Libya: UN Representative resigns, defeated by “personal interests above needs of the country”

By:Souleymane Loum 

Everything that has been attempted to pull Libya out of the mire in which it has been struggling since the tragic disappearance of Muammar Gaddafi has failed. The activism of French President Emmanuel Macron has accomplished nothing, nor have the efforts of the international community and the African Union to restore the country. After hitting a wall, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Abdoulaye Bathily, threw in the towel yesterday Tuesday, April 16…

Confronted with the practical impossibility for the United Nations to “act successfully” to back the political process and faced with officials who put “their interests above the needs of the country” the Senegalese said Stop. He told the Security Council that “unfortunately” the actions he took in the service of the nation were foiled by “tenacious resistance, unreasonable expectations and indifference towards the interests of the Libyan people”.

“Since late 2022, efforts by the United Nations to help resolve the political crisis in Libya through elections have been met with domestic and regional pressure, revealing an intentional defiance to engage seriously and a tenacity to perpetually delay the elections,” he added.

The UN envoy revealed that “the preconditions suggested by the Libyan leaders contradict their proclaimed intention to find a solution to the conflict led by Libyans and owned by Libyans”, and “so far, they have not demonstrated their goodwill.

He expressed Libya “has become the playground for fierce feuds between regional and international actors driven by geopolitical, political and economic interests as well as the competition that extends beyond Libya and is related in its neighbourhood. He invites Libyan leaders to move together towards a political settlement “based on negotiations and compromises”…

“We cannot allow the ambition of 2.8 million registered Libyan voters to have their voices dampened by the narrow interests of a handful of officials,” Bathily asserted.

To which Libyan Ambassador Taher Al-Sunni replied: “We continue to hear from some who continue to lecture to us and criticize the situation in our country, giving us lessons on the principles of humanity and democracy while turning a blind eye to the scenes of slaying and destruction in Gaza. While staying deaf to the cries of children and women buried under the rubble”…

There you have it, the Libyan diplomat wants to speak about everything except his country which is sinking inexorably, mired in chronic division and violence staged by a myriad of heavily armed militias, two governments and two rival Parliaments, two armies, etc. According to the latest news, oil production is no longer hostage to armed clashes, Libya has even climbed to first place in Africa for the production of black gold. But without political and security stability, all this money flowing in will not restore happiness to Libyans.