Tunisian PM: don't make Salafists heroes

Tunisian prime minister Hamadi Jebali said Thursday that oppressing the country’s Salafists will turn them into victims and heroes. “These people believe they are victims of oppression. We do not want to fall into the trap of treating them as such, thus turning them into heroes,” Jebali told reporters at news conference on the sidelines of the Arab Economic Forum in Beirut. The premier, a leading figure of the Islamist Ennahda Party, said that the current government does not want to commit the same mistakes as ousted president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali by sending people to jail over political and ideological issues. “Some people are building fear around the presence of so-called extremist groups. We have to live with the fact that these groups are part of our people. They did not come from outside. We need to tackle the reasons behind extremism rather than punishing a segment of our society,” Jebali said. The prime minister, who was jailed for 15 years under the former regime, said the only solution is giving people more freedom to express themselves and present their ideas. “We are not afraid of Salafists. To begin with, I have my reservations about describing these movements as Salafist. The word ‘Salaf’ refers to our ancestors who were moderates not extremists,” he said. “In Tunisia, we will tolerate all views and we will not take action against any group unless we see a violation of laws, such as resorting to force or violence. That we consider to be a red line,” Jebali added. Security concerns and threats from some Salafists kept thousands of Jewish pilgrims away from an annual celebration on the Tunisian island of Djerba this week. No more than 500 pilgrims attended the religious festival celebrated a month after Passover at one of Africa’s oldest synagogues Wednesday and Thursday – an event that used to attract thousands of visitors.