Rebuilding Libya

Ian Ramsey-North, a recent Haverford graduate in poli sci (old school tie binds!), reports on yesterday’s event at the National Press Club, “Rebuilding Libya: A Status Report on the Humanitarian Situation on the Ground.”

Co-sponsored by the Middle East Institute and International Relief and Development, the discussion concerned recent political, military, diplomatic and humanitarian developments in Libya and the process of stabilization and reconstruction moving forward.  The event began with a keynote address by Gene Cretz, US Ambassador to Libya, and continued with a panel discussion between Mark Ward, Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Bureau of Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance at USAID, and Travis Gartner, Director of Community Stabilization, IRD.

Gene Cretz began by recounting the series of summits, contact group meetings, and international ministerial conferences that facilitated the international community’s increasing confidence in the Libyan Transitional National Council (TNC).  These culminated in the most recent meeting last week in Paris, following the defeat of Qaddafi’s forces, which was marked by a sense of pride in the international community, TNC and the Libyan people.  At the same time, participants were aware of the continuing threat posed by Qaddafi and the myriad challenges presented by Libya’s transition from autocratic rule to democratic governance.

The international community used the Paris meeting to call on:

• All nations to recognize the TNC.
• Meeting participants to unfreeze Libyan assets through the U.N.
• The TNC to honor its stated commitment to human rights, the proper treatment of prisoners and unification of Libya.

For their part, representatives of the TNC:

• Gave moving thanks to the international community.
• Restated their intention to respect human rights and the rights of prisoners.
• Stated that they do not need to be told what to do with respect to unifying their country.
• Claimed they have a clear sense of purpose and understand the problems they must confront.
• Emphasized that they will handle unfrozen funds and humanitarian assistance in a transparent and accountable manner, in accordance with international standards.

Cretz went on to stress that despite the success of the TNC, the NATO mission to protect civilians will continue.  On the diplomatic front, efforts will continue to welcome Libya back into community of nations.  The TNC will relocate to Tripoli and assume responsibility for national security and the humanitarian needs of the Libyan people “writ large.”

That said, the challenges facing Libya are considerable:

• The TNC must create a new country, not re-create pre-war Libya:
• Internal divisions are deep; Qaddafi took “divide and conquer” to unprecedented heights.
• New government and civil society institutions are needed.
• Previous contracts will be honored, but a process of review and rationalization will be necessary to assess which are really needed.
• The TNC is committed to a democracy:
• Libyans have a sense of what democracy is.
• Democratic practices and sentiments were evident from the early days of rebellion.

While all reconstruction efforts will be Libyan-led, the international community will remain engaged and support TNC efforts, as needed:

• Ian Martin is leading a UN assessment team on the ground right now.
• TNC and US State Department teams have already worked together on post-conflict planning efforts, filling in gaps in each other’s work.
• TNC is interested in training, expertise, and capacity-building, not massive funding handouts.

This process will be Libyan-led.  The international community and America can be proud of the role it played in this and can look forward to a continuing role providing support, on Libyan terms.

Mark Ward emphasized that the situation in Libya has not been and is not today a humanitarian crisis.  This is due to the exceptional coordination of humanitarian assistance by the Libyan people.  The international community played a supporting role in this effort.

After assessing, USAID dispatched a DART to Benghazi.  Medical needs were paramount so USAID’s primary focus was on stocking hospitals, medical clinics, and providing sanitation and hygiene kits to internally displaced persons.  It also provided $15M in food assistance through the World Food Program and played a role in the evacuation and repatriation of migrants in Libya.  NGO’s are now on the ground in Tripoli, monitoring the situation and preparing to meet any emerging humanitarian needs.  In addition, the TNC has proved responsive to humanitarian needs, dispatching its own engineers to resolve a drinking water shortage in Tripoli.

The US role in Libya is now changing from one of humanitarian assistance to stabilization operations, including training for civil society, governance, and media.  The TNC is particularly interested in capacity-building for transitional justice mechanisms and messaging/media relations.

Ward concluded by relating his own experience at the recent Paris meeting.  It was partiucularly notable that in a donor meeting, a TNC official thanked the international community for freeing frozen assets and then clearly stated that Libya does not want the international community’s money, it only wants its expertise.

Travis Gartner related some of his own experiences working with IRD to provide humanitarian assistance early in the Libyan civil war.  He reiterated Libyans’ incredible drive for self-sufficiency, noting that IRD was able to implement large projects in Libya with only one expatriate employee, 3-4 paid staff members, and a large number of community volunteers.

Future collaboration and assistance must incorporate community action, grass roots-level involvement, citizen involvement in decision-making, and capacity-building at the lowest possible level.

Looking forward, security is the most urgent priority:

• De-arming and de-militarizing militias
• Re-vamping military and police forces and getting them back on the streets as quickly as possible
• Addressing divisions
  • East/West
  • Civilian/Military
  • Tribal

Other major concerns include:

• Perceptions of social exclusion
• Frustrated expectations for improvement
• Unemployment

Conclusion: All three participants emphasized a strong Libyan drive for self-sufficiency.  Cretz focused on growing international confidence in the TNC during the last 6 months of international diplomatic activity.  Ward and Gartner discussed Libyan management of humanitarian relief efforts during the conflict.  All three emphasized that future international involvement will be determined by Libyans, with an emphasis on capacity-building and the provision of international expertise in order to fill gaps in Libyan capabilities.