As Libya prepares to commemorate three years since the uprising
that ousted and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi, the country is haunted
by a nightmare of lawlessness that has overshadowed people's dreams of a
better life.
Monday marks the start of the February 17
Revolution, when angry residents of the eastern city of Benghazi took
to the streets to protest against Kadhafi's four-decade rule.
Kadhafi
reacted violently, touching off a NATO-backed war that devastated much
of the country, killed thousands and eventually led to his capture and
killing by rebels eight months later.
Ahead of the anniversary, the United Nations has expressed grave concern about the course Libya is taking.
It
called on Libyans of all political stripes "to rise above partisan
interests and... work by all means to prevent inflaming tensions which
could lead the country to slide into lawlessness and chaos."
Sadly, however, lawlessness and chaos are already everyday concerns.
The
latest example came just Friday, when the government and armed forces
denied rumours of an impending coup after a retired general called for
parliament and the government to be suspended.
How that
could have been taken that seriously is difficult to understand, as the
post-Kadhafi government has never managed to rebuild an army capable of
providing minimum security, much less run the country on its own.
ARMY TOO WEAK TO RULE
As
put by Anna Boyd, senior Middle East analyst with IHS Country Risk:
"The army is trying to break Libya's current political deadlock but is
too small and weak to be able to take over government in Tripoli and
enforce its writ."
Indeed, just last week, gunmen tried
to storm army headquarters but guards stopped them, but only after they
ransacked cars and stole some weapons.
The lack of security is evident on a daily basis.
Common
criminals roam the streets, while rival tribes in various parts of the
country shoot it out to settle long-standing disputes.
Politicians,
security officials, journalists, judges, even the US ambassador, have
been gunned down in a wave of lawlessness that has grown since Kadhafi
was captured and killed in October 2011.
Disgruntled
citizens have managed to blockade and shut down Libya's oil terminals,
threatening to bankrupt a government that relies almost exclusively on
oil revenues to operate.
Even Prime Minister Ali Zeidan
was briefly kidnapped in October by members of one of the militias that
fought to oust Kadhafi and have since become Libya's powerbrokers.
Zeidan
has been also politically cornered by Islamists who have quit his
government and are blocking his attempts to put together a new cabinet.
The
General National Congress, the country's top authority which has so far
failed its mandate of setting the stage for adopting a new constitution
and holding elections, has angered many Libyans by extending its
mandate.
Thousands have taken to the streets to protest
that decision but the GNC insists closing up shop this month as
originally intended would have left a complete political vacuum.
The
GNC's decision to extend its mandate has raised fears of confrontations
between armed elements who support it and those who do not and deepened
the political divide.
VOTER APATHY
Amid all the political bickering, the GNC last week adopted a new roadmap and timetable, which allow for two scenarios.
A
general election would be held at the end of the year if a
constitutional body to be chosen next week adopts a new charter within
four months of its election.
The commission, to be made
up equally of members from Libya's three historic regions, would decide
on key issues in a new constitution, including the system of
government, the status of minorities and the role of Islamic sharia law.
But
if, within 60 days, it decides it cannot complete the job, it would
call for immediate presidential and legislative polls for a fresh period
of 18 months.
Ironically, the average Libyan doesn't seem to care.
Last
month, the electoral commission said only 1.1 million out of an
eligible 3.4 million voters had even signed up to elect the panel.
People
"have not seen an improvement in their lives (since Kadhafi's
overthrow) or a sincere will to put an end to the anarchy undermining
the country," says political science professor Ahmed Mahmoud.
In
the past three years, he said, the "new Libya has been like an
incubator, producing other new Kadhafis," a reference to the war lords
who are the only real law in the country.
