"I hesitated a lot before giving this testimony. But after much debate, I decided that history is not to be written in the palaces." These were the opening words of Bechir Laabidi's testimony at the second public hearing organized by Tunisia's Truth and Dignity Commission (TDC). Laabidi, a miner and trade unionist, talked about the torture he and his son endured when detained by security forces during President Ben Ali's regime.
His was one of many testimonies broadcast live to the nation. For the first time in the country's history, Tunisians listened to stories of decades of abuse and oppression from the victims themselves.
...