Thousands of sub-Saharan African students in Tunisia are still in fear after racist attacks following President Kais Saied’s comments against illegal immigration, and are seeking concrete measures to protect them.
Violence erupted after Saied blamed “hordes of illegal migrants from sub-Saharan Africa” for most crimes in Tunisia and alleged a “criminal plot” to change the country’s demographics.
At the height of last month’s wave of attacks, “the fear was overwhelming,” said Christian Kwongang, president of AESAT, an association representing sub-Saharan African students in Tunisia.
In the midst of what witnesses described as a “hunt for black people”, Kwongang recalled that “we had crying parents who called us, worried that their children were being arrested, and some were detained for up to two weeks”.
Kwongang said his group recorded more than 20 attacks on students, “including 10 with knives”, and more than 400 arrests. For more than two weeks, students have been advised to stop attending classes and only go outside in case of emergency.
At least 100 students made emergency repatriations, mostly to Mali, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Niger, said Kwongang, who is originally from Cameroon.
“They left because of the wave of racism, arbitrary arrests and many cases of eviction” from their homes, Kwongang said.
The violence has subsided and students returned to class on March 6. No physical attacks have been recorded since March 7, but “verbal attacks” persist and foreign students remain on alert, Kwongang said.
“We are in the observation phase,” he said. “And we are waiting to see concrete things – for example, an acceleration in residence permits.”
‘Disaster for Tunisia’
The violence is a “disaster for Tunisia”, which has always been a “welcoming place”, said Tahar Ben Lakhdar, director of the private ESPRIT university.
Saied’s comments were “a huge smear”, said the 83-year-old, who insisted that he was also unfair because “which country does not have foreigners in an irregular situation?”
Some educational institutions have begun to implement new protective measures – including setting up crisis units, bus transportation, and local students accompanying sub-Saharan African students.
Lakhdar said ESPRIT, which specializes in engineering and management courses, has 350 sub-Saharan Africans among its 14,000 students.
He said the university had created “a platform where every student who has a problem can report it to a dedicated lawyer”.
The North African country’s government has also promised to address the issue.
Malek Kochlef, director of international coordination of the Ministry of Higher Education, said that “there are some attacks that can be blamed” but said that “it was an isolated act”.
He told AFP that the ministry has responded by creating communication units and points of contact in every educational institution to report any incidents.
The authorities have also moved to start streamlining residency permits and promised to create an agency to receive foreign students, Kochlef added.
Long ‘an Eldorado’
The violence could damage the private education sector in Tunisia, a small Mediterranean country suffering from an economic crisis, and deep political divisions since Saied in 2021 rejected the government and assumed a lot of power.
Sub-Saharan African students make up the “vast majority” of international students in the private education sector and a “significant proportion” in public institutions, Kochlef said.
The number of international students in Tunisia, mostly from other African countries, rose to 9,000 last year, a five-fold increase since 2011.
Kwongang said there will be 8,200 sub-Saharan African students in universities and technical colleges in Tunisia by the end of 2021.
Ivory Coast student Paul Andre Moa said Tunisia had long been seen as “El Dorado, a welcoming land with a good education system”.
It has attracted foreign students with good annual tuition fees starting at 3,000 euros (about $3,200), lower living costs and less stringent visa requirements than in Europe.
But Kwongang said that, after announcing measures to reassure students, AESAT members are now waiting to see what the practical effects will be.
He said the students are still under scrutiny from the authorities and the police who “one day ask for one document, the next day for another”.
Kwongang expressed “very concern” that enrollments will fall because many foreign students now hope to continue their studies “elsewhere, in Europe or Canada” and said he sees Tunisia’s reputation as “very damaged”.