The Libyan crisis did not start today or yesterday, but it is the inevitable result of a political, economic, and social catastrophe that struck on the morning of September 1, 1969, with the announcement of the September military coup. Libya suffered its woes for four dark decades, during which it did not see prosperity or stability until it was toppled by the February 2011 revolution, which did not achieve its goals and slogans for several reasons that can be considered the roots of the disease that contributed to the continuation of the Libyan crisis and the revolution's inability to achieve its goals, for which it was carried out.

The Legacy of the Previous Regime

The most important reason was the heavy legacy left by the previous regime, which did not have a stable political system with its institutions, nor a real regulated economic system, while dismantling the social system and promoting a tribal and regional culture among the members of society. The state administration was based on tribal and regional affiliations, with the principle of loyalty before efficiency, controlled by one tyrant who made them puppets moved at his will and whim!

After the success of the revolution in eliminating and overthrowing the regime, it was unable to get rid of or remove the remnants of the past that had deeply infiltrated the minds and thoughts of many Libyans, including those who participated in the revolution and overthrow of the regime. Instead, we find many who were affiliated with the revolution cursing the past regime and committing actions they once criticized and protested against, calling for their removal.

The Repercussions of the Crisis

The repercussions of this situation were very unfortunate, as it led to the instability of the state, the outbreak of civil wars, and the deterioration of the economic situation, which worsened and intensified, impacting the ordinary citizens, especially with the prevalence of the principle of "tribe, dominance, and spoils." The country fell under the control of what can be called a state of "militias or a plundering state."

From the above, we can identify the reasons and roots of the disease in the continuation of the crisis in Libya in three main reasons under which all the detailed factors fall, which have been and continue to be a cause of the crisis's continuation. Libya will not rise from its crisis, liberate itself, and achieve its renaissance without addressing these reasons, as follows:

First: the arbitrariness of the legislative authority:

The legislative authority suffered a devastating blow following the catastrophe of Libya with the September 1969 coup, which disabled constitutional life by suspending the Libyan constitution of 1951 and its amendment in 1963 and limiting the parliamentary life for a period of time. Libya's Legislative Assembly was replaced by what was known as the General People's Congress, which served as a formal legislative council without any value, weight, or authority in the face of Gaddafi's authority, whose words, speeches, directives, and lectures, even his press statements - and all his whims - were considered laws above the constitution that must be implemented immediately, without regulation, discussion, and anyone who opposes them would meet a known fate.

This situation continued until the outbreak of the February 2011 revolution, whose most important demand was the establishment of the rule of law. One of the requirements of the rule of law is the existence of a legislative authority that operates according to the constitution and enacts laws regulating public life in the state.

The General National Congress emerged from the first free elections after nearly five decades of parliamentary absence - the true legislative authority in the state - in 2012. However, the circumstances surrounding the birth of this legislative authority were harsh and unstable. It was a period of security breakdown with the collapse of all state institutions and intense political conflict, where all means were used to break bones between competing political factions. This led to a loss of its ability to achieve its main goal, which is to work on establishing effective electoral laws and elect a cohesive and competent executive authority.

But unfortunately, the conflict and disputes among the members of the General National Congress - the legislative authority - led to the birth of weak and inconsistent executive authorities throughout its tenure. A new legislative authority, the parliament, was elected by Libyans in 2013 in an attempt to rectify the mistakes that occurred during the General National Congress period. However, the luck of the parliament ships was worse than the luck of the congress ships. The winds were stronger and the choices were less efficient and experienced than the choices made during the congress period.

This led to a deep military conflict which made the parliament's ability to act much weaker than that of the congress. The division within the parliament between a group supporting the civil war and legislation for it, and a group opposing and standing against it, made the parliament unable to be a unifying force for all Libyans. Instead, its powers were limited to implementing its decisions on the ground, where military forces, supported by some, controlled the majority of the sessions, with accusations against the parliament presidency of making decisions unilaterally without presenting them in parliament sessions.

This resulted in several conflicting and unacceptable decisions from opposing parties to the council's presidency or areas not under the control of the military forces allied with the presidency and some parliament members. The armed conflict spread to some regions, especially in the capital Tripoli, with the government of national unity, the Dbeibah government, and the Presidential Council getting involved in recent times.

Moreover, the military groups stationed in the capital, with significant influence that is not easy to relinquish, made the current legislative authority a source of conflict and disagreement, aligning on one side against another. This affected its performance and rendered it ineffective as it was unable to produce reconciliatory laws and stand with all parties united for the country's interest rather than aligning with one side over the other. The parliament's support for the military attack carried out by Khalifa Haftar's forces on Tripoli in April 2019 further damaged its reputation, causing political and military forces in Tripoli and the west in general to take a stance against the parliament and its presidency, despite the parliament president acknowledging the mistake after Haftar's forces retreated and the war ended. However, the lack of trust in the parliament and its decisions still prevails among political and military forces in Tripoli without any signs of improvement in the near future.

Secondly: Judicial Paralysis:

Gaddafi did not directly interfere in the regular judiciary's rulings for the most part, but he did intervene in the formulation of many laws that the judiciary operated under during his rule by enacting laws that aligned with what he saw in shaping the lives of Libyans in the economic, social, administrative, and cultural aspects. Through enacting laws that imposed the principles known as the Green Book (the Third Universal Theory), which called for the seizure of private properties and ownership by those who benefit from them or lease them, such as a house for its inhabitant and a car for its driver, not its owner, and factory workers being partners in it.

He also worked to make the judiciary an obedient tool to serve him by monopolizing the establishment of a judiciary specific to him in the political aspect, calling it the People's Court after his coup in September 1969. He also established revolutionary courts similar to the flying courts in the fascist era of the Italian occupation of Libya.

After the success of the February 17 Revolution, the judiciary suffered near-total paralysis, with all court functions ceasing and it being in a state of clinical death due to some extremists assassinating members of the judiciary and police, led by the attorney general.

Following a partial return of the judiciary, it suffered a major blow with the rejection by the elected House of Representatives in 2014 of the Constitutional Chamber's ruling from the Supreme Court annulling the elections, rendering the parliament in power null and void, despite the Supreme Court ruling being non-appealable!

With this rejection that nullified this ruling, the door was opened for all those who had judgments against them to be rejected, with no consideration for judicial rulings except for what the Public Prosecutor's Office attempts to apply in some limited cases not related to those in control by force of arms over parts of the country where there is no law or judiciary except for the law of the dominant military leaders in their controlled areas. They are the ones who own the land and everything on it, and there is no law except their own.

The judiciary also faced another setback not less than the setback faced by the parliament itself when the Supreme Judicial Council objected to the Supreme Court ruling on the presidency of the Supreme Judicial Council, and the council held its sessions without considering the court's ruling, which was binding and non-appealable, and contrary to it is considered a crime punishable by law.

Thirdly: Executive Authorities Chaos:

Before the 1969 coup, the executive authority was represented by the government, appointed by the king who had the power to appoint and dissolve it, although it had specific powers defined in the constitution that was disabled by the coup in its first statement.

After the coup, all authorities were initially condensed under what was called the Revolutionary Command Council, then they were limited to the Colonel who took control of power after a failed coup in 1975 by some officers who participated in the 1969 coup but became disillusioned with his actions and his relentless efforts to get rid of them and monopolize power. This was achieved after the discovery of this attempt, leading to the execution of some and the escape of others who managed to flee the country.

After this attempt, Gaddafi was able to take control of the situation and became the sole ruler, tightening his grip on the country. He positioned himself as the leader of the country, holding all powers in his hands without any opposition, with the authority to make decisions on any aspect of the country, no one could challenge him. He used executive authority under the name of the General People's Committee as a council of ministers tasked with executing the words, decisions, speeches, interviews, and directives of the "Brother Leader" the inspiring leader!

This authority continued until the outbreak of the February 2011 revolution, which led to the formation of the Transitional Council. This council established a temporary executive authority known as the Executive Office, which was replaced by an executive authority - a government - after liberation, produced by the National Congress, which replaced the Transitional Council. Following this, several fragile and weak transitional governments emerged due to the political conflict within the National Congress, and then the House of Representatives. This conflict led to the multiplication of governments in the country, which became divided into east and west. Each division had a government representing it for a period of time. Although they unified at times, the reality on the ground was that the country was divided between two executive authorities, each claiming legitimacy and authority limited to the geography under the control of their military force, supporting one government or the other.

This division put the unity of the country at stake, leaning towards further division rather than unity and stability due to the intense political and military competition between the military forces supporting the executive governments in control. This protection caused a split and even a duplication in most of the state institutions, indicating the imminent danger of the country's division, especially with external interventions, international and regional conflicts benefiting from dividing and weakening the country, seizing its territories, and sharing its resources and wealth. These factors have contributed to the continuation of the disease affecting the Libyan society, which is in a state that seems irreversible and incurable due to the corrupt political elite and international ambitions benefiting from maintaining this deteriorating situation endlessly to achieve their goals in Libya and the surrounding region.

This diagnosis points to the disease that has affected all vital aspects of life in Libya, making it a semi-failed state rapidly heading towards division or disappearance from the global map, with a new map in the making, still incomplete but its features starting to emerge, perhaps to be fully revealed in the coming days if the Libyans themselves do not realize the imminent danger they and future generations face as potential victims of this deteriorating situation that needs to be rectified before it's too late, and before they regret not doing so.

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* Faraj Kundi is a Libyan thinker and the director of the Kundi Center for Studies and Research.