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A timely and decisive response to madness

In an extraordinary display of bozotic madness and ferocious bellicose, Muammar Gaddafi today threatened to treat his own people the way the Chinese treated theirs at Tiananmen. He also encouraged vigilante action against protesters, whom he accused of being drug-crazed advocates of breaking up Libya or turning it into an Islamic state, and threatened to execute as many people as need be.  He offered vague reforms of municipal governance but little else of substance, while denouncing the Libyan people’s lack of gratitude for all he had done for them.

This was one of the extraordinary moments of our time:  an autocrat of almost 42 years standing unable to comprehend that his people want him out.  He is trying to re-instil fear in Libya and could temporarily succeed.  Certainly nothing in his speech today suggested that it would be safe to continue demonstrating in Tripoli.  Rarely has a thug outlined more clearly his murderous intentions.

The Libyan people will decide their own reaction to Gaddafi’s ranting.  I find it difficult to suggest what they should do, given the risks they will have to run if they return to the streets.  I’ll be surprised though if they don’t try to return to Green square, or someplace else symbolic in Tripoli, by Friday.

What should the international community do?  The most immediate hopes lie in the Arab League and the UN Security Council.  The Arab League meeting today is unlikely to do much, since its members are all frightened that their country might be next.  But they need to consider the possibility that failure to act against Gaddafi may in fact increase their own risks.

The UN Security Council needs to take definite serious action at its meeting this afternoon.  I suggested yesterday the litany of things they could do.  In the harsh light of today, I would recommend the following, in priority order:

• Declare the need for “timely and decisive response” under the 2009 report of the Secretary General on the responsibility to protect;
• Send the Secretary General to Tripoli to negotiate an international observer mission aimed at protecting Libya’s population from war crimes and crimes against humanity.
• Freeze assets and ban travel of regime principals.
• Prohibit arms sales.
• Begin discussion of further measures:  no-fly zone, deposit of proceeds from Libyan oil sales into a UN-managed account, freeze on oil exports.

These are complicated issues that need to be carefully examined for their feasibility and usefulness.

In the meanwhile, the Sixth Fleet should be moving assets towards the Libyan coast, even if that will give Gaddafi something to cry “imperialism” about.  I doubt any of his planes or helicopters will fly if a carrier battle group is close by.

In his 2009 report, the Secretary General said:

…when confronted with crimes or violations relating
to the responsibility to protect or their incitement, today the world is less likely to
look the other way than in the last century.

Let’s pray he was correct.  Now is the time to prove it.