Tunisia Free Man Wey Dem Condemn To Death Because Of Facebook Post

One Tunisian man, Saber Ben Chouchane, don free few days after dem sentence am to death for court over Facebook posts wey dem talk say offend President Kais Saied, na wetin him lawyer talk on Tuesday. Di 51-year-old man bin dey face charge like “spreading false news,” lawyer Oussama Bouthelja yarn . Di Paris-based Tunisian human rights group CRLDHT talk say di verdict na serious precedent and say Tunisia don reach serious level for human rights wahala. Bouthelja yarn say na Monday night to Tuesday, di man family tell am say e don return house. E still dey wait for court update about how dem take free am since dem detain am January 2024, but e talk say di last thing e do as lawyer na to file appeal on Friday. Di court for Nabeul, east of Tunis, give di verdict last Wednesday.

Ben Chouchane bin dey guilty for “insulting president, justice minister and judiciary,” and some of im posts dem say na incitement. Bouthelja talk say e shock, e no believe di verdict at first. Tunisian law talk say any attack wey wan change state structure or make people fight with weapon, cause chaos, kill and rob for Tunisia, na death punishment e get. Tunisia still dey give death sentence but no carry out execution since 1991. President Saied come power for 2019 after Tunisia come out as only democracy from Arab Spring, but for 2021 e take heavy power for im hand. Rights group don dey warn say freedom dey reduce. Decree 54 wey criminalize “spreading false news” come out September 2022, and e dey stop free speech. Many wey dey criticize Saied don land jail under dis law.