Details

IRZ Conference on “Electoral Law“ with Tunisian Administrative Jurisdiction

Published: November 10, 2014

From left to right: the Representative of the Tunisian Ministry of Justice; Mr S. Sarssar (Chairman of the Independent Election Commission in Tunisia); the Representative of the Tunisian Ministry of Justice, Mr M. Karim Jamoussi; the President of the Administrative Court of Tunis, Mr M.F.Ben Hamed; Mr M. M. Abidi (IRZ)

From left to right: the Representative of the Tunisian Ministry of Justice; Mr S. Sarssar (Chairman of the Independent Election Commission in Tunisia); the Representative of the Tunisian Ministry of Justice, Mr M. Karim Jamoussi; the President of the Administrative Court of Tunis, Mr M.F.Ben Hamed; Mr M. M. Abidi (IRZ)

On 22 and 23 October 2014, the IRZ carried out the event "The Administrative Jurisdiction of Tunisia: Legal Assessment of Electoral Disputes in Election Results" in cooperation with the Tunisian Administrative Court ("Tribunal Administratif") and the Tunisian Ministry of Justice. The conference was organised in the context of the reform of the administrative jurisdiction in Tunisia and the Presidential elections on 23 November 2014.

The event was opened by the Representative of the Tunisian Minister of Justice, Mr Mohamed Karim Jamoussi, the First President of the Administrative Court of Tunis, Mr Mohamed Faouzi Ben Hamed, the Chairman of the Independent Election Commission in Tunisia, Mr Shafiq Sarssar, and the IRZ Legal Adviser for North Africa and the Middle East, Mr Mohamed Montasser Abidi.

The contrasting presentations given during this event by Tunisian judges and their German counterparts (the former Vice-President and Judge at the Federal Administrative Court, Mr Michael Hund, and Professor Dr Volker M. Haug, Ministerialrat, Institute for Economics and Law, University of Stuttgart) revealed both similarities and differences in the legal practice of the two countries. The following intensive discussions provided an important insight into the past and present situation of the Tunisian electoral law beyond the two event days. It was pointed out once more, as already during the previous event in April 2014, that the administrative court rules in Tunisia are going to be reformed. A respective cooperation between the Tunisian Administrative Court and the German Administrative Courts has already been agreed.

In this context, the IRZ will organise an exchange of experts with the Federal Constitutional Court and the Federal Administrative Court covering electoral law issues, among other topics, during the week prior to the commencement of the Presidential elections. Furthermore, it is envisaged to organise further expert seminars in Tunis next year covering relevant constitutional and administrative issues.

In light of the upcoming events (Parliamentary and Presidential elections), the media have taken a lively interest in the expert presentations and there has been extensive coverage of this successful IRZ event.