An agreement between Microsoft and the government of Ben Ali in 2006 raised some reservation of the U.S. embassy, who asked questions about its consequences in terms of control over citizens, according to a diplomatic cable made public by WikiLeaks.
The partnership agreement signed during an information forum of the software giant in South Africa in July 2006, “illustrates the Tunisian regime’s priorities and the price to be paid for doing business in Tunisia”, reads the diplomatic cable, sent on 22 September 2006.
“In theory, to develop the Tunisian Government ability to apply the law via the Internet is something positive (…), but we wonder if this will not increase its surveillance capabilities of its own citizens”, reads the telegram.
The agreement provided for cooperation on e-governance, cyber security and intellectual property rights, reads the telegram, which highlights the difficulties of obtaining information, despite “repeated requests”.
Under this agreement, Microsoft would train representatives of the Ministries of Justice and Interior to “use computers and the Internet in the fight against crime”, revealed the telegram.
The American company was also supposed to modernize the computer equipment of the Tunisian Government, in exchange for the purchase of 12,000 software licenses from Microsoft.
Another aspect of the contract was the fact that Microsoft was committed to train people with disabilities to enable them to find a job in the Internet sector, a fact which revealed that Leila Trabelsi, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s wife, led a charity organization for people with disabilities.
This was an indication of “behind the scenes maneuvers necessary to conclude the business”, the embassy appreciated.
The chief of Microsoft Tunisia, Salwa Smaoui, described the agreement as “a winner for all parties” and good for the Tunisian government, according to U.S. embassy, which emphasizes that the partnership was achieved after five years of negotiations.
“Although the agreement was hailed as a triumph for intellectual property rights, duration of negotiations and business itself reveals a more complex reality”, concluded the embassy.