IB History Revolution in Tunisia Key Definitions

A wave of pro-democracy uprisings that swept across the Middle East and North Africa beginning in late 2010. Starting with Tunisia's revolution, it spread to Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Bahrain and other countries. Outcomes varied widely, from democratic transitions to civil wars and restored authoritarianism.

A system of government where power is concentrated in a single leader or small group, with limited political freedoms, restricted media, and little accountability to the population. In Egypt, authoritarian rule persisted from the 1952 Free Officers' coup through Nasser, Sadat and Mubarak, and was restored under el-Sisi after 2013.

The deliberate, non-violent refusal to obey unjust laws or government demands, as a form of political protest. Gandhi's civil disobedience campaigns (1930-1934) involved mass law-breaking, including the Salt March, refusal to pay taxes, and boycotts of British goods and institutions.

The use of digital tools, social media platforms, and online networks to organize political action, spread information, and challenge authority.

The granting of the right to vote. In the context of the suffrage movement, it refers to extending voting rights to women. In the Canadian Indigenous context, it had a different meaning: the process by which an Indigenous person gave up their legal status and rights as an Indigenous person in exchange for Canadian citizenship.

The coalition of four Tunisian civil society organizations that mediated the 2013 political crisis: the UGTT (trade union confederation), UTICA (employers' federation), the LTDH (Tunisian Human Rights League), and the Order of Lawyers. The Quartet brokered a peaceful transfer of power and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2015.

A landmark 1956 Tunisian law that abolished polygamy, established equal divorce rights for men and women, set a minimum marriage age, and required consent for marriage. It made Tunisia the most progressive Arab country on women's legal rights at the time of its introduction.

The act of setting oneself on fire as a form of protest. It is a dramatic and extreme act used to draw public attention to injustice.

State feminism refers to the use of women's rights legislation and rhetoric by an authoritarian regime to project a democratic, modern image to Western governments while maintaining repressive control over civil society. The regime promotes gender equality selectively, as a form of legitimacy, rather than as a genuine commitment to political freedom.

In Tunisian politics, the three-party coalition government formed after the October 2011 elections, consisting of Ennahda, the Congress for the Republic (CPR), and Ettakatol. The term reflected the shared power arrangement among three distinct political forces.

UGTT (Union Générale Tunisienne du Travail) is Tunisia's main trade union federation, founded in 1946. It was the country's largest and most influential civil society organization throughout the post-independence period, spanning both the Bourguiba and Ben Ali eras.