Five western countries have called on the Libyan authorities to respect the aspirations of the Libyan people, swiftly determine a final date for the elections, and issue the final list of Presidential candidates.
In a joint statement issued on Friday, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and the US said the transfer of power from the current interim government should take place following the announcement of the election results.
They urged candidates holding roles in public institutions to resign until the announcement of the electoral results, “in order to avoid conflicts of interests and promote a level playing field.”
“We affirm that individuals or entities, inside or outside Libya, who obstruct, undermine, manipulate or falsify the electoral process and the political transition will be held accountable and may be designated by the United Nations sanctions committee in accordance with UNSC resolution 2571,” the joint statement said.
The statement stressed that free, fair, and credible elections will allow the Libyan people to elect a representative and unified government. As well as reinforce the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national unity of the country.
The western states reiterated the United Nations Support Mission in Libya’s (UNSMIL) call for disagreements on emerging political or military matters to be resolved without resorting to violence. “We commit to respecting the UN-facilitated, Libyan-led and owned political process and urge all other international actors to do the same,” the statement noted.
Meanwhile, the five countries hailed the efforts of the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser (SASG) on Libya, Stephanie Williams. They expressed their “strong support” for the ongoing efforts of UNSMIL to ensure a Libyan-led and Libyan-owned electoral process.
On Wednesday, the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) submitted a proposal to the Libyan Parliament to postpone the elections to 24 January, a month after its original date.
It claimed that there were a number of issues regarding the electoral legislation, and was thus unable to provide a final list of candidates.