The recent detention of politician Ayachi Hammami represents a new escalation in Tunisia’s ongoing repression of opposition voices
Tunisian police have detained prominent opposition politician Ayachi Hammami at his residence to enforce a five-year prison sentence, following an appeals court decision that upheld convictions against dozens of government critics accused of conspiring against state security.
The court confirmed prison terms ranging from four to 45 years for political opponents, business figures, and lawyers alleged to have plotted to overthrow President Kais Saied, who has been targeting dissenting voices for years.
In a video posted by his family on Facebook shortly before his arrest, Hammami — who served as Tunisia’s human rights minister in 2020 — said, “If you are watching this, I have been arrested.”
He added, “I have spent years defending democracy, freedom, and human rights. I will turn my prison cell into another front in this struggle,” announcing his intention to begin a hunger strike.
His detention comes days after another opposition figure, Chaima Issa, was arrested during a demonstration in Tunis to enforce her 20-year sentence in the same case.
The large-scale prosecution involves roughly 40 individuals, including former senior officials and ex-intelligence chief Kamel Guizani.
Opposition groups say the accusations — such as attempting to destabilise the state and overthrow the government — are fabricated and are being used to silence dissent through judicial means. They argue the case illustrates Tunisia’s slide into deeper authoritarianism.
Najib Chebbi, leader of the National Salvation Front — the main opposition coalition — is also expected to be detained soon after receiving a 12-year sentence. Twenty defendants have already fled abroad and were convicted in absentia, making this one of the largest political trials in Tunisia’s recent history, according to analysts.
Although President Saied denies exerting influence over the judiciary, he stated in 2023 that judges who cleared the accused would be considered collaborators.
Human rights organisations have sharply criticised the verdicts. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called for the sentences to be overturned, arguing they are politically driven.
Reacting to the appeals court decision on November 28, Amnesty’s Deputy MENA Director Sara Hashash said:
“The Tunis Court of Appeal’s decision to uphold these unjust convictions in the so-called ‘conspiracy case’ is a damning reflection of the state of Tunisia’s justice system… the court has blatantly disregarded the extensive fair-trial violations that have tainted this sham case from the outset.”
Saied dissolved parliament in what critics describe as a “coup” in July 2021 and has since ruled by decree. Many of those powers later became part of a new constitution approved in a widely boycotted 2022 referendum. In addition, journalists, activists, and lawyers critical of the president have been prosecuted under a 2022 “fake news” law.
The crackdown has led to the imprisonment of prominent political figures across the spectrum, including Jawhar Ben Mbarek, co-founder of the main opposition coalition; Issam Chebbi, head of the centrist Al Joumhouri party; Rached Ghannouchi, leader of the Ennahda Party and former speaker of parliament; former Prime Minister Ali Larayedh; and Abir Moussi, leader of the Free Constitutional Party.
