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| Torture Claims in Tunisia Await Truth Commission | Torture Claims in Tunisia Await Truth Commission |
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| TUNIS — One of the most notorious forms of torture was the “roast chicken,” an obscene stress position in which the victim was suspended naked, like a trussed bird on a spit. | |
| During months of interrogation that began when he was just 17, Mohamed Hamemi, now 45 and an athletics trainer, repeatedly endured the excruciating posture as the government cracked down on an Islamist movement in the 1980s. | |
| “There are stories I cannot even tell,” he said. “You spend the whole day naked, with feet cuffed, in the chicken position. When all your body goes blue, they drop you down, throw water on you, and then yank you up again.” | “There are stories I cannot even tell,” he said. “You spend the whole day naked, with feet cuffed, in the chicken position. When all your body goes blue, they drop you down, throw water on you, and then yank you up again.” |
| Mr. Hamemi is one of the thousands of Tunisians who have arrived at the country’s newly formed Truth and Dignity Commission, an ambitious effort to examine past abuses and answer demands for justice. | Mr. Hamemi is one of the thousands of Tunisians who have arrived at the country’s newly formed Truth and Dignity Commission, an ambitious effort to examine past abuses and answer demands for justice. |
| Every day, people like him come, middle-aged men and women with lined faces, sitting silently, waiting to submit their papers. Some describe being beaten unconscious, hung upside down, plunged underwater or into buckets of human waste, electrocuted, raped and sodomized, often while spouses and others were made to watch. | Every day, people like him come, middle-aged men and women with lined faces, sitting silently, waiting to submit their papers. Some describe being beaten unconscious, hung upside down, plunged underwater or into buckets of human waste, electrocuted, raped and sodomized, often while spouses and others were made to watch. |
| Before the revolutions that swept the region more than four years ago, that kind of torture, though especially cruel, was not uncommon in the Arab world. For decades, the region’s dictators made sure to crush any perceived threat to their rule. | Before the revolutions that swept the region more than four years ago, that kind of torture, though especially cruel, was not uncommon in the Arab world. For decades, the region’s dictators made sure to crush any perceived threat to their rule. |
| What is exceptional about Tunisia, now a democracy, is that it is daring to examine its past abuses publicly. There is even talk of televising the public hearings that are scheduled to begin in June. | What is exceptional about Tunisia, now a democracy, is that it is daring to examine its past abuses publicly. There is even talk of televising the public hearings that are scheduled to begin in June. |
| Such a public vetting of past sins has been attempted by other nations at turning points between dictatorship and democracy, like South Africa and El Salvador. Though the process can be painful, leaving it undone could allow old grievances to fester and eventually erupt again. | Such a public vetting of past sins has been attempted by other nations at turning points between dictatorship and democracy, like South Africa and El Salvador. Though the process can be painful, leaving it undone could allow old grievances to fester and eventually erupt again. |
| Though Tunisia’s effort is intended to unify and heal, it is not universally embraced here. The commission struggled with the bureaucracy over money and with the police over access to archives even before opening its doors to the public in December. | Though Tunisia’s effort is intended to unify and heal, it is not universally embraced here. The commission struggled with the bureaucracy over money and with the police over access to archives even before opening its doors to the public in December. |
| Doubts are mounting that the commission will achieve its high-minded goals. The country’s two main political parties seek reconciliation in the interest of national stability, but seem less interested in justice. And members of the old regime’s political and business elite have retained influence in the new democratic order. | Doubts are mounting that the commission will achieve its high-minded goals. The country’s two main political parties seek reconciliation in the interest of national stability, but seem less interested in justice. And members of the old regime’s political and business elite have retained influence in the new democratic order. |
| “There is resistance from the administration, so we have many challenges,” said Sihem Bensedrine, the former journalist and human rights activist who leads the commission. “That is our job, to deconstruct the machine, understand how it works, and then rebuild and see what not to do.” | “There is resistance from the administration, so we have many challenges,” said Sihem Bensedrine, the former journalist and human rights activist who leads the commission. “That is our job, to deconstruct the machine, understand how it works, and then rebuild and see what not to do.” |
| Over the next four to five years, the commission plans to reveal the full range of human rights violations committed during nearly 60 years of authoritarian rule in Tunisia, and to hold those who committed the most egregious crimes accountable. | Over the next four to five years, the commission plans to reveal the full range of human rights violations committed during nearly 60 years of authoritarian rule in Tunisia, and to hold those who committed the most egregious crimes accountable. |
| Its time frame starts in 1955, a year before independence from France, and includes the long rule of two dictators, Presidents Habib Bourguiba and Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. It encompasses a mass killing during the independence movement; the torture and imprisonment of an estimated 30,000 trade unionists, students, leftists and Islamists by the dictatorship; and the casualties of the 2011 revolution that began the Arab Spring: 338 dead and 2,147 wounded. | |
| “It is not about one regime or another,” said Emtyez Bellali, a project associate at the World Organization Against Torture’s chapter in Tunis, the capital. “Torture has been the way of governance in this country. We should fight it because it is in the mentality of everyone.” | “It is not about one regime or another,” said Emtyez Bellali, a project associate at the World Organization Against Torture’s chapter in Tunis, the capital. “Torture has been the way of governance in this country. We should fight it because it is in the mentality of everyone.” |
| While the nation’s authoritarian leaders were promoting Tunisia as a modern, secular country of universal education and emancipated women, they were also running a system of torture and repression, hidden from view, that broke families and silenced dissent. | While the nation’s authoritarian leaders were promoting Tunisia as a modern, secular country of universal education and emancipated women, they were also running a system of torture and repression, hidden from view, that broke families and silenced dissent. |
| The worst torture chambers were said to be those in the basement of the Interior Ministry, a gray concrete building at one end of a cafe-lined central boulevard. Nearby residents would hear the screams of prisoners at 3 a.m., according to Mounira Ben Kaddour, secretary general of the Tunisian Women’s Association, which has gathered testimony from more than 400 women since the revolution. | The worst torture chambers were said to be those in the basement of the Interior Ministry, a gray concrete building at one end of a cafe-lined central boulevard. Nearby residents would hear the screams of prisoners at 3 a.m., according to Mounira Ben Kaddour, secretary general of the Tunisian Women’s Association, which has gathered testimony from more than 400 women since the revolution. |
| Outside prison, the repression continued. Former inmates were expelled from jobs and colleges, subjected to rigid police control and harassment, and forced to divorce or go into exile. | Outside prison, the repression continued. Former inmates were expelled from jobs and colleges, subjected to rigid police control and harassment, and forced to divorce or go into exile. |
| Though the abuses have been reported before, the scale of repression and the machinery of dictatorship are only now being fully exposed and understood. | Though the abuses have been reported before, the scale of repression and the machinery of dictatorship are only now being fully exposed and understood. |
| Several victims interviewed recently sat on the ground to demonstrate the roast chicken, with one calling on his daughter to bring a scarf and broomstick. | Several victims interviewed recently sat on the ground to demonstrate the roast chicken, with one calling on his daughter to bring a scarf and broomstick. |
| Arms were handcuffed around bent legs, they said, and the body was hung from a metal bar passed under the knees and balanced on two tables. Then the flogging began. | Arms were handcuffed around bent legs, they said, and the body was hung from a metal bar passed under the knees and balanced on two tables. Then the flogging began. |
| Mr. Hamemi was tortured during government crackdowns on Islamists. He and two cellmates submitted their claims to the truth commission together and emerged afterward with their shoulders hunched against the sharp wind. | Mr. Hamemi was tortured during government crackdowns on Islamists. He and two cellmates submitted their claims to the truth commission together and emerged afterward with their shoulders hunched against the sharp wind. |
| “They beat us with sticks and electric cables,” Mr. Hamemi said in an interview, at one point breaking into sobs. “They would even put sticks in our private parts. They tied our private organs and pulled them. I was also hung upside down on a door, hands tied, for five to six hours.” | “They beat us with sticks and electric cables,” Mr. Hamemi said in an interview, at one point breaking into sobs. “They would even put sticks in our private parts. They tied our private organs and pulled them. I was also hung upside down on a door, hands tied, for five to six hours.” |
| Mohamed Salah Barhoumi, a taxi driver who went to prison twice, said he had received much the same treatment. | Mohamed Salah Barhoumi, a taxi driver who went to prison twice, said he had received much the same treatment. |
| “I was harassed for 13 years by the administration, and my family was, too,” he said in an interview. “Three days in a row, they did the ‘roast chicken’ on me. From night to day, slaps, blows, all kinds of kicking.” | “I was harassed for 13 years by the administration, and my family was, too,” he said in an interview. “Three days in a row, they did the ‘roast chicken’ on me. From night to day, slaps, blows, all kinds of kicking.” |
| The torturers wanted information, and everyone gave up names and even confessed to crimes that they had not committed, Mr. Hamemi said. “If you refused to sign, they would take you back to the torture again,” he said. | The torturers wanted information, and everyone gave up names and even confessed to crimes that they had not committed, Mr. Hamemi said. “If you refused to sign, they would take you back to the torture again,” he said. |
| Rached Jaidane, a math professor, was imprisoned for 13 years for plotting against the president, a charge he says was invented. He has since tried to sue officials from the former dictator, Mr. Ben Ali, on down, with little success. | Rached Jaidane, a math professor, was imprisoned for 13 years for plotting against the president, a charge he says was invented. He has since tried to sue officials from the former dictator, Mr. Ben Ali, on down, with little success. |
| “It is important to have public hearings, on television,” Mr. Jaidane said, so that generations to come will know what happened. “It may be difficult, but we must dare.” | “It is important to have public hearings, on television,” Mr. Jaidane said, so that generations to come will know what happened. “It may be difficult, but we must dare.” |
| Many victims who hoped for swift justice after the revolution are disillusioned by how slow the process has been. Advocates complain of a lack of political will, as well as inefficiencies and divisions within the truth commission. Ms. Bensedrine, the head of the commission, has been criticized for combative leadership by colleagues and by the news media, which is hostile to the idea of transitional justice. | Many victims who hoped for swift justice after the revolution are disillusioned by how slow the process has been. Advocates complain of a lack of political will, as well as inefficiencies and divisions within the truth commission. Ms. Bensedrine, the head of the commission, has been criticized for combative leadership by colleagues and by the news media, which is hostile to the idea of transitional justice. |
| She said in an interview that the new government had initially backed the commission’s work but had not followed through. Bureaucrats have delayed its funds, she said, and the police stopped her from removing government archives from the presidential palace, despite a promise of cooperation. | She said in an interview that the new government had initially backed the commission’s work but had not followed through. Bureaucrats have delayed its funds, she said, and the police stopped her from removing government archives from the presidential palace, despite a promise of cooperation. |
| Ms. Bensedrine said she planned to build a database of thousands of cases. The most egregious cases will be referred to special chambers for prosecution. Because testifying can be as traumatic as the original torture, psychiatrists are counseling victims. | Ms. Bensedrine said she planned to build a database of thousands of cases. The most egregious cases will be referred to special chambers for prosecution. Because testifying can be as traumatic as the original torture, psychiatrists are counseling victims. |
| The commission has the power to subpoena witnesses and government archives and to reopen previously tried cases, although that is being challenged as unconstitutional. It is not bound by a statute of limitations. | The commission has the power to subpoena witnesses and government archives and to reopen previously tried cases, although that is being challenged as unconstitutional. It is not bound by a statute of limitations. |
| Since President Beji Caid Essebsi and his party, Nidaa Tounes, won elections in the fall, though, the political ground in Tunisia has been shifting. Mr. Essebsi, who held senior positions under both dictatorships, said in an interview that he was preparing amendments to the law establishing the commission. | Since President Beji Caid Essebsi and his party, Nidaa Tounes, won elections in the fall, though, the political ground in Tunisia has been shifting. Mr. Essebsi, who held senior positions under both dictatorships, said in an interview that he was preparing amendments to the law establishing the commission. |
| He has proposed amnesty for businessmen accused of corruption if they invest their money in Tunisia. The Islamist party, Ennahda, has signaled support, but others have criticized the idea. | He has proposed amnesty for businessmen accused of corruption if they invest their money in Tunisia. The Islamist party, Ennahda, has signaled support, but others have criticized the idea. |
| The former cellmates are divided on what justice they prefer. Some want financial compensation for their families after years of forced penury. Mr. Barhoumi wants the restoration of his taxi license, which still eludes him after four years of red tape. | The former cellmates are divided on what justice they prefer. Some want financial compensation for their families after years of forced penury. Mr. Barhoumi wants the restoration of his taxi license, which still eludes him after four years of red tape. |
| Mr. Hamemi said he wanted to hear his torturers apologize. “I could have done it with my own hands after the revolution,” he said, “but I want to do it by the law.” | Mr. Hamemi said he wanted to hear his torturers apologize. “I could have done it with my own hands after the revolution,” he said, “but I want to do it by the law.” |