The population is almost entirely of Arab and Berber descent, although there are Jewish and Christian minorities. Many Tunisians still live in extended family groups, in which three or four generations are represented.
Tunisia has traditionally been one of the most liberal Arab states. The 1956 Personal Statutes Code of President Bourguiba gave women better rights than in any other Arab country. Further legislation has since given women the right to custody of children in divorce cases, made family violence against women punishable by law, and helped divorced women to get alimony. Family planning and contraception have been freely available since the early 1960s. Now Tunisia's population grows by only 16,000 a year. Women make up 25% of the total workforce and 35% of the industrial workforce. Company ownership by women is steadily increasing; politics, however, remain exclusively a male preserve.
These freedoms are threatened by the growth in recent years of Islamic fundamentalism, which also worries the mainly French-speaking political and business elite who wish to strengthen links with Europe.
The Ben Ali regime, although not as repressive as its predecessor, has been criticized for its actions against Islamic activists, particularly the banned "Al-Nahda" party. Amnesty International has detailed a number of human rights abuses, mainly against female members of "Al-Nahda."
