Although preparations for Libya’s elections at the end of the year have failed for the time being after members of a dialogue forum could not find common ground during the talks, the Libyan premiere on Saturday called for parliamentary and presidential elections at their scheduled time.
“We urge all parties and the UN mission to fulfill their obligations to allow the public interest to prevail and to agree on a mechanism to ensure the timely conduct of elections,” Abdul Hamid Dbeibah wrote on Twitter.
For his part, the UN Special Envoy to Libya Richard Norland stated that some Libyan parties in the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF) are trying to prevent national votes from being held on schedule.
“We have seen the LPDF meetings this week in Geneva closely, including several members who seem to be trying to inject ‘poison pills’ that ensure elections will not take place,” Norland said in a statement posted on Facebook without specifically mentioning any figures. .
He added that these members were trying to block the vote “either by prolonging the constitutional process or by creating new conditions that must be met for elections to take place.”
Libya has been in turmoil since 2011 overthrowing dictator Moammar Gadhafi and has become a battleground for rival proxy forces. In recent years, the country has been divided between a UN-backed government in the capital Tripoli and rival authorities based in the east of the country.
In April 2019, the East-based Putist general Khalifa Haftar and his forces, with the support of Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launched an offensive to try to capture Tripoli. Haftar’s 14-month campaign collapsed after Turkey intensified its military support of the UN-backed government.
A ceasefire agreement in October led to an agreement on the election in December 2021 and a transitional government that took office in February. The deal included a requirement that all foreign fighters and mercenaries leave Libya within 90 days, but the requirement has not yet been met.
However, the dialogue forum that elected the current transitional government could not agree on important issues during the talks held near Geneva under the auspices of the UN.
On Friday, Assistant Secretary-General and Mission Coordinator for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) Raisedon Zenenga said that the LPDF did not reach a common ground on constitutional grounds for parliamentary and presidential elections.
Hot debates were held, with some members threatening to leave, according to Zenenga.
He said the LPDF came to the meeting in Switzerland between June 28 and July 2 with a “clear agenda and a timeline” for the forum, which was expected to last for four days but extended for another day due to the failure to reach agreement and a reconciliation committee. set up.
The talks in Switzerland follow an international conference in Berlin last week.
“This is not the result that many of us had hoped for, but it is the better result given the options on the table,” Elham Saudi, a forum member, wrote on Twitter. “This only delays the battle, but does not solve the problems,” he said.
More than two dozen LPDF members criticized the UN mission for its proposal that the forum vote on proposals that included keeping the current government in power and only holding legislative elections.
A reconciliation committee, set up with 13 representatives selected from 75 forum members, failed to reach an agreement, Zenenga said.
“It is unfortunate that, despite all the possibilities, there is still no common ground,” he said. “The people of Libya will surely feel let down because they are still striving for the opportunity to exercise their democratic rights in the presidential and parliamentary elections on December 24. This does not bode well for the LPDF’s credibility and relevance.”
He said the key to breaking the deadlock was to return to the spirit of the roadmap and reach a compromise that would ensure the political and practical feasibility of national elections in December.
“As we conclude this session, I encourage you to continue to consult each other to strive for a working compromise and cement what unites you,” he said.
Noting that the group will continue to work to establish the constitutional basis for the elections, he said: “Proposals that do not make the elections feasible and possible to hold elections on December 24 will not be maintained.”
The meetings began on Monday and sought to build constitutional safeguards that are acceptable to all parties ahead of the presidential and parliamentary elections aimed at consolidating the peace process.
On the other hand, Dbeibah said on Saturday that his country does not agree to bow to the authority of the warring parties with the help and funding they receive from abroad.
“We cannot stand under the hegemony of any party supported and funded from abroad that is waging war in Libya and is at war with us,” Dbeibah said in response to questions from Libyans during a live broadcast. He said the government’s goal was to ensure peace in Libya, avoid war and intervention.
Dbeibah stressed that the Libyan country belongs to the Libyans and that no army, armed or unarmed group can be monopolized in the country.
“At the second Berlin conference, we regained the prestige of the Libyan state and presented the initiative. In recent years, the Libyan archive was completely in the hands of the outside world. All solutions offered for Libya must first go through Libya,” he said.
Dbeibah also said that Parliament is expected to approve the 2021 general budget proposal.
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