Ousted Tunisian President’s family on trial

The trial of 20 relatives of the deposed Tunisian President Zine El Abedine Ben Ali began on Tuesday morning. His wife Leila Trabelsi was also arrested at Tunis airport on the 14th January when she and the President attempted to flee the country. They face charges of attempted escape, and illegal possession of foreign currency. The trial is being held in the Palace of Justice in the capital of Tunis before the Criminal section, in the presence of dozens of lawyers, in order to guarantee a fair and transparent trial. The list of defendants includes a number of close associates of the deposed President; among them are his followers Al-Mansouf, Murad, Emad Al-Nasser, Hossam, and some of their wives, as well as former Director of the Presidential Security Service, Ali Seriati. The defendants were arrested on 14th January while they were attempting to flee the country, and the interrogation began. The biggest charge against them was keeping foreign currency, and attempting to smuggle it. For reference, the issue of customs is subject to the principle of reconciliation, and it is not unlikely that their defense will request mediation with customs. Among those accused is Imad Al-Trabelsi, the nephew of Leila Trablesi, who was sentenced to two years in prison on the 7th May, for his conviction of drug use - a sentence that the Court of Appeal in Tunis later increased to four years. This trial is taking place days after the trial of the ousted President and his wife, before a different department, known as the Criminal Chamber. This means that according to Tunisian law, the deposed President and his wife will either be sentenced to death, or imprisoned for a term exceeding five years as a punishment. Meanwhile, his relatives will be tried before the Department for minor offenses, which a Tunisian legislator explained would give a punishment of imprisonment exceeding fifteen days, and not more than five years, or a fine in excess of 60 dinars.