In collaboration with the Higher Institute for the Study of Contemporary History of Tunisia, veteran journalist, politician, and diplomat Ismail Boulahia is preparing to publish his long-awaited memoirs, spanning more than sixty years of a remarkable career at the heart of Tunisia’s modern transformation.
These highly anticipated recollections promise to shed light on pivotal national events in which Boulahia was both an active participant and a firsthand witness. More than a simple autobiography, the work aims to contribute significantly to the documentation of Tunisia’s contemporary history, tracing a long journey alongside some of the country’s most influential figures.
Among them is Habib Bourguiba, the architect of Tunisia’s independence and its first president—a leader who remains, even after his death, a charismatic yet deeply controversial figure. Boulahia also recalls Hédi Nouira, the prominent former prime minister who was designated as Bourguiba’s successor in 1974.
A member of the so-called “generation of the 1930s,” Boulahia seeks to share the profound experience accumulated over decades of public service. In an era of proliferating memoirs, he is determined to avoid a mere compilation of personal recollections. Instead, he insists on a balanced account, free from self-aggrandizement, even when addressing the most delicate and significant roles he assumed—positions that, he believes, can help rewrite key chapters of Tunisian contemporary history.
Boulahia’s book aspires to offer a historical overview of what he lived and witnessed over more than half a century, chronicling the struggles of his generation to embody democracy and freedom through every phase Tunisia has endured. Given his distinguished and wide-ranging career in media and politics, alongside an unwavering commitment to democratic values—to which he devoted all his time and energy—this work will undoubtedly stand as one of the essential testimonies of our time. As Boulahia humbly describes himself: a soldier serving his country.
TunisianMonitorNews (Chedli Ben Rhouma)
