ABSTRACT
Tunisian women’s trailblazing and advantageous legal status is considered an exception in Muslim countries. For decades the status has been a showcase for successive Tunisian governments, a forceful argument at election time for President Ben Ali, and an often used alibi by the authorities when European countries and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) challenge the regime about human rights and freedom of the press. We will first show the specificity of the status, and then we will take a closer look at the role played by social media in defence of the status as Tunisia goes through a period of political turmoil. The defence of women’s freedom has brought about new ways of using social networks and new forms of mobilization online.
