Demonstrations in Libya protest the postponement of elections.
The National Human Rights Committee in Libya said that it is following with “great concern” what it called “the state of stalemate and political impasse in the country, which led to the disruption of holding the elections on their scheduled date, December 24.”
The committee said in a statement Thursday that “this encouraged some parties and political entities that refuse to hold the elections to adopt policies and behaviors to obstruct them, aborting efforts to organize them on December 24, confiscating the will of more than two and a half million voters who expressed their desire to hold elections, cannot be underestimated, and their will is obstructed just because of the conflicts and interests of political parties who do not wish to resort to the ballot box through free and fair elections”.
In its statement, the committee expressed its “deep regret and displeasure at the postponement of the presidential and parliamentary elections that were scheduled to take place December 24, 2021, as stipulated in the political road map emanating from the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum sponsored by the United Nations last February, adopted by the Council of International security through its resolution (2570/ 2021).
They added that “the retreat from holding the elections on time and postponing them, the persistent attempts to abort their holding in the future, constitute a sign of the failure of the international community to fulfill its responsibilities and provide due assistance to the Libyan community to impose its free will”.
The committee stressed that “obstructing the holding of the elections must not lead to their cancellation, because this will threaten the deterioration of the situation, and increase the risks of slipping back into war and chaos, and what may result from fragmentation, division and further complication of the existing crisis.” The committee considers that every additional day that passes on Libya in light of division and war leads to more human rights violations without deterrence, the price of which is paid by Libyan citizens, who have the real interests in self-determination through elections, to ensure the achievement of political stability and an end to the political crisis and the protracted transitional stages.
The committee warned against “the consequences and repercussions of tampering with the will of the Libyan people by postponing the holding of elections or aborting the entire electoral process, that this will lead to choices with dire consequences at all political and humanitarian levels,” according to the text of the statement.
The committee also requested “to set a specific timetable, and soon, during which the electoral process will start again, and to ensure work to create political and security conditions to ensure the holding of comprehensive, free, fair, peaceful and credible elections, the outcome of which is accepted by all parties, allowing the Libyan people to exercise their national and constitutional right.”
The statement continued, “The committee, while adhering to this electoral and national entitlement, reiterates its support for the demands of broad groups and segments of Libyan society for the need to renew legitimacy through the election of new legislative and executive authorities, capable of effectively unifying institutions, enabling them to resolve the problems and crises they suffer on political, economic, social and humanitarian levels, to the extent that allows providing guarantees to achieve stability and a decent life for citizens.
The committee also expressed its “support for the call of the High National Elections Commission to set a new date for the elections no later than January 24, 2022, and calls on both the House of Representatives and the United Nations Support Mission in Libya to carry out their responsibilities towards supporting the commission’s call”.
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