At the beginning of the Tunisian uprising, I noted that it was dominated by pro-Sharia Islamic supremacists. For this I was condemned as an “Islamophobe” who refused to recognize the glorious flowering of human rights and democracy that the “Arab Spring” represented. Some mocked my concern about Tunisia’s Ennahda, saying that it was “fearmongering” and “ignorance,” since Ennahda represented a minuscule minority and would be insignificant in post-uprising electoral politics. Now we’re told it is one of the favorites in the next election.
I tried to tell you. “Tunisians demonstrate against Islamist influence,” by Tarek Amara for Reuters, July 7 (thanks to Twostellas):
TUNIS, July 7 (Reuters) – More than 1,000 people took to the streets of the Tunisian capital on Thursday to demonstrate against religious violence and what they say is the rise of radical Islam in the north African country.
The demonstration, which included secular political parties and human rights groups, came days after Islamists attacked a movie audience and smashed the doors of a cinema to protest against the film “No God, No Master” by Tunisian-French director Nadia El-Fani, an outspoken critic of political Islam.
Protesters carried banners reading “Free Tunisia, extremism out” and “Religious freedom, freedom of thought”.
Six months after an uprising toppled President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, tension is rising between Islamists and liberals as Islamic purists increasingly try to assert their influence in what was once a citadel of Arab secularism.
Ennahda, Tunisia’s main Islamist party, was legalised after the revolution and, although still in its infancy, it is tipped as one of the favourites in the October election.
Its popularity unnerves the many Tunisians who want to keep religion separate from the state….