Libya’s attempts to start again: a new constitution in the works

Ever since the ousting of Muammar Gadaffi, Libya’s de facto ruler for 42 years, in 2011, the country has been in a state of political turmoil. Unlike Egypt and Tunisia, countries in the same geopolitical location that also underwent major regime changes in 2011, Libya has not yet made headway in the formulation of a new constitution. On Feb. 20, voters from the three regions of the country–Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan were supposed to elect members of the constitutional panel to draft the new constitution. However, that process has been slowed down by actions of the militia that had originally helped topple the Gadaffi regime.

When Libya declared its independence in 1951 under King Idris, the then newly drafted Libyan constitution granted the people rights similar to those in Europe or the United States. However, when Gadaffi overthrew the monarchy in 1969, he also abolished the existing constitution and implemented The Green Book. It was a book of political philosophy written by Gadaffi that became the cornerstone of the formulation of laws in Libya. According to reports, the constitutional committee hopes to draft a constitution similar to the one in effect prior to 1969.

In July 2012, general elections were held in Libya. The General National Congress (GNC) formed the new government under Prime Minister Ali Zeidan. Initially, the GNC had been given the responsibility to appoint a constitutional committee that would then draw up the new constitution. However, the National Transitional Council later decided to include the Libyan people in this process by instituting a system whereby the people could directly elect members of the constitutional committee. This committee would then take into account the socio-political situation in the country and draft a constitution to suit the needs of the different peoples, including the minorities.

The election to form a constitutional committee has been a failure on several accounts. The militia has reacted violently in the southern and the eastern parts of the country. They disrupted the voting process by forcibly shutting down polling stations. Opposition has also come from ethnic minority groups who believe their interests would not be accommodated in the newly drafted constitution. Although the newly formed constitutional committee has one-tenth of the seats reserved for members of the Amazigh community, they have chosen to boycott the election. Additionally, opposition has come from the Toubou and Tuareg minority groups. This puts them at a disadvantage when trying to get their needs addressed through the newly formed constitution.

Libya has not been able to quell the violence in order to carry out the election process smoothly. This has had an adverse economic impact on the country as well. The El Sharara oil field in the southern part of the country, where most of the violence has been taking place, has shut down completely. This oil field produced 175,000 bpd (barrels per day). For a country that relies heavily on oil and gas as a source of income, this development has come at a high cost. If the situation doesn’t become more stable, it will put pressure on essential food imports, thereby disrupting the functioning of the entire Libyan population.