"Deposed" Ben Ali sentenced to 15 years

A Tunisian court issued a decree after six hours of proceedings, on Tuesday, sentencing Ben Ali to 15 and a half years in prison, in addition to a fine of around 54 thousand euros on the charge of possession of weapons, drugs, and ancient artefacts. However, it appeared to transpire that the former Tunisian president, Zine el- Abidine Ben Ali, has preferred not to give in to the stauts quo and to remain silent on trial in absentia in Tunisia. Just as expected, the "deposed" former president communicated that he wanted to transfer Lebanese lawyer, Akram Azoury, to oversee the trial. Speaking about Ben Ali, Azoury was quoted as saying, "My second trial and the related possession of weapons and drugs, which are non- existant, falls into the context of a political smear campaign to portray him in general opinion as a smuggler of currency, drugs, and weapons." Azoury said in a statement, "The trial which began today against the President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia relating to the alleged possession of cannabis and weapons has the same value as as the sentence of June 20th, 2011, which condemned him based on the bundles of notes marked with the Central Bank of Tunisia, and the alleged discovery in his home in Sidi Bou Sa'id 35 days after his departure from Tunisia." He said, "The trial today and the 93 trials announced are non-existent beacause they violate all standards of fair trial provided for in Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1966. He also said, "The defense is of course absent from this trial. Please note that I spoke to the Lawyers Union in Tunisia on July 1st 2011, which condemned the bundles of banknotes marked with the Central Bank of Tunisia, and the alleged discovery in his home in Sidi Bou Said, 35 days after leaving Tunisia."