Tunisian bread riots

Tunisian bread riots
Crowd in Africa Square, Tunis, January 1984
Date	29 December 1983 – 5 January 1984
Location	Tunisia
Causes	Food price increase
Casualties
Death(s)	c. 150
Injuries	c. 1000

The Tunisian bread riots (French: émeutes du pain, Arabic: أحداث الخبز‎‎) were a series of violent demonstrations in Tunisia in December 1983 – January 1984 triggered by a rise in the price of bread due to an IMF-imposed austerity program. President Habib Bourguiba declared a state of emergency and the riots were put down by force. Over 100 rioters were killed. The regime was weakened by the upheavals and their aftermath. Three years later General Zine El Abidine Ben Ali seized power in a coup.

In 1983 the European economy had been stagnant for some years. This had affected Tunisia since its economy relied on exports to Europe and tourists from Europe. The government was struggling to meet rising expenses when a fall in the price of oil towards the end of 1983 further reduced revenue. President Bourguiba agreed to seek a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF loan was conditional on government spending cuts, removal of exchange controls, elimination of protective tariffs and devaluation of the currency.

The government decided to end subsidies on wheat and semolina, the main ingredients of bread. At the time food subsidies accounted for 3.1% of gross domestic product and 10% of the state budget. The subsidies favored the wealthy as much as the poor. The decision was announced on 29 December 1983, and led to an immediate rise in the price of bread and flour. Prices went up by over 100%. The increase, the first in fifteen years, directly affected the poor. Some Tunisian families spent 80% of their food budget on bread and semolina.

The subsidies were removed at a time of growing political tension. Leftist parties were becoming more popular, as were the Islamist movements, while members of the political elite were jostling for position in anticipation of the aging president's death or resignation. The southern region had been suffering from a drought, which caused a poor harvest. Many of the men in this region traditionally left to work in the coastal towns of Tunisia or as migrant laborers in Libya, and were having difficulty finding work. Open political opposition to the government had recently been expressed in the south, which the government blamed on "foreign-inspired agitators", pointing the finger at Libyans and Lebanese.