Chairman of the Defense and National Security Committee of the Libyan Parliament, Talal Al-Mihoub denounced the remarks of the US Envoy to Libya, Richard Norland regarding the legal framework for the general elections.
“We fully support the call of UN Special Envoy to Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily, for the 6+6 committee to reach an agreement on a legal framework for elections and urge all of Libya’s political leadership to bring their influence to bear without delay,” Norland said.
Commenting on Norland’s remarks, Al-Mihoub said, “The Libyan Parliament will not be hostage to the views of Washington or the UN mission (UNSMIL).”
The Libyan lawmaker added, in an interview with Sputnik, that Libya “will not accept that UNSMIL becomes the new Paul Bremer for Libya, and that the Parliament takes whatever actions it deems appropriate for our country.”
Paul Bremer is an American diplomat, who was the de facto head of the state of Iraq as leader of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) following the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States, from May 2003 until June 2004.
“The Parliament owns its decisions, while the 6+6 Joint Committee works according to its own lines and vision from the legal aspects, and we will not accept any dictates from any parties,” he added.
Earlier, Bathily received a delegation of the 6+6 Joint Committee at UNSMIL’s headquarters in Tripoli.
According to a tweet, Bathily reiterated the importance of the committee’s role and responsibilities to produce the laws necessary to hold general and inclusive elections in Libya.
Bathily, joined by UNSMIL’s technical team, exchanged views on issues related to the legal framework for elections. He renewed the Mission’s offer to “provide all required support to enable the committee to conclude its work as soon as possible.”
Last week, the Deputy Head for the Libyan Presidential Council (PC), Abdullah Al-Lafi, discussed with Norland the council’s efforts for the national reconciliation project in the country.
This came during a phone call, with the participation of Chargé d’Affairs at the US Embassy to Libya, Leslie Ordman. The two parties agreed on the necessity of efforts to promote national reconciliation in Libya to ensure long-term peace and prosperity throughout the country.
“We agreed that efforts promoting national reconciliation in #Libya are critical to ensuring long-term peace and prosperity countrywide,” the US Embassy said in a statement on Thursday.
“We also discussed the need for concerted and tangible efforts by Libyan parties to achieve a progress towards holding timely elections and ensure an equitable distribution of revenues,” the Embassy added.
In turn, Al-Lafi said a Facebook post that Norland affirmed his country’s full support for Libya for the success of the reconciliation project led by the Presidential Council.
The Libyan official also pointed to “the importance of this file in the success of the political process, the presidential and parliamentary elections, as well as providing support in achieving security and stability.”
