The Tunisian society is currently witnessing a dangerous phenomenon known as femicide, the latest in a series of violence against women. For years, the Intersection Association for Rights and Freedoms and feminist organizations have been sounding the alarm, but this phenomenon continues to escalate. Since 2018, the number of femicides has increased sixfold, reaching over 27 cases only in 2023. As of mid-June 2024, eight cases have already been recorded, the latest being the brutal murder of a 30-year-old mother of two in Kairouan, who was gruesomely killed in public.
On June 29, 2024, two attempted femicides were reported: one involving a woman being set on fire by her husband, resulting in severe burns, and the other involving a woman and her mother being hit by a car driven by her ex-husband, causing significant injuries. The Intersection Association highlights the state’s indifference towards this issue, the culture of impunity, and the absence of a strategic response, which has led to an increasing threat to all women.
Despite the existence of Law No. 58 of 2017 to combat violence against women, which guarantees women the right to protection and necessary care, the lack of effective implementation and the state’s silence on this growing phenomenon has rendered it ineffective. The Tunisian government also fails to acknowledge that these crimes are gender-based, while economic and social inequalities persist. Women’s representation in the Tunisian parliament has decreased to 16%, and their presence in local councils to 9.3%. Additionally, the state continues to repress politically active women through arbitrary arrests while ignoring the violence and defamation they face, especially on social media.
Amid the neglect of physical, social, and economic violence, Tunisian women’s reality and fate are dominated by violence, ranging from femicide by partners to fatal accidents faced by female agricultural workers in unsafe transport conditions, exacerbated by unequal working conditions and wages.
The Intersection Association for Rights and Freedoms condemns these crimes, which amount to crimes against humanity, and expresses its full solidarity with the victims’ families and children.
We recommend:
– Implementing Law No. 58 of 2017 to protect and support women in danger, by international treaties and local laws against gender-based discrimination.
– Holding the Tunisian state accountable for the rise in femicide and ensuring the protection of all women nationwide.
– Addressing the lack of official statistical indicators, which should be provided by the Observatory on Violence Against Women, to raise awareness and avoid concealing facts.
– Dealing seriously with economic violence against women, particularly those in the agricultural sector, who face significant risks and unequal treatment.
– Noting the decline in women’s public engagement and contribution and also the erosion of their hard-won rights.
– Allocating sufficient budget for women’s protection to combat all forms of violence and reduce femicide.
– Urging civil society to increase pressure on executive and judicial authorities through protests, campaigns, and effective strategies to combat gender-based discrimination and exclusion.