Atalay visited Tunisia over the weekend to attend the first anniversary of the Jan. 14 revolution that started when a young Tunisian with a university diploma burnt himself to death as a reaction to harassment from a police officer who confiscated his vegetable cart, his family’s only source of income.
In Tunisia, Atalay reaffirmed Turkey’s welcoming of the new Tunisian coalition government that replaced its predecessor in a first-time democratic election held last year, saying that Tunisia has become a source of inspiration for the countries of the Arab Spring region, the Anatolia news agency reported.
“The revolution showed that nothing could prevent the will of the people demanding freedom, reform and social justice,” he added and stressed that Turkey has been a strong supporter of the Tunisians’ fight for freedom from the beginning and hopes this cooperation continues in the future.
Atalay was hosted on Sunday by Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki and Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali, to whom Atalay relayed Turkey’s willingness to cooperate with Tunisia in its new era. The Turkish minister also met with Rached Ghannouchi of the Ennahda Party, who pays frequent visits to Turkey, and exchanged views on the future of Tunisia and Turkey.
