of the poles of enlightened thought, as illustrated by such emblematic figures as Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Arafa, and Ibn Achour. It is an oasis of peace and stability and a land of hard work and creative effort.

Based on our firm belief that mankind, with all its religions and civilizations, can avail itself of vast opportunities for action in favor of man's well-being, security, and stability, we hereby give instructions for a "University Chair on the Dialogue between Civilizations and Religions" to be opened with a view to contributing to the promotion of this noble mission.

Fellow citizens,

One of the constant elements of the approach we have adopted consists in exploring the future and in adapting to developments as they occur. We are following very carefully any variations in the world situation and their potential impact, to ensure a better future for Tunisia.

In this regard, we strive to consolidate the growth rate recorded during the past fourteen years, whose pace has accelerated from one development plan to the next, reaching an annual average of 5.3% during the Ninth Plan, up from 2.2% before the Change.

In addition, mechanisms for promoting employment have been reinforced since the establishment of the Tunisian Solidarity Bank and the 21-21 National Employment Fund, to address the employment challenge; so much so that our country has, for the first time ever, witnessed a decrease in the rate of unemployment.

Furthermore, we have made an important step in the implementation of the privatization program, a step to be followed by many others during the next stage. We have also encouraged the export sectors and started the implementation of a program aimed at dismantling customs duties, in expectation of the free trade zone to be set up with the European Union, following the success of the first stages of the association process. We have also widened the circle of our partners among brotherly and friendly nations, in our Maghrebi, Arab, African, and Mediterranean environment, through free-trade agreements signed with a number of such countries.

All this has been achieved within a strategy that should help, on the one hand, consolidate and promote the nation's economy, and improve the performance of its structures and mechanisms internally and, on the other, integrate it within its international environment and uphold its position globally.

Fellow citizens,

Joining the group of developed nations is no longer an inaccessible dream for Tunisian men and women. It is now a reachable goal, thanks to the gains and the achievements they have accomplished... an attainable goal in the predictable future... an objective for which we have paved the way, through our Program for the Future which we had submitted to our people during the last presidential elections, and our people granted it its unanimous support and adhered to the options it defined... a Program which we have taken steps to implement with determination and consistency; we have thus been able to advance at a quicker pace than provided for in the timetable for the Program's fifteen components.

Joining the group of developed nations, is Tunisia's venture; it is the historical challenge posed to our nation... a nation that has been, throughout history, from Carthage into the Arab and Islamic era, a land of civilization and glory, an abode for progress, science, and knowledge as well as a beacon and an influence on both shores of its Mediterranean environment.

Today, Tunisian men and women are entitled to contemplating the future with optimism and to devoting themselves to effort and hard work so as to meet the challenge with a firm will and an unyielding determination. Thus, our present generations will be a source of pride for future generations, just as our reforming predecessors, leaders, militants, and martyrs were for us; and we remember their feats with pride, from Khereddine Ettounsi, to Tahar Haddad, Abdelaziz Thaalbi, Farhat Hached, and Habib Bourguiba.

As we take this opportunity to greet the patriots and the militants who are still with us, and as we pay them our respects for their patriotic role and their continued contribution to the country's advance towards progress, we hereby announce our decision to improve their material condition, raising the militants' allowance served to them.

In the mean time, we are continuing the implementation, at a quicker pace, of our Program for the Future, at a moment in time when we are about to start the implementation of the new Tenth National Development Plan. We are thus entering a new stage... the stage of universal qualitative change... the stage that will lead to the construction of a balanced and efficient knowledge society... a society of continued development, its essential stakes being our people's intelligence and creative potential, and the capacity of its human resources to enter into all sectors of work and production and into all areas of innovation, creativity, and initiative... a society capable of adapting to world developments, of anticipating change, and assimilating innovations with all due celerity and competence.

Fellow citizens,

In all we undertake, we insist on associating all sections of society and all regions in the country, for them to contribute to the nation's efforts, for no one to stay outside the area of constructive action and for everybody to benefit from the fruits of development. There should be no exclusion, nor marginalization, as Tunisia belongs to all Tunisians.

This year, we have started a number of meetings at the level of regional councils within 'governorates', to monitor the implementation of projects and programs, explore the perspectives of development, and consolidate the progress and the living conditions of their populations.

You are no doubt aware of the important efforts exerted since the Change to develop the infrastructure, as its reinforcement has completely transformed our country and contributed to an increased mobilization of investments. In this, we have granted priority treatment to reinforcing the channels of communication between the country's various regions, expanding the network of southbound and westbound speedways, and rehabilitating the production environment, in a drive to help the various regions integrate the dynamics of the national economy.

On the other hand, in the light of our Program for the Future, and following the implementation of all projects sponsored by the National Solidarity Fund benefiting 220 thousand families, we have taken steps to implement a national plan, in which we have made major steps, aimed at eradicating rudimentary housing still subsisting in the country, by 2004.

Moreover, one of our fundamental options consists in preparing the future of the coming generations, and this is an objective which we have insisted on including in the various sector policies. This has urged us to build up, right from now, land reserves that will help meet, in the middle and the long term, the predictable needs of cities, urban areas, and industrial areas, in all the country's regions.

Fellow citizens,

Our attachment to the modernization of our national economy has urged us to grant priority status to the sector of communication technologies in our Program for the Future, as they represent an essential element in the structure of every advanced economy, as well as in the edification of the knowledge society.

We have thus striven to double the amount of investments allocated to the sector, with a total of 1,500 million dinars during the past five years; which has helped attain an 18% annual growth rate and generate 17 thousand new direct jobs.

We shall continue to consolidate and encourage private initiative, notably in promising, high value added sectors, for our national economy to attain the desired level of vitality. This objective is not out of reach, based on the enthusiasm we have perceived among the business community, as well as their efforts and the spirit of innovation they have displayed.

To provide the economic fabric with the attributes required to achieve the desired quantum leap, we hereby give instructions to mobilize additional resources for the financial restructuring of small- and medium-size enterprises included in the upgrading program.

To make it easier for such enterprises to benefit from this program, we have decided to extend by one year the procedure allowing tax-payers who have submitted all their mature declarations to make corrections and benefit from a 50% rebate on declared additional benefits and income, both concerning income tax for real persons and corporate tax; provided that the funds thus liberated are reinvested in productive activities.

To stimulate the economic activity and revitalize investment, we have decided to increase the value added tax payment rate, under investments for upgrading enterprises, stepping it up from 50% to 75%, while reducing the time period from three months to one month.

Within this framework, we hereby give instructions to streamline the modes of intervention of the Fund for the Promotion of Industrial Decentralization , by conferring increased flexibility to its interventions for new entrepreneurs.

To encourage enterprises to open their capital and benefit from the possibilities offered by financial markets, we hereby announce our decision to extend by three additional years the period granted to enterprises to register in the stock exchange and benefit from ensuing advantages.

We have also decided to streamline conditions for the management of bond savings accounts, by allowing account holders, in a number of specific situations, to withdraw some of their deposited capital during the immobilization period, without incurring late-payment penalties and also by allowing the managers of such accounts, i.e. banks and stock exchange brokers to manage such accounts collectively, according to percentages and limits applied with reference to bond savings accounts.

To stimulate savings and promote the mechanisms of life insurance, in tune with improvement in income, we hereby order that all appropriate measures be taken to encourage life insurance group contracts, by granting them the same advantages granted to individual life insurance contracts and exempting contributions from taxes owed by employers under group contracts.

We have taken numerous measures aimed at attracting foreign investment and facilitating the establishment of foreign firms in our country. Today, Tunisia enjoys a privileged position, according to assessments by specialized international organizations and bodies; a position that reflects the progress achieved by our country and the climate of stability and tranquility that is one of its characteristics.

Among the various indicators of vitality, I should like to mention the dynamism of the commercial sector despite a slow growth rate worldwide and severe climatic conditions. Indeed, the commercial sector has scored encouraging results, both internally and externally, which has contributed to ensuring the fundamental balances and reinforcing insertion within world distribution cycles, within immaterial economy, and within electronic commerce.

Fellow citizens,

During the period of the Change, the agriculture and fisheries sector has witnessed a major qualitative change that helped maintain its position within the national economic system.

We were able to attain record figures for a number of products; which has had a direct impact on the balance of food trade, as exports covered imports at an average 80% rate during the past decade, up from less than 50% during the 1980's.

Since the Change, investment in agriculture has witnessed an unprecedented dynamism thanks to measures aimed at its promotion, notably within the framework of the Investment Incentives Code and due to the extension of irrigated areas and important efforts in terms of water management, through the construction of dams, small mountain reservoirs, and the development of irrigation networks. In addition, a national strategic reserve plan was developed while progress was being made for the rationalization of production in compliance with the agricultural map. This effort will be further impelled during the coming period.

We are actively seeking to make the next stage in the process for developing agriculture and fisheries one for reaching a higher level of competence and mastering the most modern cultivation techniques.

Fellow citizens,

The environment is an essential component of our approach to development. Hence the considerable qualitative development of environmental protection and territorial development in our country.

Striving to reinforce gains and achievements in this area, we hereby give instructions for master plans to be developed for the country's economic regions, so as to revitalize their role and consolidate their own potentials.

We also order that a specific plan be elaborated for the development of small and medium cities, aimed at bringing them out of their secondary position, compared with larger cities, and by the same token to give a fresh impulse to employment and regional development, by integrating rural communities.

Now that we have been able to attain, during the previous decade, the assigned objective, which consisted in increasing the average area of green spaces per person, to reach 10 square meters per person, we call upon the various parties concerned to redouble their efforts to raise this average area to 15 square meters per person by the end of the current decade.

To further reinforce the components of urban aesthetics, we hereby order an increase in credit allocations devoted to the maintenance and preservation of green spaces, so as to uphold efforts by municipalities with medium or low resources. In addition, we insist on the need to grant increased attention to the cleanliness of our cities and to endeavor to raise the citizen's awareness of his duties in this crucial area. To this end, we have decided to set up, within the 21-21 Fund, a new mechanism that will undertake, for a limited period, and in coordination with municipalities, the "Hygiene and Environmental Protection" component, within the framework of employment of the young in public service works.

One of the essential objectives of integral development consists in improving the conditions and the quality of life. Among the essential corollaries of quality in this field, is the generalization of the sanitation network. In this regard, we have succeeded in covering, through the national sanitation program, popular districts in urban communities, 600 districts with a total population of more than one million people and in starting the sanitation of 300 new districts. The program will be pursued to cover all popular districts in the country.

Today, we give instructions to start the implementation of the sanitation program in rural areas, through the implementation of a first phase of pilot projects. We also give instructions to start work on the construction of integrated sanitation plants in small communities and, for the first time, in rural communities.

Fellow citizens,

During the next few months, we will be entering a new round of labor negotiations in the private sector, the public administration, and public enterprises, for the fifth successive time since 1990.

Dialogue between social partners represents a civilizational, political, and social option which we have placed at the forefront of our constants. This has helped us grant continued salary hikes and uninterruptedly improve working conditions, making our country a most rare example and illustrating the maturity and patriotism of social partners, chiefly the Tunisian General Union of Labor, the Tunisian Industry, Trade, and Handicrafts Union, and the Tunisian Agriculture and Fisheries Union, an their awareness of existing challenges. To these organizations and to their members, we take this opportunity to express our deep consideration.

As we have already given instructions to the government to prepare the next round of labor negotiations, we exhort all parties to work for the success of such negotiations, with all due sense of responsibility and their keenness to consolidate gains and serve the national interest while being attentive to the real or potential effects of this delicate period in the life of the world and more particularly of the international economy.

Our social policy is a fundamental component of our comprehensive approach. This we have illustrated in various fields: whether health, a sector for which national indicators have reached the highest levels, or other fields such as the remarkable evolution of the social coverage system towards the objective assigned to it in our Program for the Future, or the sector of health and security on the workplace; or, again, through the reforms now being subjected to consultations with a view to developing a health insurance system, within a framework that is in tune with the changes now taking place in Tunisian society. In this, we have not failed to pay particular attention and a deep solicitude to vulnerable sections of society, chiefly the elderly and the disabled.

As, among the fundamental themes of our Program for the Future, we have included the protection of expatriate Tunisians who, as we have invariably proclaimed , are close to Tunisia's heart, we have reinforced assistance programs benefiting their families and second- and third-generation children of emigration, whether through support to associative action or through providing more spaces devoted to expatriate Tunisian families. We have also reinforced cultural programs, meetings and symposia for their benefit, as well as the teaching of the Arabic language to their children and introducing the new generations to the principles of our civilization, to the sublime values of our religion, and to the notions of moderation, openness, and juste milieu.

We want expatriate Tunisian to be a genuine and strong factor of civilizational communication , linking Tunisia and their countries of residence. To this end, we have set up a number of mechanisms and incentives, to encourage those among them with expertise and competence to bring their contribution to the process of national development and to induce the business community to invest in Tunisia.

Fellow citizens,

Based on our forward-looking exploration of developments now taking place in the area of progress in technological and communication knowledge as well as in the areas of work and production, we have taken steps to renovate the mission of Tunisian schools at all levels of the educational system, from the pre-school grades, up to higher education, through vocational training.

This new reform of the educational system is one of the central themes of our Program for the Future. We had organized, to prepare this reform, a national survey on the school of tomorrow, to which have taken part all concerned parties.

Besides, we have exerted great efforts to implement our decision to reinforce investment in scientific research, to reach 1% of our Gross Domestic Product. We have oriented our efforts towards strategic fields, chiefly water desalination , renewable energy sources, and applied research in the various sectors of industry and agriculture. Today, we announce our decision to set up a National Advisory Council for Scientific Research, including a number of retired experts and most experienced individuals in the various sectors of science and technology who will be asked to express their views on the majors trends and main projects contemplated in this sensitive and strategic area.

Besides, it is comforting to see Tunisian schools already enter the new stage with a reassuring determination, following the decisions and adequate measures taken to bring them from a quantitative to the qualitative challenge.

Improved results at various levels, changing curricula, diversified educational streams, declining student to teacher ratios, taking into consideration educational priority areas, introducing modern techniques in the administration of schools, vocational training facilities, and universities, as well as extending connection to communication networks, illustrate the progress achieved by the Tunisian educational system which we will strive to uphold during the coming stage.

As part of the new reform of the educational system, we have ordered a radical review of teaching periods, timetables, and subject matter, as well as of the evaluation and examination system, in accordance with modern international standards; once the surveys are over, this reform will be implemented gradually, according to a precise timetable that meets efficiency criteria.

The efficiency of the educational system is the major basic factor of competitiveness, in view of future challenges. It is indeed the source of productive intelligence and competencies, and an adequate platform to consecrate the citizen of the future in his civilizational and cultural origins, to initiate him to the values of citizenship and to the virtues of efforts, stimulating his creative talents and ingenuity, and reinforcing his aptitudes for initiative, action, and the accompaniment of change.

In addition, the knowledge society cannot emerge from a people that does not seek to acquire knowledge or the means for life-long learning. That is why we have succeeded in our struggle against illiteracy, through the adult literacy program that was met with a broad acceptance and has scored excellent results since it was started.

Fellow citizens,

Tomorrow's Tunisia is a civilizational and a historical project that could not be imagined without the effective participation of women. The gains and achievements attained by Tunisian women, since the Change, have been consecrated irremediably. Thus, in our country, women have become one of the bastions of modernity and progress as well as a factor of balanced progress for our people. This is an accomplishment of which we are deeply and legitimately proud.

For the pride of Tunisian women, we need only to mention in this regard one particularly meaningful indicator, as it shows most clearly the perspectives that lie open before them: I mean the proportion of girls in the total number of students in higher education, 52% this year while it was no more than one third in 1987. This is a percentage that consolidated the desired balance in the makeup of the labor force and the equal participation of women and men in production and in the development effort.

This comes in addition to the assistance and solicitude bestowed on the Tunisian family to preserve its interests and its cohesion, for it to be the true central cell in the social fabric.

By placing our stakes in Tunisian youth, we have made an investment in the future. Therefore, the coming stage will be characterized by more measures and initiatives aimed at broadening the area of participation of youth in the various sectors of life and the various fields of activity.

The noble feelings of loyalty, nationalism, and commitment to the nation and to the options of the change, that have been just expressed by Tunisian youth, have deeply moved me. I warmly thank all our sons and daughters who are tomorrow's generations.

Besides, we have been happy with the results achieved by the second youth survey that confirmed the deep feeling which our young have of responsibility, as well as their clear perception of the challenges to which we are confronted. We have paid all due interest to these results, in defining the orientations of the tenth development plan and its programs, most particularly those that serve employment and open new horizons before Tunisian youth, to exploit modern technologies, assimilate state-of-the-art techniques and benefit from potentials made available by the new technological poles to launch projects and enter into the spaces of the globalized immaterial economy.

A balanced training of the personality of the young and the burgeoning of their creative potentials dictate a rational exploitation of the time fringes offered, outside study and work periods, in healthy and profitable recreational activities that help their talents come to the fore. That is why we have decided to initiate a coherent recreational program for the young, in the various spaces available, whether these are devoted to youth activities or to activities of a cultural or tourist nature; the implementation of this program is expected for the near future.

Moreover, we have been extremely proud of the distinction and the honorable results scored by Tunisian sports during the last Mediterranean Games organized in Tunis. Our young deserve the trust we have placed in them and the sacrifices which the national community has made for them. We rely on their spirit of sacrifice for them to distinguish themselves again and raise Tunisia's banner high in the sky at the various international events in the future.

To consolidate the sports sector and reinforce its training and assistance resources, we hereby give instructions to double the share devoted to sports associations in income from television broadcasts of football matches, as well as an increase in the allowance paid to such associations, under the National Fund for the Promotion of Sports, provided they pledge to abide by the national plan developed in this area.

The Tunis Mediterranean Games have provided our country with an opportunity to distinguish itself by its advanced infrastructure and its efficient organization; hence it is capable of hosting international events of the highest level; we are ready to host such large-scale events based on our desire to serve the sports sector, its noble objectives, as well as the young and the future generations, both in our Mediterranean region, in Africa, and worldwide.

Fellow citizens,

One of the challenges of Tunisian culture in the future consists in consecrating new traditions in terms of production, consumption, and investment in all areas of cultural creation and production. Thus, we had decided, in our Program for the Future, to double the budget of the Ministry of Culture, to reach 1% of the state budget by 2004. From one budget to the next, we have already made important steps in this direction. We continue to strive to open more opportunities for artists, whom we have constantly surrounded with our solicitude and encouragement.

We hereby announce the establishment of a specific social security scheme for intellectuals and artists with a view to providing them with social security and retirement services, according to appropriate formulae that will be the subject of a survey which we have ordered to be carried out in the near future.

As we have decided, during the celebration this year of the national Culture Day, to organize a national survey on the topic of "Future Tunisia, as perceived by its intellectuals" which will start soon, we are confident that this survey will provide our artists and intellectuals with an opportunity to contribute to the definition of the outlines and characteristics of tomorrow's culture, the identification of challenges posed to it, and the exploration of new perspectives for our national culture and civilization.

Fellow citizens,

Since the Change, we have pledged to Tunisian men and women to lay the foundations of an advanced political life. Thus, we have introduced major reforms with which we have consolidated the rule of law and consecrated the will of the people, abrogating presidency for life and amending the Constitution to reflect this. We have also modified legislation on public life and guaranteed liberties and human rights, both in legislation and in practice.

In this way, our country has made important steps towards democracy and pluralism, following a steady course that leaves no room for rash mimetism or a jump into the unknown. This has helped our country avoid missteps and lapses, and sweep away the dangers of terrorism and anarchy. Events were thereafter to demonstrate the relevance of our options.

As we had renewed in 1999 our pledge to our people, to march forward on this road, we are determined to usher our country into a new stage that will help consolidate the republican system and its attributes and reinforce democracy, pluralism, public liberties, and human rights, so as to elevate them to the level of our ambitions, and to accompany the changes and progress witnessed by Tunisian society since the Change.

One of the foundations of democracy lies in the consecration of freedom of opinion. That is why we are constantly striving to stimulate information and to reinforce the conditions that foster the freedom of opinion and pluralism in the forums of expression. While noting with satisfaction the steps made in this direction, at the level of radio and television talk shows, as well as pluralism in the press, we want to underscore that we expect more from the press held by political parties, following the incentives we have granted to the newspapers of opposition parties, by increasing the financial allowance granted by the state, to provide for their regular publication.

In addition, the promotion of the human rights system has been pursued uninterruptedly since the Change, based on our firm belief that no progress or development can be achieved without the protection and the consecration of those rights and without the dissemination of their culture.

Having instituted the function of judge to oversee the terms and conditions of a prisoner's sentence, attached penal institutions and their administration to the Ministry of Justice, and enacted a law guaranteeing, the rights of detainees and helping toward their social integration, we today order that a bill be drafted to consolidate the competencies of the said judge by authorizing him to grant parole in cases relating to certain offenses and to follow up enforcement of the penalty of community service in place of the Directorate of Prison Services.

As the new penal system which we have instituted is not aimed only at protecting detainees and preparing their integration into normal life but also at avoiding penalty in minor offenses that are not indicative of criminal tendencies, we today decide to institute the principle of penal conciliation in such a way as to give the State prosecutor, in respect of minor offenses that do not represent a danger to society, a free hand to start a conciliation procedure which guarantees the rights of the victim and puts an end to proceedings with the agreements of all parties.

The interdependence of the economic, political and social dimensions in our approach to development has led to an extension of the scope of social security cover and an increase in the number of social insurance contributors. However, the disputes arising in the areas of retirement and social security and contingency have continued to be subjected to procedures that are incompatible with the special solicitude to which the concerned categories are entitled and with the imperative of promptness in the pronouncement of decisions. For this reason, we today announce our decision to bring about a change in the function of the family allowance judge to make him a social security judge thereby extending his field of competence to encompass all social insurance contributors without any distinction between the public and private sectors and according to simplified and rapid formalities guaranteeing the regularization of the rights of social insurance contributors by the easiest and quickest possible means.

The protection that we have provided for the child, whether through the Code of the Rights of the Child or through amendments to the Personal Status Code, proceeds from our belief in the necessity of protecting the child against all negative consequences that may result from the divorce or death of either parent.

Through the 1993 amendment to the Nationality Code, we were anxious to enable the child born out of Tunisia of a Tunisian mother and a foreign father, to acquire Tunisian citizenship simply on a joint declaration by both parents. Considering the difficulties that the Tunisian mother encounters in certain cases in obtaining the said declaration, we decide today to amend the Nationality Code to ensure that the declaration by the Tunisian mother alone will be sufficient for her child to obtain Tunisian citizenship when the father is dead, legally disabled, or absent.

The amendments we have introduced to firmly establish the rule of law have reinforced the constitutionality of laws by sanctioning the restricting nature of the opinions of the Constitutional Council, as well as the legality of administrative decisions by giving greater efficiency to the role of the Administration Court through reorganization of the said Court, establishment of the system of double degree jurisdiction in administrative matters and creation of the Court of Demarcation Disputes. Yet decrees of a statutory nature have remained to this day excluded from the application for annulment for considerations that are no longer justified. As much as we are anxious to guarantee the constitutionality of laws, we are also anxious to guarantee the legality of all administrative decisions including the decrees of a statutory nature, within the framework of the jurisdictional control relating thereto. For this reason, we today order the lifting of the exception applied to such decrees which would thus be concerned by the motion for annulment to the Administrative Court.

Since expropriation for public benefit concerns the right of possession, we have constantly set out to limit the recourse to cases in which it is established that it is impossible to acquire amicably the immovable needed for public projects.

However, the procedures followed in regard to expropriation today need to be revised so as to provide further guarantees and assurances for expropriated persons. Notably the confiscation procedures will be so improved as to guarantee the citizen's right to prompt and fair compensation in return for the expropriated immovable, and to allow the Administration to undertake the implementation of its projects within the given time.

Follow citizens,

Our commitment to Republican values is firm and unshakable. We believe in the sovereignty of the people, the primacy of the Constitution and the inviolability of the institutions. We also believe in the values of liberty, democracy, justice, pluralism and human rights.

Those are the values upon which we have built our civilizational project and which we have established in practice, reaching on this path significant stages which have completely transformed the political realities of the country and pushed the latter to a new position based on participation and pluralism at the level of parties, parliament and local government ; in addition to the extension of the field of individual and public freedoms, the strengthening of their legal guarantees, the protection of human rights, the consecration of equality between men and women, the preservation of the rights of the child and the guarantee of decent living conditions for vulnerable categories. The institutions have thus been renewed ; the attributes of the republic have been consolidated ; the political discourse has changed, the democratic exercise has progressed and civil society has occupied the place that falls to its share in any developed political life.

We have implanted solidarity and mutual aid in Tunisian society… solidarity as a human value, a moral principle and an active social link that reinforces the cohesion of individuals and groups and protects them against the risks of exclusion, marginalization and excessive disparities. That is indeed the Change that we wanted to bring about on the seventh of November… and that is the process we want to relaunch during the coming stage.

We remain always faithful to our commitments in the service of Tunisia… in the service of its glory and its development… and though the Tunisian Constitution, at the time of its elaboration at the beginning of independence, was ahead of its time, in many respects, we today announce, out of faithfulness to our commitments… for the sake of the future… for the sake of the Republic, for the sake of democracy, pluralism, human rights, the integral and balanced development of our country and the well-being of our people… we announce our intention to present a draft fundamental constitutional reform which will enable us to make a quantum leap in our political system thanks to the gains and achievements our country has made, and to pave the way for the republic of tomorrow.

As the Constitution is a fundamental document guaranteeing rights and freedoms, the draft reform will give human rights and freedoms, in the universal and comprehensive character of their principles and in the complementarity and interdependence of their dimensions, a special place in the text of the Constitution.

The draft reform will also concern the extension of protection of the individual's private life, the consecration of inviolability of communications and protection of personal data.

Being invariably committed to respect for individual freedom and on the basis of the guarantees instituted in this field since the Change, we will ensure that a mention will be made, in the proposed Constitutional amendment, of the need to submit police custody to the control of justice and to subject it to prior judicial authorization ; such procedures being thus raised to constitutional level.

Moreover, and since, in our civilizational project, we have raised national solidarity to the rank of human rights as it is indeed one of the essential underpinnings of social cohesion and of the dignity of individuals and groups, and on the basis of our constants regarding the dissemination and consolidation of the values of tolerance, the draft Constitutional reform will confirm the role of the State and society in the consecration of the values of solidarity, mutual aid and tolerance among individuals, social categories and generations.

While reaffirming our commitment to the principles set out in the November 7th Declaration and relating to abrogation of life presidency and automatic succession, being so much convinced that the will of the people could not be firmly established otherwise, and while insisting our the importance of maintaining the ceiling required in respect of the age of eligibility for the presidency of the Republic, we will apply ourselves to seeking effective means to consecrate pluralism at the forthcoming presidential elections.

The Tunisian Constitution has opted, since independence, for the principle of the presidential regime. This regime has shown proof of its ability to achieve stability of governmental action and of its efficiency in the management of power. The degree of maturity that the Tunisian experience has attained justifies our option for the promotion of our political system in anticipation of the coming stage, without renouncing its presidential character, but by bringing about some change in governmental action and in the relationship between the Government and the Chamber of Deputies, and by making the control exercised by the Chamber of Deputies over the Government more effective.

In order to consolidate dialogue between the Chamber of Deputies and the Government, and to continue the reforms introduced in this field, the proposed amendment will further include a mention of sessions of oral questions and debates on sectoral policies and problems of the hour, in the text of the Constitution which, in fact, is their natural framework.

Fellow citizens,

The conception of the forms of representation of the people at the level of the legislative power has progressed a great deal. In addition to the establishment and reinforcement of general representation, through direct election of the people's deputies, the proposed reform will be focused on a broader representation of the regions and the different components of society through establishment of a second chamber beside the Chamber of Deputies so as to enrich the legislative function and political life in general.

Being anxious to consolidate further the position of the legislative power, we intend to present a bill on administrative and financial organization of the Chamber of Deputies.

The Constitutional Council being the first institution that we established after the Change before developing it, including it in the Constitution, reinforcing its prerogatives and consecrating the restrictive nature of its opinions for all public powers, we are concerned with promoting this institution even further. To that end, the draft reform will focus on reinforcing the neutrality and independence of the members of the Constitutional Council which will have to take charge of the operations of presidential and legislative elections in all their stages.

Fellow citizens,

We have endeavored since the Change to reinforce democracy and consolidate its underpinnings. We have spared no effort to make it evolve at a confident pace. We have also worked to consolidate political pluralism by insisting on the constitutional importance of parties. The Electoral Code has thus been amended to promote the reinforcement of their presence within the Chamber of Deputies and municipal councils. Moreover, we have constantly made sure that they participate in all institutions and in all forums of dialogue and consultation.

Having had to emphasize that the progression of pluralism in our county is at the top of our personal list of priorities, and within the framework of the commitments we have made to make the law evolve concurrently with the evolution of society, we today announce our intention to present a draft amendment to the Electoral Code aimed at facilitating the operations of registration on the electoral rolls by discontinuing the current system of annual revision of the rolls and replacing it with a system of permanent revision with periodic bill-posting of electoral rolls so as to make it possible, on a permanent basis, to consult them and register on them as those rolls should only be closed as of the date of issue of the decree inviting electors to vote while maintaining the possibility of exceptional registrations as provided for in the Electoral Code.

To prevent the problems that some people raise on the distribution of voter's registration cards, we intend to take the necessary measures and make the required arrangements so that the distribution of cards, in respect of ordinary general elections may start six months before polling day while guaranteeing the right to collect them from municipalities and "omdas", sufficiently in advance as soon as the distribution operation is ended while maintaining all other guarantees including the right of electors to have their cards directly on the very polling day.

Anxious to enhance the transparency of electoral operations, and to allow all the parties engaged in the elections to control their progress, the criteria for the establishment of polling stations will be revised by fixing the number of electors for each polling station at 450 in respect of municipalities that have more than 7000 electors, instead of the current ceiling of 250 ; this measure will contribute notably to reducing the number of polling stations.

In order to facilitate the control operation for all parties even further, the proposed amendment of the Electoral Code will allow the designation of observers in the polling stations from among the persons registered on electoral rolls of other districts contrary to the current provisions of the Electoral Code which stipulate that the observer must necessarily be registered on in the electoral district where the polling station is located.

In the same context, the electoral bill will authorize the elector to sign himself the electoral rolls which are in the polling station after expressing his own vote.

Local democracy, in our opinion, cannot be dissociated from the global democratic edifice and consecrates the participation of the regions in the management of their affairs through their different components and sensibilities.

In our Program for the future, we had already announced our intention to promote the composition of regional councils so that one-third of their members may be elected from among the members of municipal councils of the region.

Now the results of the recent municipal elections have shown that the percent of seats won by the lists of opposition parties do not allow those political sensibilities to obtain seats within the municipal councils, at the election of the aforesaid one-third.

To quicken the pace toward this objective, we announce our intention to present, on an exceptional basis, a bill allowing opposition parties to be represented within the current regional councils up to a limit of 20% of their members wherever those parties have representatives within the municipal councils of the concerned region.

Fellow citizens,

It is for Tunisia that we work and make sacrifices… our prestige stems from its own within the concert of nations… our hearts beat for it… We have allegiance only for it and for it alone… and for its soil which our martyrs have soaked with their blood…

That is what we perceive each and every day on the part of all those working and persevering, all sincere and devoted patriots who heroically defend the banner of Tunisia in all fields… in both intellectual and manual works… with unfailing political activism… that is what we have noticed… and that is what has deeply impressed and touched me… in the expressions of loyalty that Tunisian men and women, all sensibilities and categories taken together, have demonstrated to me all along the past period, and the appeal they have launched to me to continue assuming the high office of the country… I warmly thank them for that… May Tunisia enjoy for ever greater glory, dignity and invulnerability… May the Republic and its institutions enjoy for ever greater strength and progress thanks to the reforms that will concern them, with God's blessing.

Long live Tunisia and glory to its people!

Almighty God has said: "Say: Do as you will, Allah will behold your works and so will His Apostle and the faithful"(Koran).