NALUT – 13 June – As part of a series of ongoing public consultations across Libya on the recommendations of the Advisory Committee, the Special Representative of the Secretary General, Hanna Tetteh, heard from mayors, community leaders, security actors, notables, women and youth in a townhall event and meetings in Nalut on Thursday.
Joined by the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General, Stephanie Koury, and the UNSMIL team, the SRSG heard from Amazigh community leaders how they felt marginalized in existing state institutions and the impact of this on their communities. They also discussed which of the Advisory Committee’s recommendations they felt would be more feasible to go forward.
“The public consultation is truly a step in the right direction, and we hope that when UNSMIL consolidates the polling data and goes out with a recommendation for a new roadmap, that this stems from public opinion,” said an academic leader.
Participants stressed that UNSMIL should take into account the needs of cultural components like the Amazigh, ensuring that they had fair and effective representation in future, access to development and resources, and that their languages and cultures were protected.
They asked for increased decentralization through the implementation of digital opportunities and technology, highlighting how citizens often needed to go to Tripoli to sign or collect important documents. They also suggested strengthening local municipality councils and leaders so that they can better address citizens needs, notably basic services such as drinking water and health care.
“We hope for the end of the state of militias and for the building of a state of citizens,” said another participant adding that people were extremely frustrated by the current status quo and the divided state institutions. They highlighted the importance of ensuring there was a timeline for any roadmap and guarantees for its implementation.
SRSG Tetteh said that the public survey and consultation was crucial to ensure that UNSMIL could go to the security council with data showing what the people of Libya wanted, not just the Mission’s own analysis from meetings.
“I want to be able to reflect your voices as much as possible so that I can convey to the international community to support what the Libyan people want as a process,” SRSG Tetteh said. “There are challenges with Libyan institutions, but the issue we must tackle now, is what are we going to do to address those weaknesses and how can we work together to make that happen?”
UNSMIL published the Executive Summary of the Advisory Committee’s Report in May, including its four proposed options to move the political process forward. The public consultation and survey ask people to put forward their recommendations and ideas and decided which of these options they would prefer:
1. Conducting presidential and legislative elections simultaneously with adjustments to contentious issues in the current electoral laws;
2. Conducting parliamentary elections first, followed by adopting a permanent constitution, and then by conducting presidential elections;
3. Adopting a permanent constitution before national elections; or
4. Establishing a political dialogue committee, according to article 64 of the Libyan Political Agreement, to temporarily replace all institutions, finalize electoral laws and select a temporary government.
Further public consultations will be held in the coming weeks.
