New Tunis government could appease some protesters

TUNIS (Reuters) - Purged of all members of the former ruling party and agreed with unions, politicians and civil society groups, Tunisia's new government lineup could appease many protesters demanding more sweeping changes.

The new lineup, announced on Thursday after protesters launched a 24-hour sit-in to topple the government, replaced 12 old guard ministers including those in the key portfolios of interior, defense, finance and foreign affairs.

It has won the all-important support of Tunisia's powerful labor union, widely believed to have organized and encouraged protests and strikes that have stopped Tunisia returning to normal life following the revolution that ended Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali's 23-year rule.

"The government meets the demands of all political sides. The most important thing is that it does not include the symbols of financial corruption or the symbols of the old regime," said political analyst Sofian Shurabi.

"It is anticipated that the protesters should gradually begin to die down."

Announced on Jan 17, just three days after Ben Ali fled the country, the cabinet has struggled to assert itself as Tunisians protested that it contained too many members of the old guard.

Aware that their uprising had electrified Arabs across the Middle East, Tunisians were keen to ensure that they had not removed the figurehead but left the old regime intact.

The cabinet initially brought in three ministers from Tunisia's long-repressed opposition ministers and three union representatives, but only gave them junior ministries.

However, one opposition minister resigned and the union withdrew all three of its minister within days, as it quickly became clear the lineup did not satisfy public opinion.

A series of concessions that saw the prime minister and president, followed by all cabinet ministers quit Ben Ali's ruling RCD party, failed to satisfy the demands of the union or of the demonstrators, who became increasingly vocal.

GHANNOUCHI NEW TARGET OF PROTESTS

The key stumbling block for the new lineup could turn out to be Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi himself.

Tainted by his long tenure as prime minister under Ben Ali and now a specific target for protesters camping outside his office, Ghannouchi may be too much for some to swallow.

Moments after the new lineup was announced, shouts of "bread, water but no Ghannouchi" broke out in the casbah, the old town of Tunis near his office.

"We reject Ghannouchi totally. We were surprised to see him announce the government," said protester Mohamed Fadel. "Since he did not fight corruption under Ben Ali, he is an accomplice."

Ghannouchi, who announced the new lineup in a televised live address, tried to calm potential jitters about the new cabinet by stressing that it was a transitional body that would be dissolved after new elections expected in the coming months.

Ghannouchi's announcement that the elections would be organized by an independent body and monitored by international observers could also go some way to alleviating fears the ruling party would regain influence as the demonstrations die down and derail Tunisia's transition to democracy.

A union source told Reuters it had accepted Ghannouchi as he was appointed by the interim president, Fouad Mebazza, to form a government and his removal could create a political vacuum.

Many Tunisians fear that such a vacuum could prompt the army to take power. The source also said the union had decided not to return to the cabinet as it preferred to act as a counterbalance to government, a factor which suggests intermittent protests and strikes could become a fact of life in the new Tunisia.

(Writing by Lin Noueihed, Editing by Ralph Boulton)