The Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT) launched a protest on Wednesday after the arrest of one of its leaders, relating a speech by President Kais Saied who denounced on Tuesday evening an instrumentalization of the right to strike for political purposes.

The arrest of Anis Kaabi, secretary general of the Highwayssyndicate, one of the components of the UGTT, is “a blow to trade union work, a violation of trade union rights and international conventions signed by Tunisia for the respect of trade union freedoms and the right to strike,” said the UGTT in a statement.

Calling for the “immediate release” of Anis Kaabi, the trade union centre denounced “the targeting of trade union rights and freedoms,” stressing that the arrest took place “immediately” after a speech by President Said.

The UGTT, which has one million members, played a crucial role in the Tunisian transition to democracy and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2015 to a Quartet of three other civil society organisations.