Jumblatt: Tunisia proved that change is possible if based on agreement

The head of the Progressive Socialist Party MP Walid Jumblatt said Monday that the approval of the new Tunisian constitution came to refute the statements questioning the major developments that took place in a number of Arab countries and to prove that political determination can lead to a transitional period.

In his weekly statement to al-Anbaa website, Jumblatt said that Tunisia’s success in passing a new constitution is an important step, mainly because it includes items that prohibit Takfiri ideology, while stressing the need to remain attached to the teachings of Islam that call for openness and moderation.

“While the constitution declared Tunisia a civil state, it also noted that the ‘state will protect religion’ as it guarantees the freedom of belief,” he added.

In this context, the MP said that Tunisia’s successful experience should be taken as an example, despite the political differences from country to another, stressing that change is possible when it is based on agreement and understanding, not on policies of exclusion, marginalization and violence, all of which only lead to greater violence and bloodshed that take the lives of innocent civilians.