d) The consolidation of the powers of the Constitution Council, having become the constitutional elections arbiter. This significant reform to the Constitution allowed both the strengthening of the fundamental principles on which the Republican system is built (the fundamental rights of the individual, the principles of the pluralism of Political Parties, the principles relative to Personal Status …) and the qualitative development of the rules of the democratic game. 12. In parallel to the reforms to the legislative and executive powers, an in-depth reform of the powers of the judiciary had been undertaken strengthening the independence of the judiciary, bringing it closer to the people, strengthening the equality of all citizens before the law and the effectiveness of the legal guarantees. II- Strengthening of Intellectual and Political Pluralism 13. Tunisia pursues its efforts in putting in place the appropriate mechanisms for the construction of a pluralist democratic system. Towards this end, a series of laws had been promulgated from 1995, including notably: - Organic Law n° 95-68 of 24th July 1995 amending and completing the Districts’ Organic law aimed at strengthening local democracy and regional participation; - Constitutional Law n° 95-90 of 6th November 1995 on the Constitutional Council made possible the insertion of the organization of the Constitutional Council in the text of the Constitution and the expansion of its authority so as to make it the supreme arbiter of pluralist elections; - Law n° 97-48 of 21st July 1997, relative to the public financing of Political Parties. This law sanctions partisan politics, consolidates the role of Parties in political life, reinforces the measures already put in place by the Electoral Code pertaining to the financing of the electoral campaigns for candidates to the office of President of the Republic, to the National Assembly and to the Municipal Councils; - Constitutional law n° 99-52 of 30th June 1999, establishing dispensatory provisions to the 3rd paragraph of Article 40 of the Constitution. This situational law strengthened the pluralism guaranteeing the representation of the Political Parties in the presidential election of 1999, by allowing the leaders of the opposition parties (Chairperson or Secretary General) to present their candidature to the highest office, in case the conditions of the presentation of candidature, as provided for by the Article of the Constitution mentioned above, cannot be fulfilled. However, the candidate, on the date of submission of his candidature, must have been in office for at least five consecutive years and his party should have one member or more in the National Assembly; -Constitutional law n° 2003-34 of 13th May 2003, establishing dispensatory provisions to paragraph 3 of Article 40 of the Constitution, specified that the candidature is not limited to only the leader of the party, as was the case in 1999, but it is up to each of the five Political Parties, represented in the National Assembly, to propose one of the members of its executive body as candidate for the presidential elections. 14. The putting in place of the legal framework of the intellectual and political pluralism constitutes a backdrop of public affairs in Tunisia. Law n° 59-154 of 7th November 1959 on the organization of Associations had been amended by the Laws of 2nd August 1988 and 2nd April 1992 making it more liberal and 7