Ihya Libya: It’s Tragic That UNSMIL Allowed Groups Within LPDF to Undermine December Elections
July 02, 2021
The Chairman of the Ihya Libya Movement, Aref Ali Nayed, sent a letter to UN envoy Ján Kubiš warning him not to allow obstructionist forces within the Libyan Political Dialogue (LPDF) to succeed in postponing direct Presidential and Parliamentary elections which are set for 24 December 2021. Such an outcome, said Nayed, would have dire consequences for Libya.
(LIBYA, 1 July 2021) – The letter by the Ihya Libya Movement said that it it was “It is indeed tragic that UNSMIL disregarded the outputs of the Legal Committee, and allowed the fielding of ‘Proposals’ by newly formed pressure groups within the LPDF”
The letter reminded Kubiš of Appendix 13 of the Sanctions Committee Report, which has not been made public because, said the letter, it “sheds great doubt about the integrity of the way the current Prime Minister and his associates came to power.”
The letter added that “the same tactics used in that defective process appear to be in the works, once again”. These tactics are being used in the process of planning, preparing and implementing again, as “the Prime Minister’s associates have been able to form a potent ‘Elections-Obstruction Group’.” It said this group within the LPDF was “tragically allowed to submit their obstruction as a ‘Proposal’ through the UNSMIL-determined process.”
Aref Ali Nayed, Chairman of the Ihya Libya Movement at the Press Conference organised by the Libyan Forum in Benghazi.
The letter said that “acceptance of any Elections postponement or cancellation, or truncation of direct Presidential Elections, constitute clear violations of the latest UN Security Council Resolutions, and of Berlin I and II, as well as the agreed LPDF Roadmap.”
The letter also stressed that “such moves will inevitably cause great social upheaval, and may directly lead to further civil strife in a Libya that has already suffered a decade of civil wars.”
Nayed said in the letter to Kubiš, that UN Security Council under Chapter 7 can “impose direct Presidential and Parliamentarian Elections, using existing Libyan laws: Seventh Amendment of the Constitutional Declaration, plus Decree 5/2014.” He noted unanimity on the legal validity of such an approach by leading Libyan legal experts on constitutional law.
The letter urged the UN envoy to seek assistance from well-known legal figures in the country, such as Kuni Abouda and Azza al-Maghur, in order to advise the UN mission on the legitimacy and legality of this basis on what is a matter of grave concern to the Libyan nation.
Nayed warned of dire consequences and impact on Libya if the Presidential and Parliaments elections set for 4 December 2021 were postponed, and the Libyan people are deprived of exercising their inherent right to choose their leadership and representatives directly.
