Habib Bourguiba Habib Bourguiba Habib Ben Ali Bourguiba ( "al-Ḥabīb Būrqībah"; 3 August 1903 – 6 April 2000) was a Tunisian lawyer, nationalist leader and statesman who served as the country's leader from independence in 1956 to 1987. He first served as the second Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tunisia before proclaiming the Tunisian Republic in 1957 and thus becoming the first President of Tunisia. Prior to that, he played a major role in obtaining independence from France, ending the 75 years old protectorate and earning the title of "Supreme Combatant". Bourguiba was born in Monastir into a modest family as
Habib Bourguiba resident-general, resisting the pressures to approve reforms, judged "minimal" by the nationalists, which delighted Bourguiba. In the country, despite the unity of the people, De Hauteclocque pressured the adoption of reforms. Therefore, many assassinations took place: Farhat Hached is murdered on 5 December 1952 by La Main rouge. Bourguiba, deprived of posts and newspapers called for the intensification of the resistance. In these conditions, the French government decided to replace De Hauteclocque with Pierre Voizard as resident-general, on 23 September 1953. Trying to appease the uprising, he lifted the curefew and newspaper censorship but also freed nationalist leaders. Furthermore, he