Monastir, Tunisia
It is January 14th, the 6th anniversary of the overthrow of the Tunisian president that set off the Arab Spring. It is celebrated here as Revolution Day.
We have been slightly anxious about the date because Tunisia has had some unrest in the last two weeks, initiated by new austerity measures, implemented in 2018 by the coalition government in response to some pressure by the IMF to repay debts. Given the unemployment of upward of 25%, the low salaries and the cost of rent as told to us by a local teacher, we are sympathetic to the cause but understand that the issues are complex. There have been peaceful protests initiated in Tunis and spread through many cities and towns throughout the country. Unfortunately, as in many protests worldwide, the demonstrations have ended with looting and violence by a few.
A sad consequence to this unrest which, to date, has not effected us at all, may be that foreign tourists become even more afraid to visit. We have seen and been told that many of the large hotels have permanently closed since 2012. The industry, reportedly, is just beginning to recover. More uncertainty here will most likely hurt the economy that is based on the tourist dollar.
Monastir is a smaller centre and, although a university town, has so far not been part of the protests. The violence in other cities has occurred during evening demonstrations and we have not left the marina after dark. In addition, the marina is a bit removed from the city centre.
Nonetheless, we are keeping a close eye on events here.
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| Stunning Tunisia! |
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