On Tuesday, the Head of Libya’s High National Elections Commission (HNEC), Emad Al-Sayeh met with the Director of the North Africa and Middle East Department at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the French Ambassador to Libya, Mostafa Mihraje. They discussed the difficulties facing Libya’s stalled electoral process.
The meeting discussed the extent of HNEC’s readiness and willingness to implement the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary elections.
They touched on the capabilities available to HNEC, in terms of human, technical, and logistical resources.
They also dealt with ways of continuing technical support to maintain the commission’s readiness once a political consensus is reached. As well as the international support provided to HNEC through the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), to enhance the electoral knowledge and skills of HNEC staff.
Earlier this month, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General to Libya, and Head of UNSMIL, Abdoulaye Bathily, held a meeting with Ambassador Mihraje in Tripoli.
During the talks, the two reviewed the latest political developments in the country. They also discussed the need for the international community to take unified action, to support a sustained path to peace and stability.
Bathily said that “it is critical that peace, stability, and legitimate institutions are restored in Libya.
Libya has been in chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The county has for years been split between rival administrations, each backed by rogue militias and foreign governments.
The current stalemate grew out of the failure to hold elections in December, and the refusal of Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Dbaiba, who is leading the transitional government, to step down. In response, the country’s eastern-based Parliament appointed a rival Prime Minister, Fathi Bashagha, who has for months sought to install his government in Tripoli.