Tunisia on Thursday commemorated the 10th anniversary of the 2011 Revolution, a popular uprising that marked the Arab Spring.
Due to lockdown for four days starting Thursday to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the demonstrations are banned, there were no festive celebrations marking the revolution.
Avenue Bourguiba, the main artery in the capital city of Tunis, which became a center of the uprising, was deserted.
In past years, demonstrators have rallied to recall the momentous events that sparked the wider Arab Spring revolts and to push for more change, but this year as the world is battling the pandemic this rally could not occur.
The Tunisian Revolution’s young dreams are unfulfilled after ten years and many hopes have been shattered.
Ten years after the revolution, Tunisia still suffers from unemployment, poor infrastructure and poverty. Many look back enthusiastically at the days of dictatorship, but this would not solve the problems.
The same dreams and aspirations of the revolution are still contained in the hearts of many young Tunisians, including those who were too young to really understand or participate in 2011 and hope stills remains even though the roads are blocked.
But there is a new generation of young Tunisians who were raised on the values of the revolution and struggle to make their dreams come true.
A decade after the Revolution, Tunisia has not fulfilled the hopes of its people. But maybe ten years weren’t enough for the fragile jasmine to blossom.