African Country Web Page

COUNTRY	POPULATION	SIZE (square miles)	POPULATION DENSITY (# of people per square mile)
USA	301,139,947	3,539,225	85
TUNISIA	10,276,158	59,985	171

In 1881 the French put their troops in Tunisia and made it a “protectorate” of the county to help them with their heavy debt. They also colonized Tunisia to protect their interests in Algeria. Overall, France treated the indigenous people with little respect because they forced their government and way of life on the people. This was proven by the unrest in the country in the next few years.

The French coming in did not benefit the Tunisians due to the fact that they still had trouble finding jobs and they had to bend to France's rules, laws and form of government. This fact was enforced by the French’s military presence in the country and the removal of Habib Bourguiba, a popular politician, who was exiled to Egypt. Over time this created national unrest, among the people, towards the French and their government.

Tunisia won its independence in 1956, but it was only after years of civil unrest and conflict with the occupying French government and military. Nationalist agitation provided the push they needed to win their independence and for France to recognize their sovereignty. On July 25^th, 1957 the constituent assembly deposed the “bey,” the local Tunisian ruler, as the country took steps to become a republic. The assembly also elected Habib Bourguiba as the country’s first president.

Even though Tunisia was given their independence, the French had not entirely left. They left their navy at the city of Bizerte on the coast. This military presence strained the French’s relations with the governing party, led by Habib Bourguiba, and caused a violent confrontation in 1961. After the confrontation in 1961, it became evident that the Tunisian people wanted the French military to leave too. Even after the French navy left in 1963, things were hard for the new government. The new president tried some reforms to help the country produce more food and to make their economy better, but they didn’t work because the way they did it was hard on the people. Also, the people doing the reforms were corrupt. This resulted in the reforms stopping in 1969. Today, Ben Ali, the current president, is one of the ten most hated enemies of the press and media. I think that the country is an unstable country because they are probably still in debt and may be struggling with terrorists like the group of terrorist called al-Qaeda, who bombed a synagogue on the island of Djerba killing 16. I also believe the country still has some human rights problem today. Also, with Ben Ali and his very structured laws, I believe it doesn’t allow for political disagreement with his government.

I think Tunisia might be different today in that it would not be a republic if it had not gained their independence from France. I say this because before the French arrived, the country was ruled by a select group of individuals and not the people overall. I also believe that if Habib Bourguiba hadn’t been elected president, the rights of women in Tunisia, an Arab nation, wouldn’t have happened. The country probably wouldn’t have any links with the Western World, including the USA, because that only happened after the election of President Bourguiba. I think the presence of the French in Tunisia wasn’t appreciated by the people while they were there, but it resulted in the country’s independence and the development of a new government. If none of this had happened, I think Tunisia would still be experimenting with different types of governments or still be under the control of the “bey” without true representation of and for the people.