Consecrated by Decree-Law No. 2020-12 of 27 April 2020 supplementing the Code of Criminal Procedure, several remote criminal trials have recently been organised in Tunisia. In order to take stock of the situation, draw the first lessons and reflect on these recent experiences, a round table was organised on 28 January 2021 by the CEPEJ in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice on this topic. This activity has been organised in the framework of the joint European Union/Council of Europe programme to improve the functioning, performance and access to justice in Tunisia, co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the latter.
This round table was an opportunity to bring together Tunisian magistrates who have already been involved in these trials, in order to share the positive aspects and the difficulties encountered. From these exchanges, new avenues for improvement and possible support emerged, in particular through collaboration with legal professionals from other countries. This is a topical issue in the judicial world as a whole, which sees it as an issue concerning the norms and standards of fair trial, as Ms Raja Boussema, the Director of International Cooperation at the Tunisian Ministry of Justice, pointed out during the opening session.