It is with great sadness that we mark the passing of Honorable Meherzia Labidi, on 22 January 2021, at the age of 57 years old.
As a longstanding member of the Muslim Democrat Ennadha Movement, she has left her mark on Tunisian politicsand the post-revolutionary Tunisian political transition.
Tireless advocate of interreligious dialogue, Meherzia Labidiwas a member of the European Council of Religious Leaders and served as the honorary president of Religions for Peace in 2015. She co-authored the book Abraham, réveille-toi, ils sont devenus fous (Abraham, wake up, they went crazy) with Laurent Klein. The binational (Tunisian – French) citizen also participated in conferences throughout France to promote interreligious dialogue.
On 23 October 2011, Hon. Labidi was elected to the Tunisian Constituent Assembly as a representative of Ennadha for Tunisians living abroad. On 22 November 2011, she became the First Deputy Speaker of the Assembly and was widely described as the “most senior elected woman in the Middle East”. She was proud of her efforts to ensure the inclusion of a clause to protect women’s rights in the post-Arab Spring constitution of Tunisia.
She served as Vice-President of the Constituent Assembly between 2011 and 2014. She was elected to the Assembly of the Representatives of the People in 2014, and in 2015, she led the Committee for Women, Family, Children, and the Elderly.
In 2019, she returned to the Assembly as a Member of Parliament and served as an advisor to Rached Ghannouchi, President of Parliament.
On the news of her passing, her colleagues from all sides of the political spectrum paid her tribute.
At Parliamentarians for Global Action, we are grateful for her leadership and partnership in efforts to increase accountability for serious human rights violations and international crimes in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region and offer our sincere condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues.
