Two days before Tunisia was due to celebrate its independence day, a horrible terrorist attack shook the country. The barbaric, bloody assault on the Bardo museum near the parliament, that claimed the lives of 19 people, seems to have opened a new chapter for terrorist operations in my country. It also looks set to be the worst for foreigners in Tunisia since the attack on Djerba’s synagogue in 2002.

The symbolism of such an attack occurring in Tunisia — the birthplace of the so-called Arab Spring — is significant. It was here that the self-immolation of Mohammad Bouazizi in December 2010 spawned a series of street demonstrations that culminated in the ousting of longtime president Zine Al Abidine Bin Ali. Tunisia’s reputation as the Arab Spring’s “model pupil” may be questionable given that the country contributes the highest number of terrorists to countries such as Syria.

Nevertheless, it is a fact that while chaos is reigning in other countries in the Middle East, Tunisia has succeeded in ensuring a relative stability despite two political assassinations and some terrorist attacks targeting members of the security and military forces in remote areas such as Mount Chaambi. The latest attack occurred a few months after successful democratic and transparent elections in the country. Furthermore it happened while MPs were discussing an anti-terrorist law not far away from the museum where terrorists struck. The two buildings lie within the same fence.

According to several sources, parliament was the terrorists’ target, but when they failed to reach there, after being repelled by the guards, they shifted their focus and opened fire on a number of tourists getting off a bus to visit the museum. The perpetrators of the attack seem to have targeted the beacon of democracy that Tunisia has come to represent in the region.

The terrorists seem to want to tell Tunisians that the country will not be spared the fate of its neighbour Libya and other Arab countries such as Syria, Yemen and Iraq, where chaos is taking hold as Islamist groups tighten their grip. They seem to address the Tunisian authorities to say that the successes they are claiming when it comes to fighting terrorism are nothing but a mirage. They also seem to target tourism — an important sector for the Tunisian economy.

The Bardo attack has confirmed many Tunisians’ fears about the arrival of Daesh (self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant). For months, the climate has been tense, exacerbated by events in neighbouring Libya and the threats that Daesh has made to Tunisians. Terrorists and weapons are now freely circulating in major cities. Even the places that are supposed to be protected can be targeted.

At the last election, majority Tunisians had voted for a secular political party that they hoped would save them from terrorism and the rise of extremist groups. On Thursday, outraged, they gathered in their hundreds in the main avenue of the Tunisian capital, chanting the national anthem, shouting anti-terrorist slogans and holding Tunisian flags and candles in memory of the victims of the barbaric attack. They gathered to say that terrorists did not succeed in instilling fear in their hearts.

Indeed, many Tunisians who last October had voted for the secularist Nida Tunis party, led by Beji Qaid Al Sebsi, did so out of fear of the climate of insecurity that haunted the country under the rule of the troika led by the Islamist party Al Nahda.

Many now believe that Al Nahda is the main culprit for the proliferation of terrorism in Tunisia, as terrorists could enjoy certain impunity under its rule. After these attacks, the very least we know is that a vote alone was not enough to get rid of Tunisia’s growing problem of terrorism. With Tunisia exporting the largest number of terrorists to countries like Syria and Iraq, the question remains: Did Tunisians really succeed in fulfilling the objectives of the revolution?

Lina Ben Mhenni is a Tunisian who blogs as A Tunisian Girl. She rose to prominence during the Tunisian revolution of 2011. She was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Lina Ben Mhenni

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