Release of 23 Tunisian Activists Accused of Assisting Migrants Raises Humanitarian Concerns
Tunisian authorities released staff from the Tunisian branch of the French organization "Terre d'Asile" on Monday night after months of detention. They faced allegations of assisting migrants with illegal entry and residency in the country, a case that has sparked significant controversy both nationally and internationally.
The support committee for Sherifa Riahi, the former director of the organization, confirmed the release of all detainees and shared a video on Facebook showing Riahi leaving prison surrounded by supporters.
In a notable court development, attorney Dawood Yaqub, a member of the defense team, stated that the court imposed a two-year suspended sentence on five defendants, including Riahi. He indicated that further details of the ruling would be disclosed later, according to reports from AFP.
Prior to the hearing, the support committee emphasized that all allegations related to illegal or suspicious financial activities during the investigation had been dropped. This included claims of undisclosed funding or financial irregularities, confirming that the case did not demonstrate any legal violations or breaches of humanitarian work guidelines.
The case involves 23 defendants, including 17 members of the Sousse city council in eastern Tunisia, accused of providing facilities for the organization while two were in custody.
Initially, all defendants faced the possibility of up to ten years in prison for "conspiracy and forming an organization" aimed at aiding foreigners in illegal entry and housing migrants who had entered the country unlawfully.
Defense attorneys asserted that the defendants were engaged in legitimate humanitarian work under a program approved by the Tunisian state and conducted in direct coordination with government authorities to assist asylum seekers and migrants.
On an international level, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, urged Tunisian authorities to release Sherifa Riahi, deeming the prosecution based on false allegations linked to her advocacy for migrant rights.
The case dates back to May 2024 when the defendants were arrested alongside approximately ten other humanitarian aid workers, including prominent anti-racism activist Saadia Msbah, who was tried in December of the previous year.
Tunisia is a critical transit point for thousands of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa attempting to reach Europe via illegal maritime routes each year.
The controversy surrounding this case has intensified since February 2023, following remarks by President Kais Saied, who referred to what he described as "hordes of migrants" posing a threat to the "demographic composition" of the country, prompting widespread criticism.
These remarks led to increased tensions, with thousands of migrants being sent back or forced to flee by sea, while NGOs reported that Tunisian police had transported hundreds more to remote border areas near the deserts of Algeria and Libya, resulting in at least a hundred fatalities.
