- Title: TUNISIA: Ennahda leader Rached Ghannouchi votes in Tunisian election
- Date: 26th October 2014
- Summary: TUNIS, TUNISIA (OCTOBER 26, 2014) (REUTERS) ENNAHDA PARTY HEAD, RACHED GHANNOUCHI, ARRIVING AT POLLING STATION GHANNOUCHI SHAKING HANDS WITH PEOPLE GHANNOUCHI INSIDE THE POLLING STATION PRESENTING IDENTIFICATION VARIOUS OF GHANNOUCHI PUTTING HIS FINGER IN THE VOTING INK AND SHOWING IT TO THE MEDIA VARIOUS OF GHANNOUCHI VOTING PEOPLE WATCHING OUTSIDE DOOR GHANNOUCHI LEAVING POLLING STATION (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) ENNAHDA PARTY HEAD, RACHED GHANNOUCHI, SAYING: "Today is a historic day for Tunisia, a day where the dreams of generations of martyrs, prisoners and displaced people come true. Today, the Tunisian parliament will come true." GHANNOUCHI WITH HIS DAUGHTER (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) ENNAHDA PARTY HEAD, RACHED GHANNOUCHI, SAYING: "It is our duty as Tunisians to keep this candle burning, to light the way forward for the Arab world. We need to to keep it burning to prove that dreams can come true and that the Arab people are worthy of democracy; that Islam and democracy are not contradictory, but go hand in hand, and that the Tunisian people are civilised, and worthy of democracy themselves. It is a big responsibility for the next generation." GHANNOUCHI WITH HIS DAUGHTER VARIOUS OF QUEUE OF VOTERS AWAITING THE OPENING OF THE DOORS OF POLLING STATIONS VARIOUS OF ARMY AND POLICE GUARDING POLLING STATION
- Embargoed: 10th November 2014 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Tunisia
- Country: Tunisia
- Topics: Domestic Politics
- Reuters ID: LVABCVQX9SVJRIXQFTXI2V9TS674
- Story Text: Rached Ghannouchi, the head of Ennahda - one of the two political parties tipped to win Tunisia's parliamentary elections - on Sunday (October 26) arrived at a polling station to cast his vote, in polls that bring full democracy within reach to the country, almost four years after their uprising cast out autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali.
Tunisia has fared better than its neighbours who also ousted their own long-ruling leaders during the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, largely avoiding the polarisation between competing desires for Islamist and more secular rule.
Where the role of Islam in politics dominated the first election in 2011, now jobs, economic opportunities and Tunisia's low-intensity conflict with Islamist militants are the main concerns of a country heavily reliant on foreign tourism.
The moderate Islamist party Ennahda and rival secular alliance Nidaa Tounes are favoured to win most seats in Sunday's vote, only the second free election in Tunisia since Ben Ali fled into exile in Saudi Arabia.
But the large number of other parties, from conservative Islamist Salafist movements to Socialists, means a coalition government is the probable outcome. The 217-member assembly will choose a new prime minister.
Ennahda won most seats in the first election in 2011 and led a coalition before a crisis over their rule and the murder of two secular leaders forced them into a deal to step aside for a caretaker premier.
A heavy media presence followed Ghannouchi as he registered for and cast his vote.
"Today is a historic day for Tunisia, a day where the dreams of generations of martyrs, prisoners and displaced people come true. Today, the Tunisian parliament will come true," he said after voting.
"It is our duty as Tunisians to keep this candle burning, to light the way forward for the Arab world," he told reporters, standing next to his daughter.
"We need to to keep it burning to prove that dreams can come true and that the Arab people are worthy of democracy; that Islam and democracy are not contradictory, but go hand in hand, and that the Tunisian people are civilised, and worthy of democracy themselves. It is a big responsibility for the next generation," he added.
Criticised for economic mis-management and lax handling of hardline Islamists, Ennahda leaders say they have learned from their mistakes in the early years after the revolution.
But Nidaa Tounes, which includes some former members of the Ben Ali regime, see themselves as modern technocrats able to manage the economic and security challenges after the messy period of Islamist-led rule.
Among those secular parties looking for a place in the new assembly are some led by former Ben Ali officials, who portray themselves as technocrats untainted by the corruption and abuses of his regime. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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