The Ghost of the Constitutional Review in Tunisia: Authoritarianism, Transition to Democracy and Rule of Law

Abstract

The existence of a constitutional control is the essential cornerstone in any democratic system. Without a constitutional justice it is impossible to maintain a pluralist democracy with a real rule of law. The Tunisian constitutional history is emblematic of the relevance of the constitutional review. This article outlines the difficult and hampered life of the Tunisian constitutional justice that crossed two authoritarian regimes: a “revolution”; and the transition to democracy. It is in the latter phase that the creation of the constitutional court proved to be the paramount element in the passage from a procedural democracy to a substantive democracy.

‘How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Autocracy’: Kais Saied’s “Constitutional Self-Coup” in Tunisia

“…Even though Ben Ali created in 1987 a consultative institution, the Maǧlis ad-Dustūrīa , constitutional council, the president of the republic remained “guarantor of the respect of the constitution” and gave his opinion on their compliance with the supreme law.” Things did not change much when constitutional council received a constitutional status in 1996, and 2 years later, the Council ceased to be only a consultative body and its opinions had juridical value. The president of the republic still was the center of the interpretation of the constitution (Tamburini, 2021).…”

“…Things did not change much when constitutional council received a constitutional status in 1996, and 2 years later, the Council ceased to be only a consultative body and its opinions had juridical value. The president of the republic still was the center of the interpretation of the constitution (Tamburini, 2021).…”