Lina Ben Mhanni (May 22, 1983 – January 27, 2020), human rights activist, journalist and university English professor. She was known for her opposition to the policy of censorship of Internet sites under the regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. She wrote on her blog, “Tunisian girl,” which was censored several times before the Tunisian revolution, and on the Global Voices website. She contributed to online media coverage of the Tunisian revolution, traveling to the town of Regueb to cover the events of the outbreak of the revolution in Sidi Bouzid, publishing photos of protesters killed and injured by police bullets .
Lina Ben Mhenni is the daughter of Sadek Ben Mhenni, one of the Tunisian left-wing leaders who opposed Habib Bourguiba in the 1970s. He and his comrades were imprisoned from the left-wing group “Perspectives”, and he is one of the founders of the Tunisian branch of Amnesty International. His mother is a teacher in Arabic language secondary schools.
Lina was an activist in the fields of human rights and the fight against Internet censorship. She wrote on her blog about the events in the mining basin in 2008, then participated in the activities “Sayeb Saleh” and “Nahar Ala Ammar”, which were organized by Tunisian bloggers to protest against the censorship of numerous Internet sites in Tunisia such as YouTube and news sites, as well as the “National Day for Freedom to Blog” which took place on November 4, 2010. She also participated in campaigns to demand the release of students imprisoned for their political activities. She was also present in most of the demonstrations organized in the capital, notably the lawyers’ demonstrations, and during the Kasbah 1 and 2 sit-ins. Lina Ben Mhenni published mainly on her blog, Bnaya Tounsia, which she launched in 2007.
She wrote there in Arabic, French and English where she received a large number of readers, as well as on the Global Voices website, where she blogged since October 2008. Ben Mhenni was also active in the field of sports for receivers of organs, and she obtained several medals, including the silver medal in running at the World Organ Recipient Championship in Thailand in 2007, the silver medal in running at the Maghreb and South Africa Championships. Middle East in Libya 2008, the gold medal in the marathon at the Maghreb and Middle East Championships in Libya the same year, and the silver medal in running at the World Organ Recipient Championship in Australia in 2009 and the gold medal running at the Maghreb and Middle East Championships in Tunisia in 2010.
Lina Ben Mhenni was nominated, along with Egyptian blogger Esraa Abdel Fattah and Egyptian activist Wael Ghonim, for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize.
Lina was present at key moments of resistance against all forms of oppression
198322 MayBirth of Lina
201022 MaySayeb Salah
2011JanuaryJanuary 2011
20129 aprilAvril 2012
202027 JanuaryDeath Lina
202116 FEBRUARYcreation of the lina association
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Lina testifies
Thanks to her commitment, but also to her exceptional pen and her sense of analysis, Lina’s works have constituted in-depth testimonies on little-documented facets of the political and social sphere in Tunisia for around fifteen years.