page_title: Fouad Mebazaa
section_title: 2011 Presidency
hierarchical_section_title: Fouad Mebazaa / Political career / 2011 Presidency
caption_attribution_description: [Houda Trabelsi] Latifa Lakdhar, vice chair of the High Commission for the Realisation of Revolutionary Goals, addresses attendees and politicians at the group's last session. لطيفة لخضر نائبة رئيس اللجنة العليا لتحقيق أهداف الثورة تخاطب الحضور والسياسيين خلال اجتماع للجنة Latifa Lakdhar, vice-présidente de la Haute instance pour la réalisation des objectifs de la révolution, s'adresse aux participants divers et aux responsables politiques réunis à l'occasion de la dernière session du groupe. magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/featu... magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/ar/features/awi/features... magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/fr/features/awi/features...
context_page_description: Fouad Mebazaa is a Tunisian politician who was President of Tunisia from 15 January 2011 to 13 December 2011. He was active in Neo Destour prior to Tunisian independence, served as Minister of Youth and Sports, Minister of Public Health, and Minister of Culture and Information, and was Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of Tunisia from 1991 to 2011.
context_section_description: During the Tunisian Revolution, President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali left Tunisia on 14 January 2011 after being replaced by Mohamed Ghannouchi. The next day, Fouad Mebazaa, as Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, is appointed acting President of the Republic by the Constitutional Council, in accordance with article 57 of the 1959 Constitution. He is then considered as a cacique of the fallen regime.
  Mohamed Ghannouchi, confirmed as prime minister, appointed a new government on 17 January, while Fouad Mebazaa left the Democratic Constitutional Rally the next day. He also stated that, given his role and his presidential function, he temporarily left the presidency of the Chamber of Deputies, leaving the interim to his first vice-president Sahbi Karoui for his first meeting held on 4 February 2011.
  On 19 January 2011, he announced in a speech that the security situation in the country is improving significantly and is stabilizing; he also ensured that those responsible for the disturbances have been unmasked and arrested. He said he wants to ensure that the government respects its commitments in complete disharmony with the past. The next day, five members of the government, including Kamel Morjane, Ridha Grira, Ahmed Friaa, Moncer Rouissi and Zouheir M'Dhaffar resigned.
  Pending free elections, the Chamber of Advisors adopted on 9 February 2011 a law that allows the acting president to govern by decree-laws, two days after the vote of the Chamber of Deputies. On 27 February 2011 Ghannouchi resigned and leaves his place to Beji Caid Essebsi who formed a new government.
  He announced, on 3 March 2011, the election of a Constituent Assembly in order to develop a Constitution to replace that of 1959. He said in this regard during his speech:
  "Political reform requires us to find a new constitutional basis that reflects the will of the people and benefits from popular legitimacy [...] The current Constitution no longer meets the ambitions of the people after the revolution and is overwhelmed by the circumstances , not to mention the vicissitudes that have affected it, because of the many amendments that have been made to it and which prevent real democratic life and constitute an obstacle to the organization of transparent elections and the establishment of a political climate in which each individual and each group can enjoy freedom and equality. "
  Moncef Marzouki replaced him on 12 December 2011; Mebazaa announced the same day its intention to officially hand over the presidential powers during a solemn ceremony. The next day, Fouad Mebazaa greeted Marzouki one last time at the presidential palace of Carthage before leaving by car for his personal residence in Tunis.
caption: Mebazaa with Beji Caid Essebsi, Yadh Ben Achour and Latifa Lakhdar in Tunis on 13 October 2011.
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