Several parties and organizations denounce the judgment pronounced on Wednesday by the Nabeul court of first instance, who sentenced a daily worker to death, Saber Chouchane, for writings published on his Facebook page on the basis of the Criminal Code and the Decree-Lie.
The Tunisian movement forward and the party of unified democratic patriots (Mongi Rahoui clan) rejected the verdict which they describe as “no legal and moral foundation”. They see it as a dangerous “precedent” and call for the opening of an investigation.
Creation of a volunteer defense committee
The Tunisian association of young lawyers denounced an “unfair judgment” revealing “a disproportionate appeal to repressive texts”. She announced the creation of a volunteer defense committee in support of the accused, reports the TAP agen.
According to Abdelkader Bensouissi, president of the regional section of the lawyer, the accused was convicted of “dissemination of false information targeting a public agent, an attacking remarks to the President of the Republic and damage to the form of the State”. The judgment was struck.
On the human rights side, the President of the Tunisian Human Rights League (LTDH), Bassem Trifi, has castigated a “totally disproportionate” decision, recalling that the defendant’s Facebook page had very few subscribers. He added that the magistrate having pronounced the sentence was unloaded from his functions after the judgment.
The facts alleged against the accused
Wednesday, October 1, 2025, the criminal chamber of the Nabeul court sentenced Saber Chouchane, a daily worker and the father of three children, to the sentence. According to lawyer Samir Dilou, the conviction is based on three counts:
- “Diffusion of false news aimed at a public official”;
- “Outline to the President of the Republic”;
- “Voluntary damage to the form of the state”.
The file had first been sent to the anti -terrorist judicial center, which died in the absence of a terrorist character. The defense appealed, which suspends the execution of the sentence and renders the judgment not final.
This case relaunches the debate on the use of decree-law 54 and the provisions of the penal code, regularly criticized. It also highlights the severity of a verdict deemed unprecedented in Tunisia in a case linked to online publications.
