Election In Libya? Gaddafi Accused of War Crimes

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Foreign Affairs
Posted on Mon Jun 27, 2011 at 11:47:24 AM EST
Tags: (all tags)

Share This: Digg!

In Egypt, some have argued that it is too soon for elections. In Libya, the Gaddafi regime is floating the idea of elections:

The Libyan government on Sunday renewed its offer to hold a vote on whether Muammar Gaddafi should stay in power, a proposal unlikely to interest his opponents but which could widen differences inside NATO. [. . .] Moussa Ibrahim, a spokesman for Gaddafi's administration, told reporters in Tripoli the government was proposing a period of national dialogue and an election overseen by the United Nations and the African Union.

Should this alternative be pursued? If not, why not? In Egypt the argument against elections is:

Some two dozen parties will compete to win seats but many political parties especially the newly established ones will have no time to develop, organize campaigns and mobilize support. Mohammed Nosseir, a leading member of the Democratic Front Party established in 2007 said several liberal parties feel the military council has not offer a clear political roadmap.

The argument is it is not fair. Perhaps, but what if Mubarak had agreed to elections, how would that have gone? An interesting gambit by Gaddafi. It will be interesting to see if it is taken seriously and if not, the argument for not taking it seriously.

Today, a new argument has developed against elections in Libya that include Gaddafi, he has been accused of war crimes:

The International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants on Monday for Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, his son Seif al-Islam and his chief of intelligence, Abdullah Senussi, on charges of crimes against humanity, including murder and persecution, stemming from the first two weeks of the uprising in Libya that led to a NATO bombing campaign.

I'm thinking this will not persuade Gaddafi to go quietly into that good night.

Speaking for me only

< Monday Morning Open Thread | Political Positioning And Change >

Legal

Nothing on this site should be construed as legal advice. TalkLeft does not give legal advice.

TalkLeft is not responsible for and often disagrees with material posted in the comments section. Read at your own risk.

Election In Libya? Gaddafi Accused of War Crimes | 2 comments (2 topical)

Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

Note to Secretary Clinton: If opposed to the (none / 0) (#2)
by KeysDan on Mon Jun 27, 2011 at 05:22:47 PM EST

non-war/non-hostilities in Libya, the war crime accusation by the International Criminal Court in Hague should not, necessarily, put us on the side of Qaddafi, including support or non-support of his claim of its irrelevance to Libyan elections. After all, neither the US nor Libya are members of the ICC; The US signed the Rome Statute but formally withdrew its intent to ratify it. Seven countries voted against the treaty, Iraq, Israel, Libya, China, Qatar, Yemen and the US. However, perhaps it would be wise to have the political courage for the US to re-visit its earlier reluctance--these things have a way of coming back at you.

Considering... (none / 0) (#3)
by mike in dc on Tue Jun 28, 2011 at 10:01:44 AM EST

...this is the same regime that says it was "observing" a ceasefire, while shelling civilians in Misurata, I think the reasons for declining the "opportunity" to hold "elections" are pretty self-evident. Hopefully the rebels can finish this thing up before the end of September(when NATO support will probably fall apart).