The EU's stance towards Islamic NGOS in Tunisia in the wake of the Arab spring

Abstract

This dissertation is more than an examination of the relationship between the EU and post-Arab Spring Tunisia. It takes Tunisia as a case study and examines what the EU has been doing in relation to the Islamic-leaning NGOs of its southern neighbour, with which it boasts of having a privileged partnership. Through existing and new empirical data, this study delves into the reality of these NGOs and examines whether the EU is listening to all voices in Tunisian civil society including the important one of these charities. Although the EU claims that it does not make any distinction among civil society actors, in reality the EU is still not engaging with a large number of NGOs in Tunisia.