A controversy broke out in Tunisia after the remarks of a deputy made in the middle of a parliamentary session on migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. Quickly broadcast on social networks, his intervention sparked a wave of condemnations, particularly from human rights organizations. Monday, at the Assembly of People’s Representatives, the elected representative of Sfax Tarak Mahdi spoke during an exchange with the Minister of the Interior devoted to migration issues. He denounced a “threat to social peace” linked, according to him, to irregular immigration, calling for the departure of migrants “at all costs”.
During this speech, the MP also mentioned accusations of violence targeting sub-Saharan migrants. “That an African woman is raped, that doesn’t happen, there is enough beauty in Tunisia”he declared, provoking laughter in the chamber. The sequence, widely relayed online, immediately triggered numerous reactions. In a country where the migration issue remains particularly sensitive, these comments have reignited tensions. In 2023, President Kais Saied had already sparked heated controversy by denouncing the arrival of illegal migrants, evoking a project aimed at changing the demographic composition of the country.
Several NGOs denounced serious statements. The Tunisian League for Human Rights criticized an intervention “shocking”considering that it was not a simple slippage but reflected “a retrograde mentality” trivializing sexual violence, against a backdrop of racist discourse. The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights also denounced “a blatant attack on human dignity”accusing the MP of helping to legitimize violence against women, particularly against migrants.
Faced with the controversy, Tarak Mahdi reacted in the hemicycle, ensuring that his remarks had been taken out of context. “It was never my intention to encourage or justify rape, nor to undermine human dignity,” he declared. The MP added to apologize if his remarks could have offended, evoking an attack on dignity “regardless of nationality” of the people concerned.
