Bach Hamba was born in 1876 in Tunis into a family of Turkish origin,[1][2] his brother, Mohamed Bach Hamba, was the editor of "Revue du Maghreb".[3] He studied at the Sadiki College prior to achieving a master's and then a doctorate in law at the Aix-Marseille University. In 1907 he and Béchir Sfar created a political group, the Young Tunisians (influenced by the Young Turks), with a French language weekly, "Le Tunisien", to speak for the interests of their countrymen.[4] They sought for equality and demanded for rights in accordance with the terms of the protectorate. In 1909 they were joined by Abdelaziz Thâalbi, and the movement acquired a religious as well as a constitutional character, with an Arabic as well as a French edition of "Le Tunisien". The popularity of the new party was demonstrated in 1911, when it protested against the Italian invasion of Libya.[4] In November 1911, a riot, quelled by troops, led to the proclamation of a state of siege. When in February 1912 an Italian tram-driver knocked down and killed a child, the Tunis Tram Boycott was organised, and Tunisian employees fought for equal pay with the Italian personnel. The government declared there had been a political plot and exiled Bach Hamba and Thaalbi. This popular protest and the workers’ demands was the first clear manifestation of a Tunisian national consciousness.[4]
