For the first time in more than four decades, Libyans have celebrated the 60th anniversary of the country’s Under Muammar Gaddafi‘s 42-year rule, the celebration was scrapped and instead, only the 1969 date of his coup was marked. “Today we begin the building of Libya as our forefathers have done,” Abdurrahim el-Keib, Libya’s prime minister, said during the celebration on Saturday. “We call on our sons to build Libya after its destruction.” His remarks were part of an official ceremony in the capital Tripoli. Thousands of people flocked to the capital from around the country in hopes of breaking bread on a 11km set of tables planned along Tripoli’s coast as part of the ceremony. However, the dinner was canceled due to security reasons and infighting among former rebel groups who were invited, officials said. ‘Preserving independence’ At the National Transitional Council’s headquarters in Tripoli, ministers shared a cake and mingled with journalists. No family members of deposed King Idris, who were forced into exile in 1969, were in Libya for the ceremony. Idris died in Cairo in 1983.
Libya was occupied for decades by various nations, and it was not until 1947 that both Italy and France relinquished claims to parts of the country. The United Libyan Kingdom was announced with UN backing in late 1951 under King Idris. “As the late King Idris said at the time, preserving independence is harder than achieving it,” NTC chairman Mustafa Abdul-Jalil said at the ceremony. Resignation On the sidelines of the ceremony, the prime minister told reporters that the Taher Sharkas, the minister of economy, had resigned due to health reasons. The resignation comes after protests demanding that officials of the former regime be barred from serving in government. His resignation also followed a Thursday announcement by Abdul-Jalil, in which he laid out 18 new ethics and standards guidelines for ministers in the new Cabinet formed after Gaddafi’s ouster. One of the new guidelines is that a minister cannot have served in a top post under Gaddafi. Protesters in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, where the anti-Gaddafi uprising broke out in February, have been protesting for nearly two weeks, demanding transparency and justice from the country’s new leaders. They also called for Sharkas’ ouster after it was discovered that Gaddafi appointed him as a minister on August 18. The new government has said it is open to some reconciliation with former regime officials, but protesters are opposed. According to an NTC official, who wished to remain anonymous because he was not authorised to disclose internal policy, the prime minister is the one who chose Sharkas for the post. The official said it was a “sloppy” mistake and that el-Keib had not done enough research on Sharkas’ background. In his remarks at the independence ceremony, Abdul-Jalil admitted that the NTC made mistakes during the transition. “We are not going to defend these mistakes, but it is on us as a national duty and responsibility to be transparent and learn from them so we do not repeat them,” he said. |
|||
|
Source:
Agencies
|
|||
Related articles
- Libya marks 1st independence day in 42 years (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- Libya marks 1st independence day in 42 years (seattlepi.com)
- Libya marks its first independence day in 42 years (cbsnews.com)
- Libya celebrates independence day (bbc.co.uk)
- Qaddafi-Era Minister Resigns Amid Protest Pressure (foxnews.com)
- Libya’s economy minister quits amid protests (marketwatch.com)
- Libyan economy minister resigns after protesters discover he accepted same post from Gadhafi (washingtonpost.com)
- Libyan scramble for £100bn in assets fractures the peace at Tripoli airport (guardian.co.uk)
- Libyan scramble for £100bn in assets fractures the peace at Tripoli airport – The Guardian (guardian.co.uk)
- OPEC in pact on Libyan oil, minister says (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
- The Murder of Gaddafi, and The War Crimes of Western Powers (socyberty.com)
- In the Former Rebel Capital: Benghazi Protests Libya’s New Regime (time.com)
- VIDEO: Libya celebrates independence day (bbc.co.uk)
