Amnesty Tunisia attempting to 'eliminate NGOs altogether'

Amnesty on Monday slammed what it called Tunisia's "attempts to use judicial means to eliminate NGOs altogether", denouncing an "intensified" crackdown on rights groups in the North African country.

At least 25 NGOs -- including a Nobel Peace Prize -- winning group -- in Tunisia have faced temporary bans over the past year while others were under the threat of dissolution, Amnesty said in a statement.

Tunisian authorities have often cited funding and audit irregularities while delivering the suspensions, but critics say the measures aim to stifle freedoms.

"What began with intimidation, arbitrary restrictions, asset freezes, and politically motivated criminal prosecutions targeting staff or board members has now evolved into attempts to use judicial means to eliminate NGOs altogether," Amnesty said in a statement.

"Over the past two years, authorities have increasingly targeted organisations working on human rights, migration, anti-racism, election monitoring, corruption, media freedom and social justice," the group said.

Last month, the Tunisian League for Human Rights, which won the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize along with three other groups, had its operations suspended for 30 days.

And last week, the local branch of prominent international NGO Avocats Sans Frontieres was targeted by a similar measure.

Al Khatt, an organisation overseeing Tunisia's most important independent investigative outlet, Inkyfada, currently faces dissolution.

Proceedings against the organisation opened on Monday but the court adjourned the hearing to June 1.

Last week, UN high commissioner for human rights Volker Turk called on Tunisian authorities "to lift all arbitrary restrictions on the freedoms of expression and association", warning against a "growing trend" of sanctions on rights groups in the country.

Tunisia emerged from the Arab Spring as a democracy, but democratically elected President Kais Saied staged a sweeping power grab in 2021 and rights groups have since criticised a major rollback of freedoms.

Saied has accused NGOs of receiving suspicious funds in "huge sums" from abroad, which he has called "blatant interference" in Tunisian affairs.