Tunisian President Kais Saied Monday appointed members to the temporary judicial council to replace the state’s Supreme Judicial Council that dissolved last month.

During the televised swearing-in ceremony held at the president’s palace, Saied extolled the importance of an independent judiciary. He further stated: “We are fighting together against the corruption, against those who want to bring down the state. We are in a national liberation battle . . . [W]hoever imagines again that the judiciary will volunteer for his benefit should know that he will be hit with a preventive dam.”

In July 2021, Saied dismissed the sitting prime minister and froze the parliament in what his opponents called a coup. Since then, Saied has been ruling by decree with the Supreme Judicial Council, a constitutional body entrusted with ensuring the independence of the judiciary, as the only check on his authority.

In February, Saied dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council accusing its members of corruption, nepotism, collusion with criminals and non-adherence with Tunisian laws. Thereafter, he issued a decree replacing the dissolved council with his own council and giving himself near-unilateral power over the appointment and dismissal of judges.

The move was widely criticised as an attempt by the former constitutional lawyer turned president to cement power and establish an authoritarian state. The ICJ said that the decree establishing the temporary judicial council was illegal because it empowered the President to directly appoint and influence the appointment, promotion, transfer and removal of all council members and “effectively end[ed] any semblance of judicial independence in the country.”