The defense team for the leader of the Tunisian movement Ennahda, Rachid Ghannouchi, has denied allegations that the movement received foreign funding. They have accused the authorities of exerting pressure on the judiciary after a verdict was issued sentencing Ghannouchi and the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rafik Abdessalem, to three years in prison.
At a press conference on Monday, defense team member Zainab Al-Brahimi stated that “the Central Bank confirmed that Ennahda did not receive any foreign funding and did not transfer any amounts abroad.” Another defense team member, Mukhtar al-Jamaoui, emphasized that “Ennahda is aware from contracts that it is being targeted and is careful not to commit any legal mistakes.”
Al-Jamaoui added, “The case was hastily fabricated to settle political scores and is a model of procedural violations and encroachment on the rights of defense, affecting the court and the judiciary in the era after July 25th,” referring to the political transition witnessed by Tunisia following exceptional measures taken by President Kais Saied.
In response, Ennahda’s spokesperson, Imad al-Khamiri, stated that the movement submitted its records to the Court of Auditors and there is no evidence of receiving funds from abroad.
Al-Khamiri argued that “the political authority is targeting the opposition instead of seeking the missing conditions for democracy,” adding that “the verdicts against Ghannouchi come after significant pressure and threats faced by the judicial authority.”
Details of the Verdict
Last Thursday, a Tunisian court sentenced Ghannouchi and his son-in-law, Rafik Abdessalem, a prominent figure in the party and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, to 3 years in prison with immediate effect in a case related to “accepting financial donations from a foreign party.”
The court also imposed a fine of approximately 3.6 million Tunisian dinars (about 1.1 million dollars) on the party.
The prosecution of political parties due to foreign funding suspicions is related to doubts regarding local entities receiving foreign funding to support their promotional campaigns in the 2019 elections.
The judiciary began investigating the case in July 2021, targeting entities including Ennahda, the “Heart of Tunisia” party, and the “Tunisian Living” association (a non-governmental organization).
On April 17, 2023, Ghannouchi was arrested following a raid on his residence before the Court of First Instance in Tunis ordered his imprisonment in a case of “statements attributed to him inciting against the security of the state.”
Since February 11, 2023, authorities have carried out a series of arrests targeting opposition leaders and activists, which some consider as an “overthrow of the constitution of the revolution (2014 constitution) and the consolidation of absolute individual rule,” while others see it as “a correction of the trajectory of the 2011 revolution” that ousted former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
