Tunisia’s authorities have intensified their crackdown on civil society, with activists and non-governmental organisation workers facing arrests, prosecutions, financial investigations and organisational suspensions, according to Human Rights Watch.
In a 49-page report released on Wednesday, the rights organisation said the measures had significantly reduced the civic space that expanded following Tunisia’s 2011 revolution.
Human Rights Watch said at least 47 people linked to NGOs have been prosecuted, while at least 10 people have been held in preventive detention for more than 14 months, exceeding the maximum period allowed under Tunisian law.
At least 14 civil society figures have been convicted and sentenced to prison following trials in 2025 and 2026. Among them is prominent human rights defender Saadia Mosbah, who received an eight-year prison sentence and a substantial fine in March on financial crime charges.
Five employees of organisations supporting asylum seekers have also been convicted over activities connected to their work, according to the report. Their organisations have subsequently stopped operating.
Pressure on migration and human rights groups
The crackdown has particularly affected organisations working on migration, refugees and discrimination.
Human Rights Watch said several employees of groups assisting refugees, asylum seekers and migrants were arrested between May and December 2024, amid heightened tensions surrounding the treatment of sub-Saharan Africans in Tunisia.
The rights group said authorities have relied on laws concerning irregular migration, counterterrorism and money laundering to prosecute activists and NGO workers.
Financial investigations have also increased pressure on civil society organisations. At the end of 2024, at least a dozen associations, including Amnesty International’s regional office and anti-corruption organisation I Watch, were notified that they were under investigation.
The investigations created significant administrative difficulties, while at least two organisations had their bank accounts frozen. Some private banks also restricted associations’ access to foreign currency and blocked or returned foreign funds.
Dozens of associations face suspension
Authorities have also targeted organisations directly.
Human Rights Watch identified at least 20 civil society associations that were suspended between July and October 2025 and again between April and May 2026, although it said the actual figure could be higher because official data was unavailable.
The organisation accused authorities of procedural irregularities, saying some associations did not receive the warnings required by law and that others received no response after submitting their explanations.
Several groups now face the possibility of dissolution. Among them are Al Khatt, publisher of the independent online magazine Inkyfada, and anti-racism organisation Mnemty.
Human Rights Watch also said civil society groups have faced restrictions on election monitoring, prison visits and public events.
Growing fear among activists and journalists
The pressure has reportedly created a climate in which activists increasingly fear speaking publicly or organising activities.
Rabie Kacem of the Nafas civic collective said activists now think carefully before speaking, writing or organising because of the risk of prosecution and intimidation.
Journalists have also reported increasing restrictions. Photojournalist Noureddine Ahmed said journalists are increasingly stopped while working, questioned by police and sometimes have their equipment damaged or confiscated.
He said reporting on migration has become especially sensitive and estimated that the number of photojournalists in Tunisia has fallen by about half as some journalists lost work and foreign media organisations became more cautious about employing local correspondents.
Crackdown follows political changes
The restrictions have intensified since President Kais Saied took sweeping political measures in July 2021, including suspending parliament and dismissing the government before ruling by decree.
Human Rights Watch said Saied’s government has increasingly portrayed civil society organisations as threats to national sovereignty.
The government has defended its actions as necessary to combat corruption and protect the country from alleged conspiracies and destabilisation attempts.
Human Rights Watch, however, argued that the authorities are using legal and administrative mechanisms to restrict independent organisations and silence their members.
Human Rights Watch calls for action
The rights organisation urged Tunisia to end what it described as abusive investigations, judicial harassment and the criminalisation of legitimate civil society activities.
It called for the release of activists and NGO workers it considers to have been arbitrarily detained and urged authorities to overturn convictions it considers unjust.
Human Rights Watch also called on Tunisia’s parliament to reject legislation that could further restrict freedom of association and urged the European Union and its member states to pressure Tunisian authorities to reverse the crackdown.
The organisation warned that continued restrictions could further dismantle the civic space that emerged after the 2011 revolution and weaken mechanisms for holding authorities accountable.
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