A photo posted by the son of the Tunisian interior minister, Taoufiq Sharafeddine, sparked controversy on Tunisian social media.
According to some reports, as soon as the photo spread, Tunisians commented on social networks on the decision of the Tunisian authorities to grant the minister’s son an exclusive, illegal privilege.
Mohab Karui, Executive Director of I’m Watching, published a blog post explaining that only the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Speaker of Parliament hold a diplomatic passport. Others called on Interior Minister Tawfiq Sharaf al-Din to be held accountable and removed from office for violating the law.
Tunisian journalist Alaa Zaatour criticized the interior ministry’s decision to issue the minister’s son a diplomatic passport and said: “At the time the minister’s son was being issued a diplomatic passport, airport security prevented parliamentarian Jamila Al-Kissi from leaving.”
Some reminded the President of the Republic of his duty to intervene in such situations: “We hope that the position of Qays Said will be similar to his position in the case of the use of an official car by his daughter, who is under the guardianship of the minister. “. Another tweeted: “At a time when people are drowning at sea aboard death boats in search of the living, the sons of ministers are being issued diplomatic passports.”
Some have pointed out that such a scenario caused the fall of the previous Tunisian government led by Hisham Al-Mashishi after a number of ministers released photos while in a tourist resort at a time when the people were going through a suffocating economic crisis and suffering from the spread of the Corona virus for more than years ago, referring to the fact that this incident could be the beginning of the end of the current government.
Commenting on the uproar that accompanied the photo of his diplomatic passport, Qays Sharaf al-Din, son of Interior Minister Tawfiq Sharaf al-Din, posted a second photo in which he commented sarcastically on one of the comments and said: “Obtaining a diplomatic passport was in accordance with the law “. On this occasion, former minister Hatem Al-Ashi posted a post on Facebook in which he explained that Tunisian law allows each minister to receive diplomatic passports for his children and wife, which are transferred at the end of his duties in the ministry to be given to the minister who succeeds him. According to him, al-Ashi believes that the current unrest is free and caused by ignorance of Tunisian law, and their goal is to sow chaos in the days before the referendum.