Tunisian trade unions receive Nobel Peace Prize 2015

By Jacob Rosdahl and Lene Frøslev, LO/FTF Council

The National Dialogue Quartet in Tunisia was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2015. The trade union center UGTT (Union Générale Tunisienne du Travail) is part of the Quartet and is credited for its part in the democracy movement in Tunisia.

The Nobel Peace Prize 2015 goes to the “Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet”. The movement was created in 2013 and awarded the prize for its role in the Arab Spring in 2011. The Quartet is recognized for building democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the revolution in 2011, which lead to a series of demonstrations in the Arab world.

The Tunisian trade union confederation UGTT, which is cooperating with the Danish LO/FTF Council through the Danish Arab Initiative has played a major part in the progress of the Quartet.

The democracy process in Tunisia was about to collapse in 2013, hence the quartet was created. Through a process of national dialogue and collaboration with the employers’ organization UTICA, UGTT succeeded to contain both an escalation of violence, that was close to developing into a civil war, as well as an anti-democratic, Islamist constitution in 2013. Through this, UGTT managed to take charge of a process of national dialogue with all parties. This process resulted in a roadmap for democratic transition and a new constitution - the most democratic in the region.

UGTT had a leading and peacemaking role in what is described as the 2011 “14 January Revolution” against the former Ben Ali regime. The confederation mobilized demonstrations and was behind the decisive strikes that ended up forcing the dictator to resign. This was the beginning of a series of revolutionary movements in the region – the “Arab Spring”.

Since then, UGTT has been an important driver in the formulation of goals and visions for Tunisia’s future and in ensuring peaceful transition to democracy and social and economic stability.

Director of the LO/FTF Council, Mads Bugge Madsen, said:

“I congratulate the Quartet and Tunisia on the prize. It shows, once again, what matters in developing a society is how institutional groups come together and agree. This is what we are working for at the LO/FTF Council, the Danish trade union movement and through Danish development cooperation. Let’s bear in mind that the UGTT is a strong organization. This is really their win.”

In 2014 the UGTT was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. This year, the Nobel Committee emphasizes that it is the democracy movement as a whole that wins the award. The Quartet comprises, besides UGTT, the employers’ organization UTICA, the human rights organization LTDH, and the association of the country’s lawyers.

The LO/FTF Council is one of UGTT’s development partners and is funded by Danish trade unions and DANIDA. The LO/FTF Council is working together with the Confederation of Danish Industry on projects in Tunisia concerning social dialogue in particular.

Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs Kristian Jensen said to the Danish national newspaper Berlingske:

“The LO/FTF Council together with the Confederation of Danish Industry have, with funds from the Danish Arab Initiative, worked intensively with the Tunisian employers’ and workers’ organizations, who is taking part of the Quartet. Denmark is proud of that.”

LO/FTF Council cooperates with UGTT in Tunisia in strengthening the organization to actively and constructively participating in social dialogue, labor market reforms and democratization. The cooperation has resulted in the country’s first social contract, which the trade union UGTT, the employers’ organization UTICA, and the government agreed on in 2014.

The LO/FTF Council is the Danish trade union council for international development co-operation. It was established in 1987 by the two largest Danish confederations, the Danish Federation of Trade Unions (LO) and the Danish Confederation of Salaried Employees and Civil Servants (FTF).

This article has been translated from Danish.