TUNISIA
It’s the Economy, Stupid
Tunisia’s economic woes sparked protests and clashes with police across more than 20 towns in the fledgling democracy after the government hiked prices of staple goods and introduced new taxes to try to rein in the deficit.
The demonstrations have grown over three days, Reuters reported. On Tuesday, protesters attacked police stations and government buildings and burned cars. Demonstrators also threw Molotov cocktails at a Jewish school on the southern tourist island of Djerba. About 50 policemen were wounded and 237 people have been arrested.
Since the Arab Spring in 2011, Tunisia has seen nine democratic governments come and go – as nobody has been able to solve the country’s economic woes.
In exchange for financing from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Tunisia agreed to slash spending. But cutting subsidies and hiking taxes is difficult due to youth unemployment of more than 25 percent and rising inflation, Bloomberg reported.
No comments:
Post a Comment