Tunisia update

(AP)

Early reports suggest that Ben Ali's recent pledges have not had the desired effect and that the protests are continuing. Thousands of people have reportedly took to the streets of Tunis and are calling for the President to step down. BY all accounts, the security forces are not intervening, which makes this the first time that the Tunisian people have been allowed to protest openly without fear of reprisal. Whatever happens now, this really is a watershed moment in the country's history (and also the Arab world) where protesters have been brave enough to face the regime head on and many of whom have paid with their lives.

Backtracking a little, although the US seems to get a lot wrong in the Middle East, this WikiLeaks cable printed in the Guardian from US Ambassador Robert Godec in July 2009 certainly hit all the right nails squarely on the head:

The problem is clear," wrote ambassador Robert Godec in July 2009, in a
secret dispatch released by Beirut's al-Akhbar newspaper. "Tunisia has been ruled by the same president for 22 years. He has no successor. And, while President Ben Ali deserves credit for continuing many of the progressive policies of President Bourguiba, he and his regime have lost touch with the Tunisian people. They tolerate no advice or criticism, whether domestic or international. Increasingly, they rely on the police for control and focus on preserving power.

"Corruption in the inner circle is growing. Even average Tunisians are now keenly aware of it, and the chorus of complaints is rising. Tunisians intensely dislike, even hate, first lady Leila Trabelsi and her family. In private, regime opponents mock her; even those close to the government express dismay at her reported behaviour. Meanwhile, anger is growing at Tunisia's high unemployment and regional inequities. As a consequence, the risks to the regime's long-term stability are increasing."

Meanwhile, AP and other agencies are reporting that thousands of tourists are to be evacuated as uncertainty grows, further damaging one of the key pillars of the economy.