Give rights to people long resident in Libya or born in the country

Dear Sir,

I am daily reader of your website and I appreciate your efforts in providing news in English. It’s very useful . . .[restrict]for foreigners.

I am a Pakistani national and have worked Libya since 1980 for several foreign companies in Benghazi. I have enjoyed living amongst Libyans and as they suffered for 42 years under the past regime, we suffered with them.

I am interested to to know the intentions of the authorities regarding foreigners who have been in Libya for 30 years or more, and have families and Libyan-born children who have grown up shoulder to shoulder with Libyans.

I hope that the newly elected General Congress will give some rights to foreigners who have spent their lives here.

So far, nothing has changed since the start of the revolution. We stayed here with our Libyan brothers during the uprising and did not leave them alone and now, thanks be to God, Libya is free and democracy has begun.

The visa system and the Labour Office has remained much as before the revolution,and I would be interested to see an investigation in which such matters brought to the attention of those responsible.

We hope that our Libyan brothers will give us rights, as other countries do. I am a Muslim and I feel more Libyan than Pakistani, and my children also feel that they are Libyans because they were born here, have grown up here and hope to stay here.

Best Regards,
Shabbir Ahmed
(email address supplied) [/restrict]