The local chapters of the Tunisian League for the Defence of Human Rights (LTDH) in Mahdia, Monastir, Kairouan and Sousse have categorically rejected all repressive measures that undermine citizens' rights and freedoms. In a statement published on Monday, the human rights activists called on the official authorities to repeal repressive legislation that targets individual and collective freedoms, in particular Decree Law No. 54 on combating offences related to information and communication systems. The reaction of the LTDH local sections follows the sentencing to two years' imprisonment of the young Rached Tamboura, a resident of the Monastir governorate, for painting a mural denouncing the Tunisian authorities' response to the influx of irregular sub-Saharan migrants. In their statement, they also expressed their categorical rejection of "all overt or covert political trials" and called for an end to the "suffering and ordeal of prisoners of speech, opinion and expression". Rached Tamboura was arrested on July 19, 2023 and detained for more than four months. On December 4, 2023, the Monastir Court of First Instance sentenced Rached Tamboura to two years in prison for "insulting the head of state". The Court of Appeal delivered its verdict on January 31, 2024, upholding the first instance verdict. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse