Urgent Call for Solidarity Against the Criminalization of Solidarity
After more than 515 days of detention without trial, the first hearing in case no. 55255 will be held on October 16, 2025, before the 44th Criminal Chamber of the Tunis Court of First Instance. Activist Mustapha Djemmali, president of the Tunisian Council for Refugees, activist Abdelrazak Krimi, project director within the same organization, and four other activists will be tried on charges related solely to their solidarity actions with refugees.
Mustapha Djemmali is a former United Nations official who served as Regional Director at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. On June 28, 2016, he founded the Tunisian Council for Refugees, of which he became president. It is a non-governmental humanitarian organization that addresses asylum-related issues in Tunisia and supports the Tunisian authorities in their efforts to find solutions to the challenges faced by refugees.
He was arrested on May 3, 2024, following a public call for tenders to provide housing for refugees and asylum seekers in precarious situations, in full compliance with national legal requirements and principles of transparency.
Abdelrazak Krimi is a civil society activist and project director at the Tunisian Council for Refugees.
Mustapha Djemmali and Abdelrazak Krimi are being prosecuted under Articles 38, 39, and 41 of Law No. 40 of 1975. They are accused of forming an association with the aim of helping people enter Tunisian territory irregularly and of providing them with shelter.
The penalties they face exceed 13 years in prison and fines of more than 25,000 dinars. These charges are not based on any suspicion of corruption or financial crime but rather represent a direct criminalization of civil solidarity work.
This is despite the fact that Tunisia has ratified the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the African Charter on Migration and Asylum, the Arab Convention on Asylum, as well as various national agreements concluded with the Tunisian Council for Refugees.
Meanwhile, Tunisian authorities continue to detain, without trial: Saadia Mosbah (Mnemty Association Against Racism), Shérifa Riahi, Iyad Bousselmi, and Mohamed Joou (Terre d’Asile Tunisie), Abdallah Saïd (Enfants de la Lune Association), and Salwa Ghraissa (Right to Difference Association).
Today, activists are being prosecuted solely for their commitment to humanitarian values and their support for asylum seekers.
📢 As part of our campaign against the criminalization of civil action in Tunisia, we call on all activists, human rights defenders, and civil society actors in Tunisia, across Africa, the Mediterranean region, and around the world to:
Express their solidarity with Mustapha Djemmali, Abdelrazak Krimi, the Tunisian Council for Refugees, and all victims of the criminalization of solidarity with migrants in Tunisia.
Mobilize and raise awareness about the violations suffered by migrants and civil society activists in Tunisia.
ℹ️ For more information:
