Kais Saied
Kaïs Saïed قيس سعيّد | |
|---|---|
 Saïed in 2013 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 22 February 1958 Béni Khiar, Nabeul, Tunisia |
| Political party | Independent |
Kaïs Saïed (Arabic: قيس سعيد) (born 22 February 1958 in Tunis, is a Tunisian jurist and professor of constitutional law who is running as an Independent in the 2019 Tunisian presidential election.
Biography
He is the son of Moncef Saïed from Beni Khiar ( CapBon) and Lalla Zakia, a family of modest but intellectual origin. His uncle (brother of his father) Hicham Saïed is the first pediatric surgeon in Tunisia, known worldwide for separating Siamese in the 1970s.[1] He is married with three children.[2]
Saïed is a Professor at the Université de Tunis, served as the Secretary-General of the Tunisian Association of Constitutional Law between 1990 and 1995 and has been the vice president of the organization since 1995.
In 2010-2011, he participated in the Tunisian revolution.[citation needed]
Saïed also served as Dean of the Law Department at the University of Sousse, as a legal expert for the Arab League and the Arab Institute for Human Rights, and was a member of the expert committee to revise the Constitution of Tunisia in 2014.[3]
2019 Presidential run and political positions
Saied was one of the first declared candidates in the 2019 Tunisian presidential election.[4] Running as an Independent social conservative, he has sought to appeal to younger voters.[5] One of his policies included support for allowing citizens to recall their elected officials.[6][7] Saied suggested to voters that many of the countries current issues were due to "non-respect for many constitutional laws".[5] He presented a plan to combat corruption, whether it is "moral or financial".[5]
In a June 2019 interview with the newspaper Acharaâ Al Magharibi, Saïed announced his support for the death penalty. He also made statements that homosexuality, or rather its public expression, is financed and encouraged by foreign countries, telling the paper:
I was told certain houses were rented by foreign parties... homosexuality has existed throughout history, but certain people want to spread homosexuality.[8]
He has taken conservative positions on women's issues as well, coming out against gender equality in inheritance issues, in accordance with the interpretation of religious law.[9]
Several media sources[5][9][10] have referred to Saied as "Robocop", given his monotonous voice, his use of Modern Standard Arabic rather than a regional dialect, and his focus on law and order issues. On the campaign trail, Saïed portrayed himself as a man of the people, somewhat similarly to Nabil Karoui, another populist candidate.
Saïed received 620,711 votes in the first round of the 2019 Tunisian presidential election, coming in first place and moved on to face Karoui in the second round.[10]
Publications
Saied is the author of a number of works on constitutional law, including:
- Template:Ar icon Recueil de constitutions et documents politiques tunisiens (نصوص و وثائق سياسية تونسية) [avec Abdelfattah Amor], éd. Centre d'études et de recherches politiques, Tunis, 1987
- Dispositions générales de la constitution [sous la dir. de], éd. Faculté des sciences juridiques, politiques et sociales de Tunis, Tunis, 2010
Notes and references
- ^ "Qui est Kais Saied, l'infatigable marcheur, qui a emporté le premier tour de la présidentielle en Tunisie (Album photos)". Leaders (in French). Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ "Présidentielle 2019 : Biographie de Kais Saied, vainqueur du premier tour". Webdo (in French). 16 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ "Kaïs Saïed". arabesque.tn (in Arabic). 29 November 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
- ^ "Kais Saïd, candidat à la présidentielle de 2019". webmanagercenter.com (in French). 3 December 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
- ^ a b c d Delmas, Benoit. "Tunisie : Kaïs Saïed, un Robespierre en campagne". Le Point. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ Frida Dahmani (26 October 2018). "Présidentielle en Tunisie – Kaïs Saïed : "Je ne serai candidat d'aucun parti"". jeuneafrique.com (in French). Retrieved 24 June 2019.
- ^ "Kaïs Saïed : "Je me présenterai aux présidentielles en tant qu'indépendant"". webdo.tn (in French). 23 March 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
- ^ "Kaïs Saïed : j'éliminerai les élections législatives et je suis pour la peine de mort". businessnews.com.tn (in French). 11 June 2019. Retrieved 12 June 2019.
- ^ a b Lussato, Céline. "Présidentielle tunisienne : « Robocop », ultraconservateur… 10 choses à savoir sur Kaïs Saïed". Le Nouvel Observateur. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^ a b "Tunisia elections: 'Robocop' and 'Berlusconi' head to second round". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
External links
- Camille Lafrance (19 April 2019). "Présidentielle en Tunisie : dix choses à savoir sur Kaïs Saïed, deuxième dans les sondages". jeuneafrique.com (in French). Retrieved 24 June 2019.
