Help our Tunisian university colleagues
Books which were banned under the Ben Ali regime are now beginning to be available in book stores in Tunis. Librairie el-Kitab in Tunis is now working to establish contacts with publishers to provide books for free to intellectuals and commentators in the country as part of the effort to establish a new democratic Tunisia.
Books which were banned under the Ben Ali regime are now beginning to be available in book stores in Tunis. Salma Yabes, manager of the Librairie al-Kitab in Tunis, said on January 20, 2011 that books which were banned under the Ben Ali regime have become available in the book store because friends and families who hid censored books in their homes now give them for free to the shop. In turn the shop provides these volumes for free to intellectuals, researchers, lecturers and professors Tunisian researchers, lecturers and professors will be crucial in building a new democratic Tunisia. Knowledge of current research is a high priority for them. In the past it was not possible to order books on the internet as they would be confiscated by the authorities upon arrival in Tunis. Tunisian researchers lack all kinds of books, but volumes in political science (democratization, authoritarianism, Islamism, and MENA international relations), sociology, anthropology and ethnography, and studies on contemporary Islam are in particular demand.
Librairie el-Kitab in Tunis is now working to establish contacts with publishers and order books, but there is also something YOU can do to help our Tunisian colleagues.
You can help in two ways:
1) Send one or more copies of books you have authored and other spare publication that you think falls in the categories above (they can be in English, French and Italian). 2) Send contact info of you publisher(s) to the Librairie al-Kitab so that they can get in touch and order books directly.
The Librairie al-Kitab is the biggest book store in Tunis and usually serves Tunisian academics. In the beginning they will make copies of books available in their book shop and at a later stage they will distribute the books to the relevant professors at the various universities and research institutes. The books will be distributed/given for free.
This is truly a positive contribution we can make and we encourage you all to become involved.
Librairie al-Kitab
43, avenue Habib Bourguiba
1000 Tunis Le Colisée
Phone: 00216 71 258 566
Fax: 00216 71 332 450
e-mail: [email][email protected]
Rikke Hostrup Haugbølle
Ph.D. Fellow
Dep. of Cross Cultural and Regional Studies
University of Copenhagen
Snorresgade 17-19, 2300 Copenhagen
Denmark
E-mail: [email][email protected]
Francesco Cavatorta
Senior Lecturer
School of Law and Government
Dublin City University
Glasnevin, Dublin 9
Ireland
E-mail: [email][email protected]