A Tunisian court has sentenced a 51-year-old man to death for Facebook posts deemed insulting to President Kais Saied and threatening to state security, in a ruling that has sparked widespread condemnation from rights groups and legal observers.
The man, identified as Saber Chouchen, was convicted on charges of attempting to overthrow the state, insulting the president, and spreading false information online. The verdict was issued under Tunisia’s controversial 2022 cybercrime law known as Decree 54, which criminalizes the publication or distribution of “false news” or statements considered offensive to public authorities.
Chouchen, who was arrested in January 2024, allegedly shared several posts on Facebook that criticized the president and the government. His lawyer, Oussama Bouthelja, said Chouchen is a low-income worker with limited education and no significant social media following, arguing that his posts were copied from other pages and did not incite violence.
Human rights advocates have condemned the death sentence as an extreme punishment for online expression. “This verdict marks a dangerous escalation in Tunisia’s crackdown on dissent and free speech,” Amnesty International said in a statement, calling for the ruling to be overturned.
Although Tunisia still allows capital punishment in its penal code, the country has maintained a moratorium on executions since 1991. The death sentence is therefore expected to be appealed and is unlikely to be carried out, but it highlights what critics describe as the government’s increasing use of harsh laws to silence opposition.
President Saied, who has ruled by decree since suspending parliament in 2021, has repeatedly denied allegations of authoritarianism, insisting his actions are necessary to restore order and combat corruption. (Newswire)
