Chaima Jebali

Summary

Human rights activist Chaima Jebali took part in a peaceful demonstration in Tunis on 22 July 2022 to denounce the referendum process and to protest against the draft constitution that President Kais Saied put to a referendum. These protests saw a number of acts of repression and police violence against the young men and women protesting, among them Chaima, who was beaten and suffocated by the density of the gas.

Personal Information

Name: Chaima Jebali

Nationality: Tunisian

Status: Human rights defender and political activist

Incidents of Violation

On 22 July 2022, activist Chaima Jebali took part in a protest called by a number of young people and civil society organisations to demonstrate on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in order to denounce the new draft constitution, which the President of the Republic had drafted single-handedly and put to a referendum. During the protest, police forces targeted a number of the young men and women taking part in the protest in order to arrest them. Chaima was present while the police were arresting one of the activists, and as she tried to free him from their hands and demand his release, a police officer sprayed an incapacitating gas, "burning pepper spray", which caused her to suffocate and be unable to breathe, in addition to burning skin inflammation whose effects remained on her body for several hours. According to her testimony, the gas caused inflammation in her eyes that prevented her from seeing clearly for hours, which led her to go to hospital to receive treatment, where the doctors told her that this type of burning gas causes vision problems and does serious damage to the eyes as soon as it comes into contact with them.

Human Rights Violations

What happened to activist Chaima Jebali constitutes a violation of the right to peaceful assembly and protest, a human right guaranteed by all international laws and norms. Moreover, freedom of demonstration is a right guaranteed by the 2014 Constitution of the Tunisian Republic. The UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force also provide that law enforcement officials shall, as far as possible, apply non-violent means before resorting to the use of force, which was not the approach taken in dealing with the protests of 22 July 2022, in terms of the number of police officers present and the restrictions imposed on demonstrators, as well as the manner in which protesters were treated and the density of the gas used, which caused cases of suffocation and skin inflammation among a number of those affected who were present at the gathering.

Sources

This case was documented on the basis of the presence of Intersection Association researchers on the spot during the protest, as well as the testimony given by the victim of the violation to Intersection Association by telephone.