[The following report was issued by Bokra Youth Organization and H2O Team on 19 January 2013.  This is the first in a year-long series of reports covering the actions of Libya`s General National Council.] 

Eye on the GNC: The First Report

This project is the result of intensive communication between two organizations, H2O and Bokra, mobilizing efforts to collect information and data to prepare accurate reports on the performance of Libya`s General National Congress (GNC). The performance of the GNC will be followed by tracking what is written about it in local and international newspapers, as well as what is broadcasted about it on television and radio stations.

Eye on the GNC is a neutral project that distances itself equally from the audience and the General National Congress. This project`s regularly produced reports will eventually be published in the media through radio and television stations, newspapers, and various websites, helping the Libyan citizen regain trust in the work of civil society, and in the veracity of the news that reaches them through various means. These reports will additionally close the gap between voters and elected members that has arisen since the convening of the General National Congress and its successive meetings.

In addition, these reports, which will be issued regularly in the middle of the month over the next year, represent a source of information that familiarizes citizens with the attitudes of their representatives and allows them to observe their political performance. The performance of GNC representatives can be used as an evaluation criterion for citizens to rely upon in the upcoming elections.

Thus, we present to you this report series with the hope that it will be of high quality and we hope that at the very least we did not neglect to represent the essence of the General National Congress’ work.

The Emergence of the General National Congress

The National Transitional Council, as the highest authority in Libya and the sole and legitimate representative of the people after the revolution, issued a Constitutional Declaration on August 3rd, 2011, to serve as the basis of rule in the transitional stage.

While the Constitutional Declaration organized the transitional period, Article 30 specifically clarified the mechanism surrounding the emergence of the General National Congress. The most important principles in this article were:

After the Declaration of Liberation and within a period not exceeding ninety days, the National Transitional Council shall undertake the following:

1. Issue a special law for the election of the General National Congress.
2. Appoint the High Commission for Elections.
3. Call for the election of the General National Council.

In addition, the General National Congress is to be elected within two hundred and forty days from the declaration of Liberation. The liberation of all Libyan territory was announced on October 23rd, 2011.

The High National Commission for Elections was founded under the provisions of Law No. 3 of 2012, issued by the National Transitional Council on January 18th, 2012. One of the Commission’s most prominent functions was to prepare for and implement elections of the General National Congress, as well as oversee and observe these elections. Finally, it was tasked with announcing the results in accordance with the principles and rules approved for the electoral process in the election law.

The National Transitional Council issued Law No. 4 on the election of the General National Congress on January 28th, 2012. As a result, the Electoral Commission in Libya postponed the election date of the National Congress, which was scheduled to be held between June 19th, 2012 and July 7th, 2012 for technical and logistical reasons, as stated by Commission President Nuri al-Abbar at that time to the media.

He also noted that the number of candidates from individuals and political parties exceeded 4000, while more than 2.7 million voters registered to vote. The National Transitional Council divided 13 constituencies according to the election law to compete for 200 seats on the General National Congress.

On July 17th, 2012, the National High Commission announced the complete preliminary election results from the polls. During the celebration of this occasion, the names of the individual candidates and winners in the various constituencies were announced, along with the political entities that obtained the highest votes.

The final results were announced and approved after the appeals period ended. With this came the transfer of power from the interim Transitional National Council to the General National Congress.

Functions of the General National Congress

The functions of the General National Congress were identified according to Article (30) of the Constitutional Declaration, awarding it legislative and oversight functions as the only legislative body during the transitional stage.

The following presents the main functions of the General National Congress until the end of the transitional stage:

1. Appointing a Prime Minister, who would propose names for his government, all of whom should have the trust of the General National Congress before assuming their functions as a temporary government. The Prime Minister will also appoint the heads of sovereign positions.
2. Choosing a constituent body of non-GNC members to draft a constitution, which shall consist of sixty members, similar to the constitution of the independence of Libya in 1951. The constituent body will end the drafting of the constitution for the GNC in a period not to exceed 60 days from its first meeting. Controversy still surrounds this article with regards to whether General National Congress will keep or adjust it in order to have the Constitutent Assembly members be appointed rather than elected.
3. The GNC must approve and adopt the constitution, and within thirty days from its adoption, the constitution shall be submitted to the people for a referendum. If the constitution is approved by two thirds of the people, it will be ratified by the Constituent Assembly then adopted by the General National Congress as the national constitution. If the constitution is not approved by the majority of voters, the draft will be canceled and the constituent body will be recommissioned to prepare another constitution in a period not exceeding 30 days.
4. Within thirty days, the General National Congress will issue a special law for general elections in accordance with the Constitution.
5. General elections are to be held within 180 days from the issue date of the general laws of the elections under the supervision of the National Congress and the interim government.
6. The Electoral Commission will be reconfigured to take over the implementation of the elections to form the first elected parliament. This will occur under the supervision of the national judiciary and the monitoring of the United Nations, as well as other international and regional organizations, who will ratify and announce the election results.
7. The elected parliament will hold its first meeting which will replace the National Congress, while the interim government will remain for the purpose of facilitating operations until a new government is formed, as stipulated by the new constitution.

It is worth noting that Article 30 of the Constitutional Declaration has undergone four adjustments, three of which were issued by the now-dissolved National Transitional Council and the last which was issued by the National Congress; this article includes the political path of transition.

The amendments came as follows:

The first amendment was issued by the National Transitional Council on March 3rd 2012, and concerns the body responsible for drafting the constitution, which was transformed from a constituent body that allows its members to be members of the General National Congress, to a constituent body that requires its members to be of outside of the General National Congress.

In addition, this first amendment was based on the following three principles: Members of the Committee shall be outside of the General National Congress, the number of members will total sixty members and will be appointed equally from the three regions.

The second amendment was issued on June 10th 2011 by the National Transitional Council to extend the duration of the elections of the General National Congress from 240 to 270 days from the declaration of liberation on October 23rd 2012.

The third amendment was issued on May 7th 2012 by the National Transitional Council during the elections and focused on the constituent body. This amendment maintained the number of constituent body members at 60, but stipulated that these members be elected rather than appointed. It also retained the previous duration referred to in Article (30), meaning that the constituent body would be formed within 30 days of the GNC’s first meeting.

The fourth Amendment introduced by the General National Congress on August 30th 2012 targeted the same article by extending the period in the Prime Minister is appointed, and extending the period for the formation of a constituent body from 30 to 50 days.

The General National Congress

The GNC’s First Session

The General National Congress held its first meeting on Thursday August 9th 2012 at the Congress headquarters in Tripoli. According to the constitutional declaration, the oldest member chairs the first meeting and the youngest serves as the Rapporteur. Based on this, 79 year old Mr. Mohammed Saleem, a deputy from the city of Qasr Alakhiar, was chairman of the first meeting, and Ms. Ola Younis, deputy from the National Forces Alliance party, served as the Rapporteur. The purpose of the first meeting was to choose the President and his two deputies. The individuals nominated for the Presidency of the General National Congress were: Mr. Mohammed Magarief from the National Front Party, Mr. Abdul Rahman Swehli from the Union for the Homeland Party, and Mr. Ali Zaidan from the National Party for Development and Welfare, and Mr. Abd Rabbh Borbig. The president of the GNC was chosen via a secret ballot by its members. The results of the first round confined the competition between Mr. Mohammed Magareif and Ali Zaidan, and following the second round of elections, Mr. Mohammed Magrif was elected to be President after receiving 133 votes out of 198, while Mr. Ali Zaidan received 85 votes.

Statements of the General National Congress

Statement on Demolition of Shrines and Mosques

The General National Congress denounced on Monday August 27th 2012 the demolition of mosques and the unearthing of shrines as infringement on the state’s public property. The GNC issued a statement indicating that disobeying the state’s law and sovereignty with the use of force and weapons is opposed to the teachings of our religion and the rules of Sharia. The Congress additionally confirmed its firm rejection of any attempts to use force outside the framework of the legitimacy of the state, and considers those who do so as outlaws who subject themselves to criminal liability and prosecution.

Statement about the Syrian Revolution

The General National Congress issued on Saturday September 8th 2012 condemning the heinous crimes committed by the oppressive and tyrannical Syrian regime, and denounced its gross violations of human rights. In the statement, the Congress confirmed its standing by the Syrian people in their revolution against oppression and tyranny. It also requested the Libyan government and civil society organizations to mobilize a moral commitment and make every possible effort to support the Syrian people and their revolution and alleviate the suffering of displaced people and refugees and the vulnerable. The statement called upon on all peace and justice advocates in the world to stand by the Syrian people until they come out of this ordeal, and also called on countries supporting Assad’s regime to stop prolonging the pain endured by innocent people and to stop supporting injustice and dictatorship. The statement affirmed that supporting people in their struggle for freedom and justice would contribute to cementing cooperative, friendly relations between nations.

Statement on U.S. Consulate Attacks in Benghazi

The General National Congress condemned, in a statement issued on Wednesday September 12th 2012, the attacks at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, expressing condolences to the American people, the President and U.S. Embassy staff over the killing of the Ambassador and three of his companions. The attack was strongly condemned and described as a crime and an orchestrated conspiracy. Civil society organizations responded in favor of this statement, stating that those who carried out the attacks are outlaws who do not represent the Libyan people and demanding the government and members of the security to reveal the circumstances of the attack.

Laws Issued by the General National Congress

Grant Exchange Law for Libyan Families

The GNC issued on Tuesday October 9th 2012 a law granting 1000 Libyan Dinars for each family on the occasion of the start of the school year coinciding with Eid al-Adha. The mechanism to implement this law was the same mechanism used to issue financial grants to Libyan families on the first anniversary of the revolution. The latter was stipulated by law No. 10 of 2012 and amended by the law 16 of 2012.

Law of the Right to Peaceful Demonstration

The General National Congress issued a law regarding the right to peaceful demonstration. On Tuesday November 6th 2012, this law provided citizens’ the right to organize and to demonstrate peacefully. The law reconciles the security and integrity of the nation and the practice by citizens, political parties, and civil society organizations of their right to demonstrate so long as this does not contradict with the principles of the Constitution and the provisions of the legislation, nor does it lead to the obstruction of public utilities. The law confirmed the application of imprisonment punishments not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding five thousand Libyan Dinars or either of both to those who break the law by organizing a demonstration or strike without notifying the appropriate authorities or in spite of an order issued to prevent it. The punishment is doubled if the perpetrator of the offense was carrying a weapon , as this defies the provisions of Article (14) of the constitutional declaration concerning the right to freedom of assembly and peaceful protest without breaking the law.

On the other hand, civil society organizations expressed their concerns over the law, and issued a statement stating that the current Libyan government has to revise the provisions of the law that criminalize or limit the ability of citizens to express themselves through gatherings, whether spontaneous or organized.

Law on the Cancellation of Interest on Bank Loans and Advances for Libyan Citizens

On Tuesday February 14th, 2012, the GNC Congress discussed a law to cancel interest on loans and advances granted by banks to Libyan citizens. The Congress referred the resolution to its Financial, Economic, Legal and Endowments Committees and asked them to coordinate with the committee formed by the Central Bank of Libya to prepare a draft law and present it to the National Congress before the end of 2012.

Law Establishing the Ministry of Information under the Government of Mr. Ali Zaidan

On Sunday November 25th 2012, the GNC issued a law to establish a Ministry of Information under the Government of Mr. Ali Zaidan, to manage the affairs of this sector as the Congress continues, via its specialized committees, to follow up the work of this developing ministry. Mr. Omar Humaidan, a spokesman for the GNC, clarified that this law came after the GNC’s Media Committee presented three proposals that focused on the development of a higher council for the media, a Ministry of Information, or a body that blended aspects of the two. He also confirmed that, following a lengthy debate surrounding these proposals, the General National Congress approved the creation of this Ministry. Mr. Humaidan denied that any names were put forward to lead the Ministry, saying that this is in the inherent jurisdiction of the Government of Mr. Zaidan.

Law to Establish the South as a Military Zone

On December 16th 2012, the GNC issued a Law to make the southern region (which includes the cities of Ghadames, Ubari, Elshatie, Sabha, Murzuq, and Elkofra) a military zone. 136 members voted in favor of this resolution. The Congress mandated a legal committee to prepare and present a draft resolution that addresses the problem this region faces, with a particular emphasis on security concerns. The Congress additionally decided to temporarily close the Libyan borders with Chad, Niger, Algeria, and Sudan). Mohammed Al Bargathy, the Minister of Defense in the interim government, was commissioned to appoint a military governor of the area and granting him all the powers to secure the south, including the ability to arrest wanted suspects. The General National Congress called upon the interim transitional government to provide all means and resources necessary to secure the south and extend control over this region.

Decisions Issued by the General National Congress

Resolution No. 7 on the Circumstances of the Kidnapping and Torture of Martyr Omran Juma Shaban

On September 25th 2012, Resolution No. 7 was issued in which the GNC assigned the Ministries of Interior and Defense to arrest those who kidnaped and tortured martyr Omran Juma Shaban and his comrades. It also assigned them to arrest other wanted criminals, and bring them to justice within ten days from the date of issue. 

The Ministries were additionally assigned to release prisoners in Bani Walid. Both Ministries are entitled to the necessary authority to implement this resolution, including the use of force if need be.

Decision to Recall Diplomatic Delegations

The General National Congress decided to recall all heads of diplomatic delegations, including Ambassadors and those in charge of state affairs and international organizations, who were appointed by the previous regime, even if their work was extended by the National Transitional Council, the Executive Office or the interim transitional government.

The Congress additionally decided to overrule decisions taken by the interim government to re-assign the heads of diplomatic delegations. The Congress indicated that the appointment of Ambassadors and individuals in charge of state affairs and international organizations is an original responsibility of the Congress, as stipulated in Article 29 of the constitutional declaration.

Finally, the General National Congress asked the Foreign Affairs Committee to provide and present a comprehensive report on the efficiency of diplomatic missions to countries and international organizations not affected by the previous decision.

[Click here to download the full report.]

[Click here to download the report in Arabic.]