BRUSSELS, Oct 19 Reuters - The European Union on Tuesday called on Tunisia's President Kais Saied to restore the democratic order in his country after he has suspended parliament and secured near total control in July.
The parliament cannot stay closed indefinitely, Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told legislators in a debate at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
Saied is under international pressure to announce a constitutional road map for a return to international politics. Last week he announced a new government but gave no indication that he was ready to relinquish control.
His intervention followed years of political stagnation and economic paralysis, but it has cast into doubt the democratic gains made by Tunisians in the revolution which triggered the Arab Spring uprisings in 2011.
Borrell urges Saied to establish a clear timetable for the re-opening of the parliament.
It is crucial for the country's future and its domestic and international credibility that the President and the Tunisian authorities at all levels fully restore the constitutional and institutional order, including parliamentarian activity, he said.