At a time when an atmosphere of breakthroughs, victories and reconciliations prevails in our Arab life, and the pages of the harsh conflict for which our peoples paid dearly are turned, we deplore the Tunisian authorities’ arrest of prominent leaders, foremost among them Sheikh Rashid Ghannouchi, head of the Ennahda Movement, Professor Essam Chebbi, head of the Republican Party, and a number of political and partisan opposition figures. At a time when Tunisia, like all our Arab countries, needs a comprehensive and frank internal dialogue on various contentious issues in order to find solutions to all the political, economic and social problems facing those countries. It also needs to reject the approach of exclusion, which has only brought misfortune to its owners and the country in general.
From a position of concern for ancient Tunisia and its commitment to the causes of its nation, we call for the immediate release of all political prisoners and the start of a comprehensive Tunisian dialogue that puts the country on the path to resolving all its problems.
(Signatories are in alphabetical order).
1 – a. Bishara Merhej, Acting Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Al-Quds International Foundation.
2- Mr. Hamdeen Sabahi
Secretary General of the Arab National Conference.
3- A. Khaled Al-Sufyani
General Coordinator of the National-Islamic Conference.
4 – Dr. Ziad Hafez
Former Secretary General of the Arab National Congress.
5 – a. Abdul Qadir Ghoga, former Secretary General of the Arab National Congress
6 a. Majdi Al-Maasrawi
Former Secretary General of the Arab National Congress.
7 – a. Maan Bashour
Former Secretary General of the Arab National Congress.
8- Mr. Mounir Shafiq
Former General Coordinator of the National-Islamic Conference.