History of modern Tunisia discipline. The elections were then swept by the Neo Destour party, whose leader Habib Bourguiba became prime minister. On 25 July 1957, the monarchy was abolished, the beylical office terminated, and Tunisia proclaimed a Republic. The assembly then made Bourguiba the first president, of what would be a single-party state. The Neo Destour regime sought to run a strictly structured regime with efficient and equitable state operations, but not with democratic-style politics. In effect, Bourguiba dominated the country for the next 31 years. He governed with programs yielding stability and economic progress, repressing Islamic fundamentalism, and establishing rights for women
Habib Bourguiba Cairo, Egypt, where he lived from 1945 to 1949. However, his attempts were in vain as the Arab countries were preoccupied with Israeli–Palestinian conflict. When he returned to the country, Bourguiba found himself weakened by the ascending of Moncefism and the party's efforts to drive him away, as it restructured around Salah Ben Youssef. He became leader of the nationalist movement and decided to negotiate with France. However, the talks proved to be a total failure and Bourguiba, convinced that the rupture was confirmed, traveled the world seeking for support in order to introduce the case to the United Nations.