For Brother Usama bin Raza
- Ghanushi has been the most known leader of the traditional Islamic party of Tunisia since the time of Bourguiba
- The party suffered persecution under both Bourguiba and Ben Ali
- He was a close associate of Ikhwan until about 2005
- In the 2011 uprising in Tunisia it agitated and occupied several areas and localities
- In the subsequent elections its platform was (a) implementation of Shariah which it had partly done in the areas it occupied during the 2011 agitation (b) abolition of the interest based economy (c) social democratic reforms
- It became a large party in the Assembly in the subsequent elections
- Ghanushi then persuaded the party to abandon its commitment to implement Shariah and abolition of anti-imperialist policies and join the coalition government endorsing a secular constitution
- A small minority of Ulema, Zawia leaders and Mujahideen left the party
- Since then it has been in and out of coalition governments led by nationalists, secularists and other secularists. It is currently working together with these secularists. The Islamic content of its government has been almost completely eliminated.
- It has developed close relationship with imperialist multinational financial institutions (especially the Asian Development Bank, a World Bank offshoot, BADEA and the IMF) through the aegis of the Tunisian Central Bank
- It has been part of secular coalition governments several times and its ministers have been accused of massive corruption
- Ghanushi has the full support of America and Tunisia is being targeted to recognize Israel.
- Those who left the Party in 2012/2013 have largely abandoned the political process and the Islamic movement has effectively been subsumed in the national secular political order.
Request: We are not seriously excavating data on Islamic movement and our/my knowledge in this aspect is quite superficial. I remember that when Syed Munawar Hassan was secretary general of the Islamic Research Academy. IRA had a project to methodologically follow global Islamic movements. I request that this project be renewed through IRA with special response to Lebanon, North and West Africa.