Protests, speeches, mark anniversary of Tunisia uprising

Tunisia will build on the gains of the uprising that toppled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, President Moncef Marzouki insisted Saturday, as demonstrators called for more reforms, and faster.

“January 14 is a day that marks the end of a dark period, of an authoritarian and corrupt regime...,” said Marzouki in a speech marking the anniversary of Ben Ali's departure, now a national holiday.

“The Tunisian revolution opened the door to a bright future,” he added.

“Tunisia will continue its march towards freedom.” Marzouki also paid tribute to the army which, he said, had protected the people.

Earlier Saturday, thousands of Tunisians, many of them wearing the red and white of the national flag, turned out in central Tunis calling for jobs and dignity.

They brandished banners and chanted “Work, freedom and dignity” as they marched down Bourguiba Avenue, which was the epicentre of the uprising that effectively launched the Arab Spring.

“We made this revolution against the dictatorship to impose our right to a dignified life and not to help certain opportunists realise their political ambitions,” 33-year-old Salem Zitouni told AFP.

Other demonstrators called for more recognition of those killed during the weeks of unrest before Ben Ali was toppled. And several people wounded in the revolution began a sit-in outside the government headquarters in the old town Kasbah.

Pride of place went to the memory of Mohamed Bouazizi, the 26-year-old vegetable seller from the central town of Sidi Bouzid, whose suicide by self-immolation triggered the revolt.

One group of youths carrying the black flag of the Salafists ran down the avenue calling for an Islamic Tunisia, while others shouted anti-American slogans.

Tunisia's revolution, which culminated in a peaceful election in October, has inspired reform movements throughout the Middle East, including the uprisings that toppled Egypt's Hosni Mubarak and Moamer Kadhafi in Libya.

AFP