@DavidSecurity

Greetings Expats,

Great weather these last few days and I had the privilege of attending a nice house warming party on Saturday.  It was a true Expat Party with more than 12 nations represented at the event.  It was also great to meet a couple of readers of the Tunisia Security Update Blog and listen to some positive feedback.

And now for this week’s update… 

State of Emergency Extended 

It’s interesting to note that the State of Emergency was extended for three months this time as oppose to the usual one month extension.  On a proactive side, one can speculate the following reasons for the extension.

1. Saturday, March 2:  “Hundreds of salafists gathered in Sidi Bouzid to demand the release of an imam arrested as part of an inquiry into a gunfight between police and radical Islamists a week ago.” 
2. Sunday, March 3: A mob of about 80 young men, armed with knives and molotovs, ransacked homes in the south of Tunis (Ben Arous area).  The lack of Tunisian security forces was noted.  
3. Saturday, March 16th (tentative):  Large demonstration that will take place on the 16 March down town near the MOI building.  The demonstration is to celebrate the 40 day anniversary since Mr  Belaid’s Assassination.
4. Continual Economic challenges:  Tunisia’s tenuous sense of security is destroying the national economy. International ratings agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded the Tunisian government’s credit rating to BB-, citing political instability as the root cause of the downgrade. With tourism and foreign investment down and an inflation rate at 10 per cent, hopes of the once vibrant Tunisian economy’s recovery seem dismal.  
5. General Security Precaution:  The Australian government, for example advises it’s citizens to “exercise a high degree of caution in Tunisia because of the unpredictable security situation, the risk of further violence and civil unrest and the threat of kidnapping and terrorist attack.”

Not all is negative

We always like to share “positive security news”…and it seems like golf tourism is certainly upbeat and looking forward to brighter days ahead.

Let’s keep meeting, sharing, and networking…