Tunisia
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Mohamed Bouazizi
Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia
Archival Overview
Tunisian street vendor whose desperate self-immolation in protest against municipal humiliation ignited the Jasmine Revolution, toppling President Ben Ali and sparking the Arab Spring across the Middle East.
Biographical Record
Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi worked from age ten supporting his mother and six siblings by selling fruit and vegetables from a wooden cart in the rural town of Sidi Bouzid, having never completed high school due to poverty.
On December 17, 2010, municipal inspectors confiscated his cart and scales, and a municipal official publicly humiliated and slapped him. Denied an audience with the provincial governor, Bouazizi poured paint thinner over himself and set himself on fire in front of the governorate building. His tragic act triggered massive nationwide protests that ousted dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali within 28 days and sparked popular uprisings across the Arab world.
Key Life Milestones
The Spark of the Jasmine Revolution
His tragic protest on December 17 ignited the popular rebellion that dismantled Tunisia's authoritarian regime.
European Parliament Sakharov Prize
Posthumously awarded the prestigious Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought by the European Parliament.
Memorial Guestbook & Tributes
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Final Resting Place
Perpetual MemorialSidi Bouzid, Tunisia