Habib Bourguiba

Leader between fail and success (tunisen president 1957-1987)

Tunisian militant nationalist, Bourguiba founded in 1934, the Neo-Destour and becomes the "Supreme Commander" of the struggle against French imperialism. After years of exile, he obtained the independence of Tunisia (1956) and founded the Republic and became its president in 1957. Bucking the "Tunisification" and the secularization of society, he leads a political inspiration Socialist while maintaining openness to the West. Very authoritarian, yet he begins a liberal turn in the 1970s, but failed to stop the general crisis affecting the country in the 1980s and which led to his removal by the army in 1987.