It is necessary to break with torture in Tunisian prisons and detention centres, said, Wednesday, President of the Organisation against Torture in Tunisia (French: OCTT) Chokri Letaief, adding that this can be done only by ending impunity. No progress has been made for the last 36 years regarding the case of left-wing activist Nabil Barakati who died under torture, Beltaief added. At a press conference held at the headquarters of the National Union of Tunisian Journalists (SNJT) on the National Day against Torture (May 8), the OCTT President said that torture is still a daily reality in Tunisia. “Indeed, several cases of death have been recorded under ambiguous circumstances. This includes the case of Omar Abidi whose perpetrators have gone unpunished until this day.” On the other hand, Letaief spoke of major progress made at the level of work of criminal chambers specialised in transitional justice. President of Nabil Barakati Organization Ridha Barakati asked to build a museum for the fight against torture in the region of Gafour where Nabil Barakati fell as a martyr in 1987, considering that it is a moral request to break with these practices.

Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse