North Africa Archive

Tunisia has received more media coverage than usual this week, after the National Dialogue Quartet was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize “for its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine Revolution of 2011.” The award confounded observers; bets were on Germany’s Angela Merkel or Pope Francis. That’s because, with the exception of Tunisia’s closest followers, few had actually heard of the Quartet—which comprised a labor union, an employers’ organization,* a human rights group and a lawyers’ association—or understood its role in advancing Tunisia’s democratic transition. The Quartet, which was spearheaded […]

The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Tunisia’s so-called National Dialogue Quartet was deeply moving to those us who are familiar with the country where the Arab uprisings began in late 2010. The Nobel Committee’s selection of the four civil society organizations for their work in facilitating Tunisia’s democratic transition since then was a welcome revalidation of the country’s potential to build a durable democratic state. For long-time watchers of the committee, it was equally striking that the Nobel Peace Prize did not honor an institution or individual committed to nuclear disarmament, as it has at every mid-decade year […]