Gaddafi regime

Politics of Libya

Libya

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Politics of Libya has been determined de facto by Muammar Gaddafi, who has been in power since his coup against the Kingdom of Libya in 1969.

Gaddafi has abolished the Libyan Constitution and introduced his own political philosophy, based on his Green Book published in the 1970s.

Gaddafi's system is known as Jamahiriya and is nominally based on the legislative General People's Congress (GPC), consisting of 2,700 representatives of Basic People's Congresses, and the executive General People's Committee, headed by a General Secretary who is nominally the head of government.

However, alongside the entire "Jamahiriya sector" is the "revolutionary sector" headed by Muammar Gaddafi as "Brotherly Leader of the Revolution", the Revolutionary Committees, and the remaining members of the 12-person Revolutionary Command Counci established in 1969. This "revolutionary sector" is not elected and cannot be voted out of office and dictates the decision-making power of the "Jamahiriya sector". As a consequence, Gaddafi ruled as absolute autocrat until the partial collapse of his regime during the Libyan Civil War.

The Transitionist forces on 27 February 2011 announced the formation of a National Transitional Council based in Benghazi, which on 5 March declared itself "sole representative all over Libya".

As a result of the Libyan Civil War, there are currently two entities claiming to be the legitimate government of Libya, the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, led by Muammar Gaddafi and the Libyan Republic led by Mustafa Abdul Jalil as chair of the National Transitional Council.

Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya الجماهيرية العربية الليبية الشعبية الإشتراكية العظمى Al-Jamāhīriyyah al-ʿArabiyyah al-Lībiyyah aš-Šaʿbiyyah al-Ištirākiyyah al-ʿUẓmā (Arabic)
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: Allahu Akbar God is great
Capital (and largest city)		Tripoli
Official language(s)		Arabic
Demonym		Libyan
Government		Jamahiriya
-	Leader and Guide of the Revolution	Muammar Gaddafi
-	Secretary General of the General People's Congress	Mohamed Abdul Quasim al-Zwai
-	Secretary General of the General People's Committee	Baghdadi Mahmudi

History

For the first 7 years following the revolution, Colonel Gaddafi and 12 fellow army officers, the Revolutionary Command Council, began a complete overhaul of Libya's political system, society, and economy. On 2 March 1977, Gaddafi convened a General People's Congress (GPC) to proclaim the establishment of "people's power," change the country's name to the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, and to vest, theoretically, primary authority in the GPC. Today, the official name of the country of Libya is Al Jumahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah al Uzma. Gaddafi remained the de facto chief of state and secretary general of the GPC until 1980, when he gave up his office. He continues to control all aspects of the Libyan Government through direct appeals to the masses, a pervasive security apparatus, and powerful revolutionary committees. Although he holds no formal office, Gaddafi exercises absolute power with the assistance of a small group of trusted advisers, who include relatives from his home base in the Sirt region, which lies between the rival provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica.

After the revolution, Gaddafi took increasing control of the government, but he also attempted to achieve greater popular participation in local government. In 1973, he announced the start of a "cultural revolution" in schools, businesses, industries, and public institutions to oversee administration of those organizations in the public interest. The March 1977 establishment of "people's power" —with mandatory popular participation in the selection of representatives to the GPC— was the culmination of this process.

In the 1980s, competition grew between the official Libyan Government and military hierarchies and the revolutionary committees. An abortive coup attempt in May 1984 apparently mounted by Libyan exiles with internal support, led to a short-lived reign of terror in which thousands were imprisoned and interrogated. An unknown number were executed. Gaddafi used the revolutionary committees to search out alleged internal opponents following the coup attempt, thereby accelerating the rise of more radical elements inside the Libyan power hierarchy.

In 1988, faced with rising public dissatisfaction with shortages in consumer goods and setbacks in Libya's war with Chad, Gaddafi began to curb the power of the revolutionary committees and to institute some domestic reforms. The regime released many political prisoners and eased restrictions on foreign travel by Libyans. Private businesses were again permitted to operate.

In the late 1980s, Gaddafi began to pursue an anti-Fundamentalist Islamic policy domestically, viewing fundamentalism as a potential rallying point for opponents of the regime. Ministerial positions and military commanders are frequently shuffled or placed under temporary house arrest to diffuse potential threats to Gaddafi's authority.

Despite these measures, internal dissent continues. Gaddafi's security forces launched a preemptive strike at alleged coup plotters in the military and among the Warfalla tribe in October 1993. Widespread arrests and government reshufflings followed, accompanied by public "confessions" from regime opponents and allegations of torture and executions. The military, once Gaddafi's strongest supporters, became a potential threat in the 1990s. In 1993, following a failed coup attempt that implicated senior military officers, Gaddafi began to purge the military periodically, eliminating potential rivals and inserting his own loyal followers in their place.

Revolutionary sector

The "Revolutionary sector" of Gaddafi's Jamahiriya has been officially under the control of "Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution" Muammar Gaddafi since 1979. Beginning in 1977, Gaddafi had introduced "revolutionary committees" assigned the task of "absolute revolutionary supervision of people's power" that is, they were to guide the people's committees and "raise the general level of political consciousness and devotion to revolutionary ideals". In reality, Gaddafi's revolutionary committees resemble similar systems in socialist countries, used to survey the population and repress any political opposition to Gaddafi's autocratic rule. Reportedly 10 to 20 percent of Libyans work in surveillance for these committees, a proportion of informants on par with Saddam Hussein's Iraq or Kim Jong Il's North Korea..

Members of the Gaddafi regime

Until the Libyan Civil War, general Abdul Fatah Younis may have been second to Gaddafi in the government hierarchy and was also interior minister. He resigned on 22 February 2011.

On 1 March 2011, Quryna reported Gaddafi sacked his right-hand man, information chief Abdullah Senussi, who was responsible for the brutality against the protestors.

Interpol on 4 March 2011 issued a security alert concerning the "possible movement of dangerous individuals and assets" based on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1970 (travel bans and assets freeze). The warning lists Gaddafi himself and 15 key members of his regime:

1. Muammar Mohammed Abu Minyar Qadhafi: Responsibility for ordering repression of demonstrations, human rights abuses.
2. Dr. Abdulqader Mohammed Al-Baghdadi: Head of the Liaison Office of the Revolutionary Committees. Revolutionary Committees involved in violence against demonstrators.
3. Abu Zayd Umar Dorda: Director, External Security Organisation. Regime loyalist. Head of external intelligence agency.
4. Major General Abu Bakr Yunis Jabir: Defense Minister. Overall responsibility for actions of armed forces.
5. Aisha Muammar Qadhafi: Daughter of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime.
6. Hannibal Muammar Qadhafi: Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime.
7. Mutassim Qadhafi: National Security Adviser. Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime
8. Saadi Qadhafi: Commander Special Forces. Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime. Command of military units involved in repression of demonstrations.
9. Saif al-Islam Qadhafi: Director, Qadhafi Foundation. Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime. Inflammatory public statements encouraging violence against demonstrators.
10. Khamis Muammar Qadhafi: Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime. Command of military units involved in repression of demonstrations.
11. Mohammed Muammar Qadhafi: Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime.
12. Saif al-Arab Qadhafi: Son of Muammar Qadhafi. Closeness of association with regime.
13. Colonel Abdullah Al-Senussi: Director Military Intelligence. Military Intelligence involvement in suppression of demonstrations. Past history includes suspicion of involvement in Abu Selim prison massacre. Convicted in absentia for bombing of UTA flight. Brother-in-law of Muammar Qadhafi.

Jamahiriya sector

The term Jamahiriya (Arabic: جماهيرية‎ ) is generally translated as "state of the masses". It is intended to describe a state following the political philosophy expounded by Gaddafi in his Green Book. The term does not occur in this sense in Gaddafi's Green Book itself, although the text does dwell on the concept of the "masses" (Arabic: جماهير‎). The concept is presented as the materialization of the Third International Theory, proposed by Gaddafi to be applied to the entire Third World. The term in practice has only been applied to the Libyan state, of which Gaddafi is the Caid (translated Leader; strict transliteration ). Although Gaddafi no longer holds public office or title, he is accorded the honorifics "Guide of the First of September Great Revolution of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya" or "Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution" in government statements and the official press.

The Libyan government states that Libya is a direct democracy without any political parties, governed by its populace through local popular councils and communes (named Basic People's Congresses).

Making up the legislative branch of government, this sector comprises Local People's Congresses in each of the 1,500 urban wards, 32 Sha’biyat People’s Congresses for the regions, and the National General People's Congress. These legislative bodies are represented by corresponding executive bodies (Local People's Committees, Sha'biyat People's Committees and the National General People’s Committee/Cabinet).

Every four years the membership of the Local People's Congresses elects by acclamation both their own leadership and secretaries for the People’s Committees, sometimes after many debates and a critical vote. The leadership of the Local People’s Congress represents the local congress at the People’s Congress of the next level and has an imperative mandate. The members of the National General People's Congress elect the members of the National General People’s Committee (the Cabinet) by acclamation at their annual meeting. The most recent meeting, which took place in Sirt from 8–12 January 2005, was the 29th annual.

While there is discussion regarding who will run for executive offices, only those approved by the revolutionary leadership are actually elected. The government administration is effective as long as it operates within the directives of the revolutionary leadership. The revolutionary leadership has absolute veto power despite the constitutionally established people's democracy and alleged rule of the people. The government controls both state-run and semi-autonomous media, and any articles critical of current policies have been requested and intentionally placed by the revolutionary leadership itself, for example, as a means of initiating reforms. In cases involving a violation of "these taboos", the private press, like The Tripoli Post, has been censored.

There is no separate defense ministry; all defence activities are centralised under the presidency. Arms production is limited, due to extensive imports from the Soviet Union, and manufacturers are state-owned.

Legislative branch

The General People's Congress (Mu'tammar al-sha'ab al 'âmm) consists out of circa 2700 representatives of the Basis People's Congresses. The GPC is the legislative forum that interacts with the General People's Committee, whose members are secretaries of Libyan ministries. It serves as the intermediary between the masses and the leadership and is composed of the secretariats of some 600 local "basic popular congresses."

The GPC secretariat and the cabinet secretaries are appointed by the GPC secretary general and confirmed by the annual GPC congress. These cabinet secretaries are responsible for the routine operation of their ministries.

Political parties and elections

Political parties were banned by the Prohibition of Party Politics Act Number 71 of 1972, including Hizb ut-Tahrir. According to the Association Act of 1971, the establishment of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) is allowed. As they are required to conform to the goals of the revolution, however, the number of NGOs in Libya is small in comparison with neighboring countries. Unions do not exist as such. However, the numerous professional associations are integrated into the state structure as a third pillar, along with the People’s Congresses and Committees, though they do not have the right to strike. Professional associations send delegates to the General People's Congress, where they have a representative mandate. The General People's Congress (Mu'tammar al-sha'ab al 'âmm) consists out of circa 2700 representatives of the Basis People's Congresses.

Previously, general elections had been held in the 1950s and 1960s. Although political parties contested the 1952 elections, they were subsequently banned and all other elections were carried out on a non-partisan basis.

Judicial system

The Libyan court system consists of four levels: summary courts, which try petty offenses, the courts of first instance, which try more serious crimes; the courts of appeals, and the Supreme Court, which is the final appellate level. The GPC appoints justices to the Supreme Court. Special "revolutionary courts" and military courts operate outside the court system to try political offenses and crimes against the state. Libya's justice system is nominally based on Sunni law.

Libyan Republic

The National Transitional Council (Arabic: المجلس الوطني الانتقالي, al-majlis al-waTanī al-intiqālī) is a body formed by Transitionists during the Libyan Civil War. Its formation was announced in the city of Benghazi on 27 February 2011 and its intended purpose is to act as the "political face of the revolution". In some media outlets, it is referred to as the National Libyan Council or the Libyan National Council. On 5 March 2011, the council issued a statement in which it declared itself to be the "sole representative all over Libya". The council formed an interim government on 23 March 2011.

International organization participation

Libya is a member of ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AL (suspended), , AMU, AU, CAEU, ECA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO and UNHABITAT.

See also

References

External links

• Adam Carr's Election Archive
• The National Front for the Salvation of Libya (NFSL) Opposition to the Gaddafi regime
• Gaddafi Plays Quietly, But He's Still in the Game," The New York Times, March 17, 1991.
• Chief of state and cabinet members, CIA Factbook, as of March 17, 2010
• Libya Government at the Open Directory Project

Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Libya#Colonel_Gaddafi_in_power