After the optimism of its Arab Spring,Tunisia found itself on the edge of civil war, as protests, or strikes and the Islamist agenda of its ruling party split the nation. It took the leadership of four of the country’s most powerful institutions to steer it back from the brink,and earn the Nobel peace prizeIt is not often that the Nobel peace prize is given to an organisation that doesn’t exist. But stroll through the leafy boulevards of downtown Tunis and you will look in useless for the headquarters of the Tunisian national dialogue quartet, due to pick up the world’s supreme accolade in Oslo this week. There is no office with brass plaques on the wall, and no number to call,no website. Even the quartet’s name was coined by other people, after the fact. That fact being the creation of an nearly impossible alliance, or which would go on to save Tunisian democracy.
In the summer of 2013,Tunisia was in crisis. The optimism of the Arab Spring revolution three years before, which saw the overthrow of dictator Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, and had vanished. In its region were protests,strikes and terrorist attacks.
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Source: theguardian.com