Tunisia's Brotherhood shudder at proposed laws that will prevent foreign funding
Tunisian President, Kais Saied, revealed during his meeting with the cabinet of ministers on March 2 that a fresh package of amendments would be introduced to laws regulating the funding of NGOs in his country.
Since then, the branch of the Muslim
Brotherhood in Tunisia and its media machine have been defending democracy,
claiming that the new amendments would curb freedoms.
Nonetheless, when he talked about the
associations and NGOs that would be targeted by the amendments, President Saied
did not mention the Brotherhood's branch in Tunisia, namely Ennahda movement.
"There must be a legal
framework that prohibits funding for non-governmental organizations from
abroad," the Tunisian president said.
The biggest rejection to the
proposed amendments to date came from the Muslim Brotherhood.
In rejecting the proposed
amendments, the Brotherhood cited a unified statement by some women's
associations, in which they spoke against the amendments proposed by the
Tunisian president.
Threats
Ennahda uses the same tactics used
by the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
In Egypt and in other countries, the
Muslim Brotherhood relies on charity activities that are driven by political
goals.
Since 2011, Ennahda has launched a
large number of charities. These charities act to ensure that the popularity of
Ennahda movement would grow in Tunisian streets.
They also receive funds from abroad,
which is always used in bankrolling the activities of the movement.
Ennhada stands now at the center of
accusations of receiving funds from other countries, especially during the
latest legislative elections.
If these accusations prove true, the
movement will be put on the spot in ways that threat its political future.
The amendments proposed by the
Tunisian president are also expected to deprive the movement of funding from
other countries.
The same amendments will likely
deprive Ennahda's charities of the funding it used in presenting services to
people on the streets.
