Taipei City Government

Mayor Ko Wen-je met with Messaoud Romdhani in the morning of December 20. The two exchanged their opinions regarding civic society and societal trend of their respective nation during the talk. The visiting guest stressed the importance of dialogue among different groups, which Ko believes to be inspiring.

Regarding the Arab Spring starting in 2011, Ko posed the question that ‘how come only Tunisia successfully embarked on the transition into democracy?’ to the guest. Romdhani pointed out that the key lies with the mature civic society of his nation. With a long history created by diversified people, Tunisia’s civic society has reached maturity where the public places heavy importance on the role of civic groups. Another element leading to success is a culture of communicating with a strong government on peaceful basis.

He stressed that different groups are willing to communicate and look for common grounds on issues shared in common is a key factor for the democratization process. However, someone with public credibility has to initiate the dialogues. From what he observed, he believes that Ko is the right person for starting such conversation.

Ko agrees that “true dialogue” is a direction which Taiwan’s society can attempt, rather than TV political talk show-style dialogue which would likely lead to a torn and polarized society. The mayor said he is considering having the city government step forward and inviting different social groups to meet and discuss subjects related to city administration, such as trash disposal and traffic.

The winner of the 2015 Nobel Peace Award is Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, which includes the Tunisian General Labor Union, the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicraft, the Tunisian Human Rights League, and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers. Romdhani served as the vice chairman of the Tunisian Human Rights League at the time.