Tunisia Trying To Build Democracy

The Washington Post reports:

TUNIS — In this low-slung colonial city of whitewashed buildings, cars career down lanes reserved for trolleys and black-market street vendors have clogged the sidewalks, sometimes erupting into turf battles that make pedestrians scramble for cover. Tunisian flags flutter on balconies, and graffiti on the main avenue read: “Thank you, Facebook.”

Three months after it launched the first in a series of revolts across the Arab world, Tunisia is perched delicately between revolutionary exuberance and chaos. Tunisians are proud that their sit-ins ousted a longtime dictator and, a few weeks later, a prime minister associated with the old regime. They use words like “freedom” and “democracy” liberally.

But in this Mediterranean nation of 10 million, few have real experience with these concepts. For 23 years, authoritarian leader Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali made the decisions for them. Now that he is gone, Tunisians must figure out how to rule themselves.

Their first attempt is scheduled for July, when the country will vote on a 200-member assembly that will elect temporary leaders and write a constitution in anticipation of new elections.

Until then, a weak interim government is in place, while a coalition of politicians, civil society representatives and legal experts rush to hammer out a new electoral code.

They are getting advice from international groups, but the future is inTunisian hands.

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