Mohamed Ghannouchi

Mohamed Ghannouchi (Arabic: محمد الغنوشي‎ Muhammad Al-Ghannushi; born 18 August 1941) is a Tunisian politician who was Prime Minister of Tunisia from 1999 to 2011. Regarded as a technocrat, Ghannouchi was a long-standing figure in the Tunisian government under President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. He also served as the Acting President of Tunisia from 14 January 2011 to 15 January 2011, holding the powers and duties of the office nominally for the absent President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who had fled the country due to the 2011 revolution. On 15 January 2011 the presidency was declared vacant by the Constitutional Court and Ben Ali's term was officially terminated, leading to Speaker of Parliament Fouad Mebazaa taking office as Acting President. Ghannouchi stayed on as Prime Minister for six more weeks after Ben Ali's overthrow before himself resigning.

Mohamed Ghannouchi
محمد الغنوشي
8th Prime Minister of Tunisia
In office 17 November 1999 – 27 February 2011
President	Zine El Abidine Ben Ali Fouad Mebazaa (Acting)
Preceded by	Hamed Karoui
Succeeded by	Béji Caïd Essebsi
Personal details
Born	18 August 1941 Sousse, French Protectorate of Tunisia (now Tunisian Republic)
Political party	Independent (2011–present)[1]
Other political affiliations	Constitutional Democratic Rally (Before 2011)
Children	2
Alma mater	Tunis University

Political career

Ghannouchi was a member of the Tunisian parliament for the Democratic Constitutional Rally. He was the Minister of Finance from 1989 to 1992. From 1992 to 1999, he served as Minister of International Co-operation and Foreign Investment, and from 1999 to 2011 he was the Prime Minister of Tunisia,[2] making him the longest serving prime minister since the proclamation of independence, surpassing his predecessor Hamed Karoui.[2]

After the fall of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on 14 January 2011 in the wake of the 2010–2011 Tunisian uprising, he was the self-proclaimed acting President of the country for a few hours starting on 14 January 2011,[3][4] under Article 56 of the Constitution of Tunisia.[5][6] He remained Prime Minister for six weeks before stepping down.

WikiLeaks description

In a 2006 diplomatic cable from the United States that was leaked by WikiLeaks during the United States diplomatic cables leak, Ghannouchi was described as being generally popular among the population of Tunisia.[7] Ghannouchi was seen as a respected technocrat by US diplomats in early 2010, with a cable stating, "Prime Minister Ghannouchi, the respected, dilligent [sic], pragmatic, and apolitical technocrat, has served in his post since 1999 and with his reappointment appears set to surpass longevity records for senior officials since Tunisia's independence in 1956. Tunis oddsmakers had expected Ghannouchi, reportedly tired after a decade on the job, to move on, but it appears Ben Ali has come to view him as indispensable."[8] Passport, a blog by Foreign Policy, gave a different view of Ghannouchi, saying he "is not necessarily any more popular than Ben Ali, though he's not nearly as tainted by the lurid tales of corruption and excess that so damaged the ruling family. But Tunisians certainly don't respect the prime minister; they call him 'Mr. Oui Oui' because he's always saying yes to Ben Ali".[9]

Role following 2010–2011 Tunisian uprising

On 14 January 2011, before Ben Ali had fled the country during the Tunisian Revolution, Ghannouchi announced that Ben Ali had called for parliamentary elections in six months, dismissed the government, and asked him to form a new government.[10] During the evening, Ghannouchi announced that he was taking temporary control of the country on state television.[11] Ghannouchi promised to begin discussing political and economic reforms the next day.[12] Ghannouchi said he would hold new elections within sixty days, as required by the Tunisian Constitution.[13] On January 15, The Economist reported that some protesters were calling for Ghannouchi to step down.[13] On that same day, it was announced that Congress Speaker Fouad Mebazaa was taking the post of Acting President of Tunisia.[14]

Al Jazeera claimed that some lawyers disagreed with Ghannouchi's claim to power, interpreting the constitution differently, in particular referring to Article 57.[15]

Afterwards he resumed as Prime Minister and formed a new national unity government that included members of opposition parties, civil society representatives, and even a blogger, Slim Amamou, who only a week previous had been imprisoned by the regime of the deposed President.[16]

Ghannouchi resigned his membership of the RCD on 18 January. His resignation was followed by similar action by the other RCD members within the government; but on 27 January, Ghannouchi carried out a major reshuffle of the government to remove all former RCD members other than himself.

After a new wave of protests, Ghannouchi resigned as PM on 27 February 2011.[17][18] The current whereabouts of Ghannounchi to this day are unknown, but it is likely Ghannounchi is still residing in Tunisia with his family.

Awards and honors

• Knight of the Order of Independence
• Grand Cordon of the Order of the Republic
• Grand Cordon of the Order of 7 November[19]

Personal life

Ghannouchi is married and has two children.[19]

See also

• Government Mohamed Ghannouchi

References

1. "New government leaders quit ruling party". BBC. 18 January 2011.
2. "TUNISIA - Mohamed Ghannouchi". AllBusiness. 9 April 2001. Archived from the original on 1 June 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
3. "Tunisia: President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali forced out". BBC News. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
4. Chrisafis, Angelique (14 January 2011). "Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali flees Tunisia as interim president takes control". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
5. "Tunisia's Ben Ali flees amid unrest". Al Jazeera. 15 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
6. "PM replaces Tunisia president". Al Jazeera. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
7. Black, Ian (15 January 2011). "Tunisia: The WikiLeaks connection". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
8. Gray, Gordon (15 January 2010). "Ben Ali's January 14 cabinet shuffle is a nod to the U.S., but not a strategic reversal". WikiLeaks/Al Akhbar. WikiLeaks cable: 10TUNIS34. Retrieved 22 December 2018. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
9. Hounshell, Blake. "Mr. Oui Oui takes charge". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
10. "Ben Ali dismissed the government". # Ennaharonline. 14 January 2011. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2011.
11. Kirkpatrick, David D. (14 January 2011). "Prime Minister Claims Power in Tunisia as President Flees". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
12. Borzou Daragahi; Sihem Hassaini (15 January 2011). "Tunisia protests force president from power". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
13. "Mohamed Ghannouchi". The Economist. 15 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
14. "57 MUERTOS EN INCENDIO EN PRISION DE MONASTIR" [57 DEAD IN FIRE IN MONASTIR PRISON] (in Spanish). ANSA. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2011.
15. "Constitutional debate after Ben Ali". Al Jazeera. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
16. "Out with the old?". The Economist. 19 January 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
17. "Tunisian interim PM Ghannouchi resigns over protests". BBC News. 27 February 2011. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
18. Tarek Amara (27 February 2011). "Tunisia prime minister resigns after protests". Reuters. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
19. Mr Mohammed Ghannouchi Portal of the Prime ministry- Tunisia

External links

• Media related to Mohamed Ghannouchi at Wikimedia Commons
• Tunisian Government Official Website
• Transcript of Tunisian Prime Minister’s Announcement That He Has Assumed Power, The New York Times, 14 January 2011