THE LIBYAN EXPERIENCE 2005

From: Abraham-eibie Weizfeld
Sent: 27 septembre, 2005 09:01

THE LIBYAN EXPERIENCE
by Abraham Weizfeld Ph.D. cand. l’Universite du Quebec a Montreal
SaaLaHa@fokus.name
September 27th, 2005

The unknown genocide of the twentieth century is no longer the Armenian experience at the hands of the Turkish State, it is the Libyan fate under Italy’s occupation. Beginning in 1911 and culminating in the fascist regime of 1922 the occupation of this North African country continued until 1945. During this occupation the Libyan Arab population together with the indigenous Berber and Bedouin People’s were subjected to a genocidal campaign resulting in the loss of one million Libyans, half its population, much like the Armenians.
The Libyan resistance at the time is commemorated in the figure of Omar Maktar after whom the main street in Tripoli is now named, in addition to his image on the 10 dinar bill.
Such history is standard fare for Libya since it is a favourite site for colonization, extending back in history to the Roman Empire’s reign under which the Emperor Agustus Severus built the city of Leptis Magna dated at 234 C.E., with is columned streets, baths, public toilets, and forum still in the process of being unearthed and restored. Prior to Rome, Sparta also planted itself in the sandy soil of the Mediterranean African coast here even though such ruins have not yet been touched. Before the Greek influence, the ancient civilization of the Garamantinas flourished based upon the primordial humanoid appearance as far back as the Paleolithic period two and a half million years ago.
Known as Tripolitania and Punis during the Roman and Greek empire times, its history has culminated now in the rather elaborate name of The Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (GSPLAJ). As a Mediterranean neighbour this society has absorbed the traditions of many political cultures to formulate its own expression of social thought called a Jamahiriya, or egalitarian Civil Society.
This method of thought is described in “The Green Book” presented by Muammar Kadhafi and while similar to the famous little “Red Book” of Mao Tse-tung it is rather a methodological work and not based on a particular political ideology and party platform. Actually, it disputes the need for ideology and political parties and conceives of a society based upon direct democracy organized on the basis of People’s Assemblies of which there are 453 in a politically active population of 1,400,000.
Kadhafi himself is considered the principal revolutionary guide and teacher to the “Jamahiriya” since the September 1st political revolution in 1969 which peacefully overthrew the king installed in 1953. While Kadhafi held the title of President, he resigned the post in 1973 with the abolition of the head of State in a cultural revolution culminating in the Proclamation of People’s Authority in 1977. The “Green Book” itself came out in 1980 followed by the “Great Green Charter of Human Rights of the Jamahiriyan Era” in 1988 which forms a constitutional document based in social consent and not a State superstructure. This Charter proposes to, “reject violence as a means intended to dictate ideas and opinion. They adopt the democratic dialogue as the one and only method of debate, … the members of Jamahiriyan society are free to form associations, trade unions and leagues in order to defend their professional interests.” Social law is based in the Islamic Sha’ria code’s political culture although it is judged by a people’s committee elected in assembly and not a religious theocracy led by Immam clerics. “Religion is personal to each one … Jamahiriyan society proscribes the monopoly of religion.” Together with economic rights and national self-determination, the Charter goes well beyond the constitutional rights of occidental constitutions.
Libya has had a minimal record in terms of political prisoners, who are associated with violence and the Islamic Alliance Movement. According to Amnesty International, Libya is engaged in the liberation of such cases in spite of various attempts at assassination and the U.S.A.’s bombardment of the Kadhafi home in 1986. The most recent Amnesty report of September 26th refers to “The recent release by Libyan authorities of five long-term prisoners of conscience” as “an encouraging step”. The Kadhafi Foundation spokesperson Saif al Islam has indicated that the Foundation’s opinion about the prisoners who had endorsed armed action and violence is that since they could no longer constitute any threat to society, many of them could be reinstated. Nowadays, the external opposition to the Libyan Jamahiriya has melted away and mutual diplomatic recognition has been established with first Canada and then the U.S.A. It is well known that Libya has halted any development of nuclear arms as was previously specified in the “Green Charter” of 1988 where, “The members of Jamahiriyan society call for the suppression of nuclear, bacteriological and chemical weapons …”. In addition, it has become known now that evidence used in the conviction of a Libyan security agent Abdelbaset Ali Al-Megrahi in the Lockerbie airline tragedy was fabricated, according to the local Scottish police chief (see News.Scotsman.com article by Marcello Mega). In spite of the case of a Libyan civilian airliner shot down in 1973 over the Sinai Peninsula area by Israel military aircraft, Libya has been burdened by a common perception in the North American public mind as a sort of rogue state and was even listed as a country susceptible to attack from the U.S.A., as is Iraq presently. Currently though the long-standing embargo on Libya has been lifted.
Since the time of that cold war, the Libyan “Jamahiiyan Era” fostered the formation of the African Union in 1999, based in the former OAU, Organization of African Unity of post-colonial days.
The current condition in Libya is marked by continued transformation in economic terms with agricultural self-sustainability nurtured by the sub-Saharan waters brought to the coastal population by the unprecedented human-made river of a water pipeline. Economic enterprises are being socialized by being sold to their former workers who are becoming partners. As well, external private corporations from Canada, many European countries, Bangladesh, the U.S.A., Britain, and Dubai are bidding for importation and development contracts. This burst of economic activity follows from the end of the complete embargo enforced against Libya until recent years.
Both the current oil wealth and the past embargo are the consequence of Libya’s role in securing the rise of the crude oil price from the 1960’s level of around $12 a barrel. This non-renewable resource began at 25 cents a barrel in colonial days and has now reached $65 USD and is projected to reach $150 a barrel in the coming years based upon its actual value. Although this price rise initiated by Libya introduces a strain to the markets whose wealth has previously been based on cheap resources, this re-evaluation of resource values from the former “Third World” will make the development of renewable resources and technology economically feasible.
As has been proposed previously, the future is now and so many aspects of future developments are to be found in this land in which the long past is also the present.