Massoudi: Sidi Bouzid is turning into Gaza

Former President Ayoub Massoudi, who resigned last June said in a radio statement "that the practices of political and security officials in the governorate of Sidi Bouzid give the impression that we are in the besieged Gaza Strip." "People are isolated and marginalised, suffer from unemployment and the government is hiding what's going on there. " He accused the government of silencing the citizens as they did not give them the right to vote during the elections of the National Constituent Assembly on October 23 last year: "there is a desire to subjugate the people of Sidi Bouzid by cutting off the water supply in Ramadan. " Masoudi also stressed that "young people who were quietly arrested in the governorate of Sidi Bouzid last week are political prisoners, not hooligans or alcohol sellers as as told by “Harakt El Nahda El Hakma(the Royal Renaissance Movement).” He also accused the government of misleading the public by promoting the release of all the 45 detainees, while Badaya court on Tuesday ordered the release of only 10 of the detainees. The governorate of Sidi Bouzid has been witnessing for a while a state of deep resentment in protest against the interruption of drinkable water supply.  Moreover, “the policy of marginalisation continues as is the lack of projects for the development ." These protests hit their peak on August 9 when police used bombs, tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd. Ayoub Massoudi has recently declared in an article that "the State withdrew from all areas in Sidi Bouzid, except for repression to protect the regime from the citizens." "This repression is opposed by an extremely strong demand of dignity and social right to work and resist the new tyranny. People are not giving up hope and love to live."