By Libya Herald staff.
Tripoli, 19 November 2013:
The lawyers group, Lawyers for Justice in Libya (LFJL) has hit out against the Prime . . .[restrict]Minister’s response to the Gharghour massacre calling it irresponsible and unacceptable. It accused the government of ultimate responsibility for the slaughter for having allowed the militias to operate unchecked.
The government had “failed to take substantive action” in response to the attacks, Elham Saudi, LFJL director said, lambasting Ali Zeidan’s call for “restraint and a halt to clashes” as “the statement of a distant observer”, not of a responsible official. “Half-hearted words are not enough to ensure peace and prevent future attacks, nor do they fulfil the government’s international legal responsibilities.”
Saudi added: “The Libyan government’s argument for inaction and for not disarming these groups is the desire to avoid confrontation and to prevent violence.”
This was “an unacceptable strategy and one that has proven to be in effective. It is also one that has cultivated the culture of impunity when it comes to human rights violations, “ she added. “It is through such inaction that non-state actors, such as militias, gain their de facto sense of legitimacy. After allowing these militias to carry out state functions unchecked for several months, the Libyan government is responsible for the atrocities committed against the peaceful and unarmed public over the weekend. It cannot now renounce responsibility for these unaccountable groups.”
The lawyers group insisted that the government stop “appeasing” the demands of militia groups in Libya, which it called “a violent minority” increasingly resented by the public. It called on the government immediately to remove all militias from Tripoli and state institutions as decreed by Law No. 27 of the General National Congress and disband all armed non-state groups.
The government also had to reiterate its commitment, announced earlier this month to stop paying all militias by 31 December 2013.
It had to investigate the events of last Friday and Saturday and hold those responsible accountable for the crimes committed.
The Gharghour massacre and the fighting in Tajoura the following day had highlighted the need for an accountable security force that protected the public, LFJL said. The government had to vet those who were joining the armed forces to ensure that no one involved in human rights abuses or criminal offences was recruited.
“The government should also offer no amnesties in any integration process for crimes and human rights violations committed,” it said. [/restrict]
