March · This Day in Africa
March 20
1956 — Tunisia Gains Independence
On March 20, 1956, at the Quai d'Orsay in Paris, French foreign minister Christian Pineau declared that France solemnly recognized the independence of Tunisia, ending the protectorate imposed in 1881. Unlike the bloody war raging in neighboring Algeria, Tunisia's freedom was won at the negotiating table, by words rather than arms.
The architect was Habib Bourguiba, founder of the Neo-Destour party, repeatedly jailed and exiled by the French. Two days later he returned to Tunis to a hero's welcome, soon to become the new nation's first president. In 1957 he abolished the monarchy, proclaimed the republic, and granted Tunisian women unmatched rights.
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