Tunisia鈥檚 parliament debated on Friday a bill that would strip a top court from its power to rule on election-related disputes, a move decried by protesters as anti-democratic just days before a presidential ballot.
The proposed judicial shift comes after Tunisia鈥檚 administrative court in August had overturned decisions barring three presidential hopefuls from running in the October 6 election 鈥� a ruling later ignored by the country鈥檚 electoral board, ISIE.
The frontrunner is incumbent President Kais Saied, who was democratically elected in 2019 but later orchestrated a sweeping power grab that included dissolving parliament and replacing it with a legislature with limited powers.
The draft law, which was swiftly pushed through the legislature and may be voted on as early as Friday, would take away power from the administrative court and instead make the court of appeals the only one with the authority to rule on issues related to elections.
Lawmakers in a statement have said they had drafted the bill over 鈥榙iscord鈥� with the administrative court鈥檚 ruling that granted the barred candidates their appeals.
They also cited 鈥榠mminent danger that threatens the unity of the state and its social order鈥�.
Observers say the administrative court is seen as more independent than the court of appeals.
Lawmakers were working to 鈥榰rgently pass this law to remove administrative litigation from the administrative court, because this court has shown a certain unpleasant independence鈥�, said Alexis Deswaef, vice-president of the International Federation for Human Rights.
A small crowd of demonstrators gathered Friday outside the parliament building to protest the proposed reform.
鈥楲aws revised in the middle of elections in favour of Kais Saied - death of democracy,鈥� read one sign.
Wissam Sghaier, spokesman for centrist party Al Jomhouri, denounced the bill as a 鈥榣ast-minute change of the rules of the game鈥�.
He called it 鈥榓 political crime in all its splendour鈥� that adds to 鈥榯he abuse and repression鈥� on Saied鈥檚 critics.
Ahead of the vote, ISIE had rejected the presidential bids of some 14 potential candidates.
The electoral board eventually presented a final list of only three candidates, Saied and two others 鈥� former parliamentarian Zouhair Maghzaoui and businessman Ayachi Zammel.
Zammel has been kept behind bars since early September, and on Thursday was handed a six-month prison term on top of a previous 20-month sentence for forging ballot endorsements.
International and Tunisian rights groups have criticised ISIE鈥檚 decision to ignore the administrative court鈥檚 rulings, which Tunisia鈥檚 largest labour union UGTT called 鈥榩olitical鈥�.
Earlier this month, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said ISIE had 鈥榠ntervened to skew the ballot in favour of Saied鈥�, with at least eight prospective candidates prosecuted, convicted or imprisoned in the run-up to the election.
