A/HRC/40/58/Add.1 activities have engendered the securitisation of the government’s approach to some religious groups. 19. In the initial years after the revolution, the country has had to grapple with intermittent incidents of terrorism and random violence targeted at politicians, civil society activists and tourists, alongside problems involving the repatriation of a large number of Tunisian foreign fighters from conflict areas that now reportedly pose security and legal challenges for the Government; including issues with criminal justice and combatting extremism. Continued commitment to ensuring the effective development of strong, responsive and transparent political institutions guided by respect for human rights, including freedom of religion or belief, will be important to the further consolidation of Tunisian democracy. IV. Legal Framework 20. Tunisia is a party to all international human rights treaties that contain provisions for the protection of freedom of religion or belief, apart from the Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers and some of the Optional Protocols. The government indicated to the Special Rapporteur its willingness to consider joining these instruments. 21. The constitution refers in its preamble to the highest principles of universal human rights. While Article 20 of the Constitution recognizes provisions promulgated by ratified international instruments to be integral to the country’s national legal framework, and as such, international treaty obligations prevail over national laws, they do not, however, override constitutional provisions. While this does not fully meet the international standard specified in Art. 27 of the Vienna Convention on the Law on Treaties, the provision lends confidence to the plausibility that international treaty obligations can be invoked in domestic legal proceedings to address tensions and violations of human rights protections. 22. Tunisians generally view the 2014 Constitution as a very progressive settlement, both in the country’s own context and in terms of its wider regional setting. Many see it as a compromise among diverse interests, especially between objectives to extend greater influence for Islam in public affairs and objectives to protect secular influence on the public sphere. The Constitution stipulates that Tunisia is a civil state based on citizenship, the will of the people, and the supremacy of law (Article 2). 23. Article 1 of the Constitution stipulates that Tunisia’s religion is Islam while the Preamble describes a national identity that is defined by several elements; including Islam, the country’s Arab heritage and universal human rights. Some legal experts argue that the declaration in Article 1 that Tunisia’s religion is Islam, does not imply that Tunisia is an Islamic state whereby laws stem from Islamic Sharia 2 . Many point out that Article 1 of Tunisia’s former Constitution (1959) enshrined Islam as the country’s religion, but that under the rule of Presidents Bourguiba and Ben Ali, Tunisia could not be characterized as a religious State. 24. Notwithstanding the constitutional commitment to freedom of religion and nondiscrimination, the ambiguity of some constitutional provisions which lend themselves to discrimination as it pertains to religion or belief should not be ignored. The Constitution stipulates, for example, that only Muslims are eligible to stand for office of the president (Article 74), and since it is feasible that the Speaker of the Assembly (Parliament) may temporarily assume the position of Head of State in the event of an unexpected vacancy of the post, it could also be interpreted that this office is also reserved for Muslims alone. Such provisions appear inconsistent with the full guarantee of freedom of religion or belief, and potentially pose negative implications for protections of this right. 25. The Constitution also effectuates the doctrine of the separation of powers and checks and balances, including the judicial branch of government (Chapter V) whose Constitutional Court oversees the constitutionality of laws, and whose judges, prosecutors and lawyers are guaranteed independence as the main actors for the country’s judicial system. The judiciary 2 Sadok Belaid « Tunisia is a free, independent, sovereign state, its religion is Islam» under the General Provisions of the Constitution, ATDC, Tunis, 2010, pp. 31-36. 5