UN urges inclusive interim government in Tunisia to ease tensions

Tue, 18 Jan 2011

New York - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on Tuesday for an inclusive interim government in Tunisia that can deal with the rocky situation, including the organization of timely and credible elections for a new leadership.

Ban said he was concerned by the growing violence and called for the restoration of peace and stability after popular protests ended the 23-year reign of President Zine el-Abidine ben Ali.

He said Tunisia's parties should hold broad-based consultations to form an "inclusive interim government leading to the holding of timely and credible elections through which the citizens of Tunisia can freely choose their leadership."

"The United Nations stands ready to provide assistance to the Tunisian people," Ban said.

In Tunis, thousands of people continued to protest the participation of former officials in the hastily formed transitional unity government, which got off to a wobbly start on Tuesday with three ministers resigning on the first day.

Three ministers from the General Union of Tunisian Labor (UGTT) withdrew from the unity government to protest the re-appointment of several ministers from ben Ali's Constitutional Democratic Rally party. The opposition party had also refused to take part in the new government.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/362999,big-quake-summary-government-tunisia-ease-tensions.html.