Tunisia hands transitional justice figure Sihem Ben Sedrine 25-year sentence in two trial verdicts

The verdict

The criminal chamber specialising in financial corruption cases at the Tunis court of first instance delivered its ruling in the early hours of Friday 26 June. Sihem Ben Sedrine, who chaired the Truth and Dignity Commission (Instance Vérité et Dignité, IVD) from 2014 to 2018, received a cumulative 25-year prison term across two separate proceedings. Her co-defendant, former IVD member Khaled Krichi, was also convicted, while former State Property Minister Mabrouk Korchid (reported by local media to be a fugitive) received sentences in both cases.

For me, anything excessive is meaningless and I consider this a verdict that rebounds on the faces of those who issued it. Because it is an unjust trial.

The two cases

The first case concerned alleged irregularities in an arbitration reconciliation agreement reached between the IVD and businessman Slim Chiboub. Ben Sedrine and Krichi were each sentenced to five years; Korchid received six years; Chiboub got five years for complicity. The court imposed heavy financial penalties: the four were ordered to pay jointly a fine and damages that local media put at approximately 1.776 billion dinars.

The second case involved the Banque Franco-Tunisienne (BFT) dossier. Charges included abuse of office, violation of administrative procedures, and harm to the administration. Ben Sedrine and Krichi each received five years, while Korchid and former BFT CEO Abdelmajid Boudène were each given six years for complicity. The defendants were ordered to repay almost 16.985 million dinars (about 5.15 million euros) and a fine of the same amount. The court additionally convicted Ben Sedrine of forgery, possession, and use of forged documents, adding 15 years to her sentence, bringing the total to 25.

Reaction

Ben Sedrine told Agence France-Presse that the decision “has nothing to do with justice” and “has to do with a totalitarian regime that wants to eliminate the heritage of the IVD.” Her lawyer, Elyes Ben Sedrine, confirmed the reconciliation agreement with Chiboub was never implemented. She has announced she will appeal. Her defence argued the court lacked jurisdiction, citing a provision in the law that prohibits judging IVD members for work carried out by the commission.

Rights groups alarmed

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) called the charges “unfounded” and said the proceedings form part of a broader attack on transitional justice mechanisms. An FIDH observation mission flagged several fair-trial concerns: the 18 June hearing date coincided with a publicly announced general lawyers’ strike, police filtered access to a supposedly public audience, and the courtroom remained sparsely attended as a result. FIDH president Alexis Deswaef noted that officers outside the building were demanding identity cards and filtering entry.

By targeting former members of the IVD, the Tunisian authorities are seeking to weaken the work of the Commission, which was set up to guarantee the rights to truth, justice and reparation.

Political context

The IVD, created after the 2011 revolution that toppled Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, heard testimony from around 49,000 victims of the Bourguiba (1957–1987) and Ben Ali (1987–2011) eras and referred 173 cases to specialised transitional justice courts. Its final report, published in 2020, called for dismantling a “system of corruption, repression and dictatorship” still present in state institutions. Since President Kais Saied invoked emergency powers in July 2021 to dismiss the government and parliament and later pushed through a constitution giving him greater authority, human-rights organisations have documented what they describe as a steep decline in rights and freedoms. Numerous political opponents are now in prison or exile.