Tunisian trade-union sources say more confrontations have occurred between Tunisian security forces and residents in Sidi Bouzid governorate.

The clashes took place on Saturday night in the towns of al-Ragab and Maknasi in central Tunisia, the sources told Al Jazeera.

The skirmishes broke out when security forces staged overnight crackdown campaigns, after social protests against unemployment spread to Tunis, the Tunisian capital.

Hundreds of protesters had rallied in front of the Tunisian labour union headquarters. The demonstrators called on the authorities to provide jobs for those with university degrees.

They were also out in a show of solidarity with Sidi Bouzid residents who kept protesting for the ninth day, leaving one man dead and others injured.

Lina Ben Mhenni, a Tunisian blogger and university assistant, told Al Jazeera that people are discontented.

« We are unhappy with the policies in Tunisia, we are unhappy with everything - it is not just unemployment. »

One dead

Mohamed Ammari, a teenager, was killed on Friday when police in Bouziane, 240km south of Tunis, opened fire on protesters.

An interior ministry spokesperson said police had been forced to « shoot in self-defence » after shots into the air failed to disperse scores of protesters who were setting police cars and buildings ablaze.

The cause of the latest violence was not immediately clear but similar clashes broke out on December 17 in the town of Sidi Bouzid after a man committed suicide in a protest over unemployment.

« A young man set fire to his body and people are reacting - people are organising protests everywhere and it is spreading across the country, » Lina Ben Mhenni said.

« Last night there were clashes in an area called Souk Jedid. Today there are marches and protests in Gassa, in the south, and in Sfax, the capital of the south, » she said.

« I just heard about another protest in Ben Guerdane, also in the South. »

The incident prompted violent demonstrations in which protesters burned tyres and chanted slogans demanding jobs.

Mohamed Al Nouri Al Juwayni, the development and international co-operation minister, said in an interview with Al Jazeera that the Tunisian government is conceding the legality of the protesters’ employment demands.

The government was seeking to address the issue, but only via dialogue, Al Juwayni added.

« The issue of unemployment is of concern to all parties in Tunisia. But what is not unacceptable is for those parties to resort to violence, which is not in anyone’s interest. »

Political opposition

Tensions heightened on December 22 when another young man climbed up an electricity pylon and electrocuted himself on the cables, saying he was fed up with being unemployed.

Said Ferjani, a member of the outlawed opposition Nahda movement, told Al Jazeera that unemployment was a country-wide issue.

« We have a problem in the management of the country and it is not only in Sidi Bouzid, it is across the country, » Ferjani said from London.

« These disturbances have never been violent - it is the government that incites violence. They are highly corrupted and there is a denial from them about how they treat people. »

He said that joblessness was not a new problem and it was also not related to the financial crisis.

Government promises

Al Juwayni, the Tunisian development minister, travelled to Sidi Bouzid on Thursday to announce a new $10m employment programme.

But Ben Mhenni said that this was too late : « They [the government] are trying to solve the problem by making promises. They did the same thing in 2008, but these are not real solutions. »

The Tunisian government, which tolerates little dissent, has accused its opponents of manipulating the clashes between police and young people in Sidi Bouzid to discredit the authorities.

Ben Mhenni said that she was harassed by police after speaking to Al Jazeera in the past : « They followed me for two days but I am not afraid. »

« I am fed up with what is happening in Tunisia, I don’t care - they can do whatever they want. Everyone is fed up now. »

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which does not have a seat in parliament, called on the government to stop arresting young people and instead focus on dialogue and job creation.

Riots are rare in Tunisia, which has been run for 23 years by Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and works closely with Western governments to combat al-Qaeda operatives.

The North African country has become a regional focus for international financial institutions since announcing a plan to complete current-account convertibility of its dinar currency over the 2010-2012 period.

Bilal Randeree

26 Dec 2010 09:20 GMT

* http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2010/12/2010122682433751904.html

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 Protester dies in Tunisia clash

Several wounded in Sidi Bouzid as demonstrations against unemployment turn violent.

One civilian has been killed and several others wounded in Tunisia following a clash with police who opened fire on protesters in a central Tunisian town.

An interior ministry spokesperson said police in Bouziane, 240km south of the capital Tunis, had been forced to « shoot in self-defence » after shots into the air failed to disperse scores of protesters who were setting police cars and buildings ablaze on Friday.

Mohamed Fadel, leader of the Secondary Education Union, identified the dead teenager.

« Mohamed Ammari was killed by a bullet in the chest when police opened fire, while many other protesters were wounded, » Fadel told the Reuters news agency.

« Police have now taken control of the situation ... There is a quasi-curfew in the city. »

Rioters had barricaded a police station during the unrest, and used Molotov cocktails to torch the building and some police cars, officials said in a statement carried by the official TAP news agency.

« Numerous members of the [national] guard suffered burn injuries, two of them are in a coma, » the spokesperson said.

Unemployment woes

The cause of the latest violence was not immediately clear but similar clashes broke out on December 17 in the town of Sidi Bouzid after a man committed suicide in a protest over unemployment.

A 26-year-old university graduate, Mohammed Bouazizi, had eked out a living peddling fruit and vegetables because he could not find a job.

When police confiscated his produce because he did not have the necessary permit, he doused himself in petrol and set himself alight, the Tunisian League for the Defence of Human Rights said.

Bouazizi was transferred to a hospital in the capital Tunis with severe burns.

The incident prompted violent demonstrations in which protesters burned tyres and chanted slogans demanding jobs.

Tensions heightened on December 22 when another young man climbed up an electricity pylon and electrocuted himself on the cables, saying he was fed up with being unemployed.

The government would not confirm a suicide, but ordered a judicial investigation into the circumstances of his death.

Mohamed Nouri Jouini, the Tunisian development minister, travelled to Sidi Bouzid on Thursday to announce a new $10m employment programme.

Political dissent

The Tunisian government, which tolerates little dissent, has accused its opponents of manipulating the clashes between police and young people in Sidi Bouzid to discredit the authorities.

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which does not have a seat in parliament, called on the government to stop arresting young people and instead focus on dialogue and job creation.

Riots are rare in Tunisia, which has been run for 23 years by President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali and works closely with Western governments to combat al-Qaeda operatives.

The North African country has become a regional focus for international financial institutions since announcing a plan to complete current account convertibility of its dinar currency over the 2010-2012 period.

25 Dec 2010 02:52 GMT

* http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2010/12/20101224235824708885.html

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 Riots reported in Tunisian city

Images posted on social-network sites show police intervening to halt disturbances ignored by national media.

Police in a provincial city in Tunisia have used tear gas to disperse hundreds of youths who smashed shop windows and damaged cars, according to witnesses.

There was no immediate comment from officials on Saturday’s disturbances, and national media ignored the event.

Youtube video purportedly showing the protest in Sidi Bouzid, southwest of Tunis

Riots are extremely rare for Tunisia, a North African country of about 10 million people.

It is one of the most prosperous and stable in the region, but civil liberties are severely limited.

Witnesses said several hundred youths gathered in the city of Sidi Bouzid, about 200km southwest of the capital Tunis, late on Saturday.

They were angered by an incident where a young man, Mohamed Bouazizi, had set fire to himself in protest after police confiscated the fruit and vegetables he was selling from a street stall, the witnesses said.

« The violent clashes ended with the arrest of scores of people, » a witness, who requested anonymity, told the Reuters news agency.

« [There was] breaking of shop windows and smashing of cars, while police fired tear gas. »

Witnesses said Saturday’s clashes ended with scores of arrests by authorities

Another witness, Mahdi Said Horchani, said rioting had continued into Sunday.

Horchani, who is a relative of the man who set fire to himself, said : « People are angry at the case of Mohamed and the deterioration of unemployment in the region. »Regional authorities have promised to intervene."

Horchani said Bouazizi was in a critical condition and had been transferred to a hospital in Tunis.

Footage posted on the Facebook social network site and YouTube showed several hundred protesters outside the regional government headquarters, with lines of police blocking them from getting closer to the building.

Witnesses said hundreds of extra security forces had been brought into Sidi Bouzid on Sunday and had established a heavy presence on the streets.

Tunisian activists are some of the most outspoken in the region and there were many messages of support for Bouazizi and the protest posted on Twitter.

« Let’s hope that this event in Sidi Bouzid isn’t limited to Bouazizi’s health ... this is only the begining !!! » a user going by the pseudonym of @youtor_KHAN wrote.

Others condemned the lack of coverage of the rioting by Tunisian state media.

@C-Moii said she only learned about Saturday’s events from an Algerian friend, and that her friends in Tunisia were unaware of what had happened in Sidi Bouzid.

20 Dec 2010 08:08 GMT

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