The year 2011 can be called the year of ‘citizenship’, as a new generation of citizens across Arab nations and Africa brought revolutions against anarchic and often military dictatorships. These revolutions aimed to overthrow the existing order for a better life.
The Libyan revolution, also referred to as the Libyan ‘civil war,’ began on February 15 2011, against the de-facto ruler Moammar Gaddafi who had Libya and its resources at his disposal since 1969. He led a military coup that overthrew King Idris I to gain undisputed authority. Since then, his 41 years in power made him the longest Arab ruler and fourth longest non-royal leader since 1900. He abolished the Libyan Constitution of 1951 and considered himself the Machiavelli of Libya. He made laws based on his own political philosophy, documented in the 110-page Green Book. Gaddafi orchestrated strong rejections to any form of modern liberal democracy, free press and capitalism. In simple words he opposed any dissent and restricted the freedom of ordinary Libyans.
Libyan Revolution
Inspired by the popular Arab revolution in Tunisia, hundreds of Libyans gathered and protested in front of a police station in the city of Benghazi. February 17 can be termed the official first day of the revolt when thousands of people faced armed repression from forces loyal to Gaddafi that killed more than a dozen across Benghazi, Ajdabiya, Darnah and Zintan. It was further reported that many prisoners were released and paid by Gaddafi to attack the demonstrators. But a few days later, after losing almost 300 men fighting and many more to injuries, the anti-Gaddafi rebels were able to seize Benghazi, the second largest city in Libya. The key event in the fight for Benghazi was the fall of the Katiba, the city’s well-stocked military garrison.
By March 2011, however, the anti-Gaddafi forces acknowledged that defeating him to gain towns and disposing of him forever were two different challenges and the Libyan state required a new legitimate government. This led to the formation of the National Transitional Council to act as the political face of the revolution and soon to be recognised as the only representative government body of Libya. The immediate aims and objectives of the NTC were ensuring the safety of national territory and citizens and coordinating efforts to liberate the rest of Libya with the help of the newly formed Free Libyan Army. It seemed that rebels were making progress in the war till Gaddafi’s forces countered the attack with air bombing, pushing back the rebels by mid-March. Small independent protests were brutally crushed and Gaddafi made memorable speeches on the Libyan state TV blaming the protests on foreign intervention.
Meanwhile, after a lot of debate the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution to impose a no-fly zone in Libyan airspace. Though the resolution got a clear majority India, Brazil, Germany along with Russia and China abstained from voting. Soon after this Gaddafi declared a ceasefire, but it has since been reported that battles continued from both sides. Therefore by March 19, France became the first country to carry out air strikes against Libya with forces from the United States and United Kingdom joining shortly. These strikes were logistically supported by several Arab countries including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Rebel forces’ complaints against these NATO strikes was only that there be more air strikes and they be more accurate as many rebel forces had been targeted!
The foreign intervention undoubtedly helped the rebels gain a lot of momentum. The rebels further received support in terms of arms and training. But the extent of intervention has become highly debated. Ideally intervention should have been limited to the protection of civilians in rebel-controlled regions instead of extending to guidance in implementing the regime change. This has affected the credibility of the international role in the revolution, as in Iraq, and unfortunately early signs of this scepticism were seen in the reaction of the African Union.
The African Union, which consists of 54 African states except Morocco, aims to create socio-political and economic integration among the various African nations for the larger benefit of the continent. Gaddafi, who headed the African Union as recently as two years back, definitely had some lingering influence on it which came to light with their proposal for congruence in the region. It included every scope of talks, discussions and even a possibility of a referendum to include the will of the people but did not consider a regime change or a vision for a post-Gaddafi Libya! But soon this disposition of the African Union changed with the Battle of Tripoli.
The Battle for Tripoli
The battle for Tripoli can be considered a last stage before Libya could be declared liberated. This is because in the past couple of months after a lot of bloodshed and loss of human life, the rebels finally forced the Gaddafi forces to withdraw from Misrata and further gained momentum in western Libya. Finally when the rebels took over Garyan, dismantling Gaddafi’s tanks and artillery, it marked the last stage of the revolution. Therefore it is important to assess the impact of the death of Abdul Fatah Younis as well. He was a key figure in the Gaddafi regime and was often considered its highest ranking official, after Gaddafi himself. It is alleged that he switched sides and before his assassination was favouring the rebels. Whatever the case, he was only person who could have played the role of an interlocutor if required.
The rebels accelerated towards Tripoli and received the full support of the NATO forces. Though there was a lot of fighting near Gaddafi’s compound in Bab Al-Aziza, the rebels were able to take command of the situation. The ‘Green Square’ has now been renamed Martyr’s Square as the rebels faced little resistance from the loyal forces of Gaddafi in Tripoli. The rebels compared this to the conquest of Mecca and hence value this victory over any other. It was only at this stage, in mid-August, that the African Union started showing support to the interim council.
Finally, it has been confirmed that Gaddafi has gone into hiding with a part of his family currently lying low in Algeria. There have further been reports that his third Son, Saadi Gaddafi is ready to surrender. The rebels claimed on September 7 that they had have Gaddafi surrounded and would capture him dead or alive. While the International Criminal Court wanted try him in The Hague for crimes against humanity, NTC leaders insist that liberated Libya decide his fate.
These developments are expected to unfold over the next few weeks but more important now is the creation of a post-Gaddafi Libya.
What next for Libya?
The journey to reform Libya has just begun and critics have already started questioning whether the Libyan revolution will actually matter in the context of development. Further Libya has a lot of oil but it is not yet a market-setting producer like Saudi Arabia. The partnerships that a free, democratic Libya engages in will be crucial. Also Libya has yet a long way to go in technological advancements.
Libya needs to free itself from the persona of Gaddafi and his legacy. After four decades of Gaddafi’s selfish rule, Libya is psychologically and politically bruised.
The international community keeps stressing that Libya is not Iraq. Its destiny is very much in its hands. We all hope that the new Libya gains more acceptance and the aid it needs to write a fresh chapter in redefining its history and future.