Tunisian ministers quit; police break up protest

(01-18) 14:05 PST TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) --

At least four opposition ministers quit Tunisia's day-old unity government Tuesday, aligning themselves with demonstrators who insist democratic change is impossible while so many supporters of the freshly ousted president are hoarding posts of power.

Police in riot gear forcefully put down a demonstration of the sort that toppled the North African country's longtime autocratic leader last week, pummeling a demonstrator with batons and boot kicks — and highlighting a question on many minds: Is the new regime really much different?

As Tunisia struggles to move past the rioting, looting and score-settling that has marked the political transition, there was a growing sense Tuesday that it will be difficult for the interim government to hold together and pave the way toward elections expected within six to seven months.

After the initial exhilaration of last week, when a populist uprising ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali after 23 years in power and sent him fleeing to Saudi Arabia — sounding a warning bell for other political strongmen in the region — many are fretting about what it ultimately meant.

"I am afraid that our revolution will be stolen from me and my people. The people are asking for freedoms and this new government is not. They are the ones who oppressed the people for 23 years," said Ines Mawdud, a 22-year-old student who was among protesters at the demonstration.

Tunisia's outlawed Ennahdha Islamist party said its members also marched Tuesday — something that was unthinkable during the rule of Ben Ali, who banned the group in 1992 and waged an ongoing crackdown against it. Authorities had accused the group of forming a military wing to kill Ben Ali and establish a Muslim fundamentalist state. Group leaders said their confessions were extracted through torture.

Hamadi Jebali, a spokesman for the party, told AP it wants "a chance to let the people of Tunisia choose their leaders and to have a chance to accept or reject us via the polls."

Ben Ali was often criticized for a heavy-handed crackdown on Islamists and opponents, for curbing civil liberties and for running a police state — though he was praised for turning his country into a successful tourist haven and was an ally in the U.S. fight against terrorism.

In an attempt to distance themselves from Ben Ali, the country's interim president and prime minister quit the ruling RCD party on Tuesday. The RCD party also kicked out Ben Ali, its founder, national television reported. It was not immediately clear how protesters would greet those moves.

Also Tuesday, political leader Moncef Marzouki returned from more than 20 years of exile in France to a joyful reception at Tunis' airport from supporters who carried him on their shoulders.

Marzouki, a physician and human rights activist who leads the once-banned CPR party and wants to run for president, urged fellow Tunisians to hold firm in their efforts to bring down Ben Ali's party.

"Don't let anyone steal this blessed revolution from you," Marzouki said, adding: "Don't waste the blood of our martyrs." That was a reference to the 78 protesters and civilians who died in the protests that swept Ben Ali from power. Many were killed by police bullets.

In another blow to the Mediterranean country, whose economy is heavily dependent on tourism, several European tour operators said they have canceled trips to Tunisia through mid-February due to safety concerns.

U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said that about 70 U.S. citizens, including officials and private citizens, were flown out of Tunis today to Rabat, Morocco.

The United States is hoping Tunisia will take a path that includes "open and fair elections" and "investigating the abuses of the past," he said.