HuMENA for Human Rights and Civic Engagement publishes this position paper in a context where Tunisia’s civic and media space is undergoing a cumulative transformation, shaped by judicial, administrative, and financial measures that are reshaping the relationship between public authorities and independent institutions.
The case of journalist Zied El-Heni, which forms the immediate basis of this paper, is not treated as an isolated incident. The verdict issued against him on 7 May 2026, sentencing him to one year of enforceable imprisonment under Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code, forms part of a broader trajectory that also includes the suspension of the Tunisian League for the Defense of Human Rights, the suspension of Avocats Sans Frontières, and the prosecution of several journalists and human rights defenders under general criminal provisions.
Since its establishment, HuMENA has worked on monitoring civic space and media independence across the Middle East and North Africa. This paper forms part of HuMENA’s ongoing monitoring of Tunisia’s legislative and institutional environment since 2022, particularly the use of Law-Decree 54 of 2022 and Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code in cases related to journalistic expression, alongside the administrative suspension of civil society organizations.
The paper provides a legal and human rights analysis grounded in Tunisia’s 2022 Constitution, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and General Comment No. 34 of the UN Human Rights Committee. It does not seek to replace ongoing judicial proceedings. Rather, it examines how general criminal provisions are being applied to journalistic conduct in place of the specialized legal framework governing press and publication, particularly Law-Decree 115 of 2011.
The paper finds that the case of Zied El-Heni is part of a broader pattern affecting journalists, media outlets, and human rights organizations since 2023. This pattern combines legal, administrative, and security tools, and contributes to the narrowing of Tunisia’s civic and media space.
It also argues that Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code and Law-Decree 54 of 2022 are being used as primary instruments to criminalize legitimate journalistic expression, in breach of the specialized legal framework governing the profession. The sidelining of Law-Decree 115 of 2011 weakens the procedural and substantive safeguards that are supposed to protect journalistic work and media independence.
The paper further notes that the provisions used in these cases contain vague formulations that undermine the principles of legality and legal certainty, opening the door to divergent judicial interpretations. The cumulative effect is a shrinking of civic and media space, the reinforcement of self-censorship, and direct consequences for the public’s right to access information and for democratic accountability.
HuMENA calls on the Tunisian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Zied El-Heni and quash the verdict issued against him. It further calls on the authorities to restore the standing of Law-Decree 115 of 2011 as the specialized legal framework governing journalistic work, and to review Law-Decree 54 and Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code to bring them into conformity with international human rights standards.
HuMENA also calls for the immediate lifting of the suspensions imposed on the Tunisian League for the Defense of Human Rights and Avocats Sans Frontières, and for an end to the use of administrative procedures as tools to restrict the work of independent human rights organizations.
The position paper addresses the Tunisian authorities, United Nations mechanisms, Member States of the Human Rights Council, the European Union and Tunisia’s bilateral partners, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and international press freedom organizations. It provides each of these actors with specific and actionable recommendations.
