Frederick Douglass

"Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did, and it never will. Find out just what people will submit to, and you have found out the exact amount of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them..." Frederick Douglass

Thursday, December 30, 2010

The Struggle in Tunisia







It seems that the long-simmering resentment of their government by the Tunisian people is coming to a head. In much the same way that the death of Alexandros Grigoropoulous triggered the uprising in Greece, the recent self-immolation of a college student [1], Muhammad Bouazizi, after police shut down his unlicensed street kiosk has moved many Tunisians to violent clashes with the police. [2] Unfortunately, fatalities have resulted. [3]

In response, President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, apparently trying to prove just how stupid he is, blamed foreign media for stirring up the protests and then mischaracterizing them; [4] fired the communications minister as a result; [5] and, most foolishly, escalated the tempest by threatening demonstrators with severe punishment. [6] He then proceeded to arrest leaders of the major opposition party. [7]





[1] http://www.theatlanticwire.com/opinions/view/opinion/Protesters-and-Police-Clash-in-Tunisia-Following-Self-Immolation-6338

http://top10bookreviews.com/protesters-and-police-clash-in-tunisia-following-self-immolation (Scroll down for video)

[2] http://www.ips-dc.org/blog/will_the_tunisian_president_go_the_way_of_ceausescu_part_2

[3] http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40805193/ns/world_news-africa/

[4] http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-af-tunisia-unrest,0,3514159.story

[5] http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2010/12/tunisia-president-warns-protesters-shuffles-cabinet-amid-demonstrations.html

[6] http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2010/12/2010122823238574209.html

[7] http://www.wfaa.com/news/world/112602324.html