Tunisia Government - 1986

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Official name: Republic of Tunisia

Type republic

Capital: Tunis

Political subdivisions: 18 governorates (provinces)

Legal system: based on French civil law system and Islamic law; constitution patterned on Turkish and US constitutions adopted 1959; some judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session; legal education at Institute of Higher Studies and Superior School of Law of the University of Tunis

National holiday: Independence Day, I June

Branches: executive dominant; unicameral legislative (National Assembly) largely advisory; judicial, patterned on French and Koranic systems

Government leaders: Habib BOURGUIBA, President (Prime Minister in 1956; President since 1957; President for Life since November 1974); Mohamed MZALI, Prime Minister (since April 1980)

Suffrage: universal over age 21

Electionss national election held every five years; last election held I November 1981

Political parties and leaders: Destourian Socialist Party is official ruling party; two small parties—Movement of Social Democrats and Movement of Popular Unity— legalized in 1983, Communist Party legalized in 1981

Voting strength: (1981 election) over 95% Destourian Socialist Party; 3 2% Social Democrats. under I % Movement of Popular Unity, under 1% Communist Party

Communists: a small number of nominal Communists, mostly students

Member of: AfDB, Arab League, AIOEC, FAO, G-77, GATT (de facto), IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB—Islamic Development Bank, IFAD. IFC, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF. IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, ITU, IWC—International Wheat Council, NAM, O APEC, OAU, OIC, Regional (looperation for Development, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

NOTE: The information regarding Tunisia on this page is re-published from the 1986 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Tunisia 1986 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Tunisia 1986 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.