Tunisia: Police Clash with Jobless Protestors in Radès
This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.
On April 13, 2012, police clashed with a group of young protestors from Cité El Mallaha in the port of Radès, just south of the capital Tunis and considered to be a suburb of it. The clashes started that night, a Friday, and continued into the following week. The protesters were staging a sit-in, demanding a share of some jobs which had been recently created in Radès port, near Cité El Mallaha.
The police fired tear gas at the protestors, dispersing them. They then chased them, even onto rooftops. Some protestors were detained, which led to further protests and clashes.
These clashes come just a few days after similar clashes over jobs erupted [ar] in the southern city of Moularès, and police violence against jobless protestors in Tunis.
Protesters in Cité El Mallaha in Radès. Photo from machhad.com (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Blogger Tounsiahourra tweeted [ar]:
She added [ar]:
The following video from TunisByNightt shows police invading the streets of Cité El Mallaha in Radès:
The protestors reacted by pelting security forces with stones and Molotov cocktails. And blogger Haykel tweeted:
@Haykel7: markez ecchorta fel Maléha #Rades totalement brûlé hier #tunisie #tngov
Twitter user Narjess expressed her fear about the increase in clashes between protesters and police:
@NJESSREB: La question qui se pose:vont-il prolonger l'état d urgence qui prend fin le 30 avril? #OmLaarayes #Rades #1Mai #Tourisme #Tunisie
Media blackout
Blogger Wessim tweeted [ar]:
Tounsiahourra criticized the media blackout [ar]:
Med Salah M'Barek tweeted:
@MidoxTheGeek:#Radès est à 10~15 km du siège de #TTN et aucune équipe n'a été envoyée pour couvrir les évènements !!!
Official media openness
Tunisia's television channels may have ignored the events, but the government didn't. On Twitter Global Voices Advocacy Director Sami Ben Gharbia linked to photos published on Facebook by the Tunisian Interior Ministry.
This post is part of our special coverage Tunisia Revolution 2011.
