World

Voting on new constitution in Tunisia

07:53 am on 5 January 2014

The national assembly in Tunisia has begun voting article by article on a new constitution. Agreement on a draft text has taken more than two years.

Each article needs the agreement of two-thirds of the national assembly members to be passed.

Politicians hope the draft will be adopted by 14 January - the third anniversary of the toppling of long-time president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011.

A national assembly was elected in October 2011 with 217 members, who were supposed to have adopted a new constitution within a year.

But the BBC reports the process was delayed by deep divisions between the ruling Ennahda party and the opposition. The assassinations of two opposition figures also pushed the country into a crisis.

Towards the end of last year, Ennahda and its opponents agreed on an interim administration to govern until elections, which are expected within six months of the new constitution being passed.