EU's envoy to Tunisia must go: Euro MP

(BRUSSELS) - The EU ambassador to Tunisia must be removed for collaborating with the regime of ousted leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and turning a blind eye to rights abuses, a Euro MP said Thursday.

The Dutch envoy, Adrianus Koetsenruijter, is the wrong man to represent the European Union during the country's democratic transition, said Green member of the European Parliament Helene Flautre.

"The EU needs a representative in Tunisia who has the trust of the actors of change at the very least," Flautre told AFP after a visit to the north African country, which is led by a transitional government since Ben Ali fled amid a popular uprising last month.

Koetsenruijter, in Tunis since February 2008, "is the man who collaborated with the Ben Ali regime, who did not speak up about human rights violations," she said.

The EU's diplomatic service defended Koetsenruijter, saying he had fulfilled his duties during the revolt that led to Ban Ali's departure on January 14.

"We have confidence in our chief of mission in Tunisia," said Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.