Suicide protest helped topple Tunisian regime

On Dec. 17, a young fruit seller set himself on fire in front of the Sidi Bouzid regional council in central Tunisia.

Exactly four weeks later Mohamed Bouazizi’s act of desperation toppled the repressive regime that had ruled for 23 years.

Mohamed dropped out before high school to help support his family of eight. His uncle had bought a small farm in R’gueb, near Sidi Bouzid, but the farm was one of those shut down due to corrupt land appropriations in the region.

So Mohamed was forced to return to Sidi Bouzid to try to earn a living selling fruit and vegetables in the street.

Street vending is illegal in Tunisia, and city authorities regularly confiscated Mohamed’s small wheelbarrow of fruit. But Mohamed had no other option to try to make a living, and he bought his merchandise by getting into debt. It was a vicious circle.

That Friday morning, he had contracted roughly $200 in debt for his goods. Police spotted him, confiscated his cart and reportedly slapped him in the face in the process.

Mohamed was desperate and angry. So he went to regional government headquarters to try to plead his case with the governor.

Nobody would listen to him and he was thrown out. Mohamed, enraged, bought two bottles of paint thinner and set himself alight in front of the building. He was rushed to hospital, but died Jan. 4.

Local protests erupted as soon as Mohamed was taken away.

The national police chief was dispatched to Sidi Bouzid that night. The following day a peaceful march was organized in memory of Mohamed, but police shot tear gas to disperse the crowd. Over the next two weeks, sporadic protests continued.

But it was when Mohamed succumbed to his injuries that protests began to spread. Fed by Twitter and Facebook, crowds of young people began to march in Tunis and in some of Tunisia’s wealthy coastal enclaves. After three days of compromises by Ben Ali and increasing numbers on the street, the president flew off to Paris.

Star Wire services