Abir Moussi could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison (Karim Krifa)

Tunis: President of the Free Destourian Party (PDL), Abir Moussi, could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison, said Karim Krifa, a member of Moussi's defence committee, adding that the court had described the complaint filed against her by the Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE) as a "crime". Speaking at a press conference in Tunis on Friday, Krifa recalled that the investigating judge had accused Abir Moussi of processing personal data, obstructing the right to work and assault with the aim of causing chaos, while "she was only expressing her opinion on a series of decisions issued by the ISIE during a press conference as an opposition political party. "There was no investigation or confrontation with the legal representative of the body," he said. Krifa reiterated that the Defence Committee will publish the results of the investigation "in order to reveal the offences committed in this case and to emphasise a second time that no crime has been committed". The aim was to exclude Moussi from the presidential elections," he stressed. Krifa pointed out that the Defence Committee has not yet had access to the file on the violations committed during the electoral silence in the 2019 presidential elections, in which the Court of Auditos relied on an ISIE report in 2019. "The decision of the investigating judge was appealed to the indictment chamber, which has not yet issued its verdict. Despite this, the court issued two judgments, one at first instance and the other on appeal," the lawyer said. According to Krifa, the rush to issue the verdicts is aimed at imposing additional sanctions on Moussi, who was fined 7,000 dinars and asked to sign this verdict so that she could not benefit from her criminal record. "Moussi has the right to stand as a candidate as long as her name is not removed from the electoral register," he stressed. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse