LE MONDE (France), TUNISIA IT (Tunisia)
A Tunisian television station stopped running a satirical puppet show that regularly mocked politicians and members of the ruling Ennahda party because of pressure from authorities, according to Mongi Khadraoui, secretary general of the National Tunisian Journalist Union (SNJT).
The authorities appreciated neither the form nor content of the program, according to Khadraoui, who said that he learned from sources at the channel that the show was cancelled after indirect pressure from the authorities, according to French daily Le Monde.
Tunisia IT reports that Cactus Production, which produces the show, has been under State control since the 2011 uprising that toppled former dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and triggered the Arab Spring.
The SNJT’s accusations coincided on Thursday with a radio interview of Health Minister Abdelatif Mekki, who said that some shows “exceeded limits.”
“There should be respect for national symbols, the President of the Republic, the president of the Parliament, the leader of the government,” he said. “Criticism has to be within the limits of respect.”
