Sihem BENSEDRINE (°1950)
Profession: Journalist and human rights activist
Nationality: Tunisian
Why an honorary doctorate?
On 3 May 2018 at the BOZAR in Brussels, human rights activists Sihem Bensedrine and Pierre Claver Mbonimpa receive their honorary doctorates from VUB.
With the courage of hope
03 May 2018. It is the fourth edition of Difference Day of VUB and ULB, an annual event on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day. Sihem Bensedrine is like no other symbol of the fight for freedom of expression, for her humanistic quest for rights for every human being. These are values that VUB and ULB emphasise to the core. Sihem Bensedrine experienced repression at first hand but nothing ever stopped her from exchanging despair for hope. With the courage of hope, the almost impossible becomes possible again.
Honest thinking and honest reflection is required.
Things are on the move there, in many North African countries and the Middle East (Mona). 9/11 changes everything. When Sihem Bensedrine speaks, she does not mince words. The fear of terrorism and the too-quick link made in that context with everyone of Arab origin has gone beyond the bounds of reality. Everything is viewed as a security problem. Checks increase, and so does discrimination. The European attitude towards the Mona states is extremely mixed. Nonetheless, Bensedrine sees Europe playing a crucial role in implementing overseas freedom, free trade, and economic integration. If all parties listen to each other with respect and mutual understanding, every interest can be given an equal place. Changing perceptions is never an easy task. Honest thought and honest reflection are required.
“European attitudes towards North African and Middle Eastern countries are incredibly mixed.”
About her career
Struggle for better or worse
1980. Sihem Bensedrine goes to work as a reporter for the independent Tunisian magazine Le Phare. But the magazine throws in the towel, and Bensedrine ends up as a political leader in Maghreb and then at the magazine Réalités.
In 1983, Maghreb shuts down the magazine's presses because of the food riots and Bensedrine becomes editor-in-chief of Gazette Touristique. She sets up l'Hebdo Touristique while at the same time keeping an eye on the opposition newspaper El Mawkif.
In 1988 she founds the publishing house Arcs, but the human rights crisis pushes her into bankruptcy in 1992. Bensedrine becomes literary director of the publishing house Noir sur Blanc in 1998. That same year, she and several others found the Conseil National pour les Libertés en Tunisie. This NGO is fully committed to protecting human rights and Sihem Bensedrine becomes its main spokesperson.
But from 1999, she and her companies face punishing political and judicial headwinds with forfeiture and destruction of property, and a smear campaign in which she is portrayed as a prostitute. Reason: the freedom of the press which she takes very literally and her unrelenting battle for human rights.
Meanwhile, the centuries have changed. Together with journalist Naziha Réjiba, she starts the online magazine Kalima in 2000. A year later, both women are founders of the group Observatoire de la Liberté de la Presse, de L'Édition et de la Création (OLPEC), which defends freedom of the press.
In June 2001, Bensedrine is interviewed for the London-based 'Al Mustaquilla' television station. She speaks openly - and critically - about the violation of human rights and judicial corruption in Tunisia. A few days later, she is arrested at Tunis airport. She is charged with "spreading false news with the intention of disturbing public order, slander and undermining the judicial institution". Bensedrine goes behind bars for a month.
Risky journalism: Human rights journalism under threat
Honour to persecuted journalist: Oxfam Novib/PEN Award 2005
Creator: Alison Des Forges Award 2011
As the years go by, Sihem Bensedrine gains recognition and several awards for her noble role as a human rights activist and her energetic battle for press freedom. Since 2014, she has headed the Tunisian Truth and Reconciliation Commission Instance Vérité & Dignité. It investigates human rights violations by the Tunisian government and hears the testimonies of tortured victims. The commission aims at reconciliation in Tunisia after the end of the dictatorship there. The goal is by no means revenge, but rather the recording of history.
What is an honorary doctorate?
VUB has awarded honorary doctorates every year since 1978 to personalities from the most diverse backgrounds who have made a remarkable contribution to their field and to society. From this solemn moment of recognition, they bear the honorary title of Doctor Honoris Causa of VUB.