About Attalaki

OUR STORY

Attalaki organization was founded in 2016 by young Tunisians belonging to different religious minorities who possess a vast knowledge of the field in which they work and a network of knowledge allowing the organization to collaborate in the implementation of the organization’s activities. Today, they are considered the main organization in Tunisia working on the theme of freedom of religion and belief and a key player in defending the rights of religious minorities and making their voices heard, in addition to reinforcing interfaith dialogue and building understandings in order to establish a common ground for peaceful coexistence. The aforementioned is concretized through multiple partnerships which enabled its activities to cover all the governorates of Tunisia and to diversify the nature of these activities including national and international advocacy campaigns, conferences and round tables, artistic creation mainly audiovisual as well as workshops and training. These activities have affected multiple target groups including political, religious, and government decision-makers with more focus on persecuted religious minorities.

After 6 years of working, we have achieved a large part of our goals and have been able to collect ideas and beliefs that others thought were impossible. We created a new form of dialogue and held the first meeting on religious freedom within a church in Tunisia and the Arab world and the first round table for Tunisians of different faiths and faiths (Muslim imams, Christians, Jews, Baha’is, professors from Zaytouna University, Ibadites, Shiites and non-believers). The meeting was a great opportunity to break stereotypes, especially about Tunisians of Muslim origin who converted to another religion, which then paved the way for the creation of focus groups for interfaith dialogue. On the other hand, we were pleased with the participation of speakers from Egypt, Canada, Britain, Italy, and Tunisia, on various topics mainly related to «religious freedom, religious and cultural diversity, pluralism, women, journalism, racial discrimination, immigration, democracy, human rights and citizenship..etc». As a result of the continuous work, an annual report on religious freedom in Tunisia was issued in 2020, which is the first of its kind in Tunisia and the Arab world in terms of form and content which was prepared by the Religious Freedom Committee of Attalaki. The report discussed the issue of religious freedom and the status of religious minorities in a fundamental sense, both legally and socially. The report was covered in more than 50 national and international websites in many languages.

OUR VISION

Achieving positive change to create an equal and just environment that guarantees all members of society their rights and freedoms.

OUR BELIEF

Religious Freedom leads to a free society, and diversity is a blessing to people.

OUR MISSION

Contribute to the advancement of human awareness of a more just, equal, and free world by consolidating the values of love, peace, and tolerance, supporting dialogue and communication between religiously and intellectually different people and spreading a culture of citizenship and coexistence, combating all forms of intolerance and hatred, as well as committing to defend religious freedom, let the voices heard with an emphasis on youth, women, and the minorities in efforts to build a ground for coexistence and to promote a culture of peaceful dialogue away from fanaticism, extremism, and all forms of discrimination.

OUR VALUES

• Confidence
• Integrity
• Engagement
• Transparency
• Independence
• Sharing

OUR GOALS

• Defending freedom of belief and religion and making the voice of religious minorities be heard.
• Contribute to spreading awareness of the concept of democracy and human rights.
• Contribute to the promotion of a culture of dialogue and communication.
• Contribute to the development of the spirit of citizenship among young people and children.
• Contribute to interfaith dialogue and building Understandings.

Meet

OUR TEAM

Rashed Massoud Hafnaoui

President & Co-Founder

He is a human rights activist and public speaker, born in 1989 in Tunisia. He has more than 8 years of experience in the field of religious freedom and interfaith dialogue. He studied theology for a while and then devoted himself permanently to defending religious freedom and supporting the persecuted of religious minorities in Tunisia through the Attalaki NGO, which he founded in 2016.