Tunisia on Monday begins trying in absentia ex-President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, five months after he fled to Saudi Arabia, amid calls for him to be extradited to take the stand. A criminal court in the capital will begin hearing the first of about 93 cases brought against the authoritarian ruler, ousted on January 14 in a popular uprising that inspired others still rocking the Arab world.
The first charges against Mr Ben Ali and his wife Leila Trabelsi arise from the discovery of millions of dollars and jewellery in a palace at Sidi Bou Said, near Tunis.
Mr Ben Ali also faces charges related to drugs and weapons found in a palace in Carthage.
Conviction on these allegations is punishable by five to 20 years in prison, but other allegations of murder and torture - to be dealt with later by a military court – carry the death penalty. Saudi Arabia has responded to requests from the interim Tunisian government for the 74-year-old’s extradition.
Many Tunisians are pleased the alleged crimes of the once-powerful couple will be examined in court but others say their trial in absentia is merely intended to appease demands for justice and change months after the uprising.
“This trial is nonsense, it is just for show. It is meant to calm the mood and not to uncover the truth,” Hamma Hammami, head of the Tunisian Communist Worker’s Party, said.
“The authorities should have started by judging the symbols of the dictatorship and corruption, which are Ben Ali’s advisors and ministers, while waiting for international pressure to extradite him,” he said.