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Belated constitution enshrines rights

Tunisia's constituent assembly adopts new constitution

Tunisia's constituent assembly adopted a new constitution on Sunday and the prime minister named a caretaker cabinet to organise fresh polls.

The assembly adopted the new charter with an overwhelming majority of 200-12 with four abstentions.

"This day will be proudly remembered," said speaker Mustapha Ben Jaafar.

"All Tunisian men and women can identify with this constitution, which preserves our past accomplishments and lays the foundations of a democratic state."

Mehdi Jomaa, the technocrat picked as prime minister-designate last month as the Islamist Ennahda party relinquished power, presented his line-up to President Moncef Marzouki.

"We needed time to get this constitution as it is today," said monitoring group Bawsala spokeswoman Amira Yahyaoui.

"Clearly, writing this constitution to do a real transformation of the minds of people needed time and I absolutely don't regret these two years."

The new constitution sets out a democratic framework, with a civil state not based on Islamic law.

An entire chapter is dedicated to protecting citizens' rights, including protection from torture, the right to due process and freedom of worship.

It guarantees equality between men and women before the law and the state commits itself to protecting women's rights.

"This is the real revolution. Many democratic constitutions don't even have that," said Ms Yahyaoui.

"It will have a real impact on the rest of the Arab region, because finally we can say that women's rights are not a Western concept only."

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