By Sami Zaptia.
Tripoli, 21 October 2014:
The media communication output of Libya’s “legitimate” and internationally recognized Prime Minister, Abdullah Thinni, rose to . . .[restrict]previously unseen heights last Friday with two in-depth, lengthy and qualitative TV interviews.
Thinni’s media performance, which was never been great at the best of times, naturally fell to new lows after his government, and its democratically elected parliament, were forced to flee the capital Tripoli this summer and seek refuge in the eastern cities of Tobruk and Al-Beida.
Far away, disconnected and isolated in Tobruk and then Al-Beida from the capital Tripoli in the west, and without the means of communicating his messages, Thinni and his government resembled a classical government in exile.
The hasty escape from the capital Tripoli in the west of the country followed the military occupation of Tripoli by the Libya Dawn coalition of opposition groups – the groups that had been able to exert a considerable degree of control over the GNC, the previous parliament whose reign ended with the election of the current House of Representatives (HoR) on 25 June 2014. The Libya Dawn coalition had made huge losses in these elections.
Thinni categorizes the group as “terrorists” and representing the “Muslim Brotherhood receiving orders from their masters abroad“. He had also put the reason for their military invasion of Tripoli to their poor performance at the 25 June elections.
Worryingly for the Thinni “legitimate” government and the HoR has been the seeming acceptance by Tripolitanians of their Libya Dawn invaders. Libya Dawn had quickly imposed security, drastically reducing crime in the form of armed robberies and car jackings.
They had also, in a very astute political move, quickly restored petrol, cooking gas, electricity and bread supplies. They made Tripoli, relatively, a better place to live in, and claimed credit for this improvement, implying that the “other side”, and especially Zintan and Wershafana were therefore responsible for the previous poor standard of living.
Thinni, of course, reacted strongly to this suggestion, saying that life was about more than just petrol, electricity and water, but that it was about political freedom and dignity.
With reference to the re-launching of the state satellite TV channel Al-Wataniya from Al-Beida after the Libya Dawn faction had occupied its headquarters in Tripoli, Prime Minister Thinni said, “of course. The fact is that media is a very dangerous weapon”.
“They (Libya Dawn) were able as a result of their presence (military takeover) in the capital, to destroy the channels that says ‘no’ such as the Al-Assema channel”.
“We are truly surprised as these practices do not differ from the practices of the former (Qaddafi) regime. It is not possible for the imposition of the will of one side and their political agenda and (and expect) that the people will follow them like a flock of sheep”, Thinni explained.
“This is impossible. The people of Libya have a will, and are in opposition to this. We were forced to shut down the state channels because they were transmitting their (Libya Dawn’s) point of view”, he said explaining his reasoning for asking Nilesat to terminate Al-Watanita’s transmissions..
“It (Al-Wataniya’s broadcasts under Libya Dawn) did not represent the Libyan people. The Libyan people have a right to have a voice of dialogue, which includes everyone from its furthest east and west”.
Their (Libya Dawn’s) way is unacceptable. But, if they want to live with the people as partners in the nation, with the respect of the choices of the Libyan people, with the point of view of the people and with what is welcomed by everyone. The Libyan people are the owners of the first and final (political) word”, Thinni emphasized.
“Therefore, we found ourselves needing a TV channel that broadcasts the point of view of the government, the Libyan citizen. and broadcasting the truth and honesty, and not as they do bringing groups (of demonstrators) and taking them to the squares as Qaddafi used to do in the past”.
Thinni was referring to the accusation that Libya Dawn were orchestrating their regular Friday anti House of Representatives (HoR) demonstrations by busing-in their supporters from cities outside Tripoli, including from Misrata.
They also prevented any opposition demonstrators from demonstrating in the square and prevented any opposition media from covering the demonstrations. The Libya Dawn coalition, however, wished to convey the impression that the residents of Tripoli were demonstrating against the HoR spontaneously.
This orchestration of demonstrations was a regular and well honed practice under the dictatorial Qaddafi regime.
The implication in Thinni’s statement is that Libya Dawn are unable to fill Tripoli’s Martyr Square purely with local Tripolitanians where they have no support and that they did not represent the overwhelming majority of Tripolitanians, and hence were forced to bus their supporters into Martyr Square.
” Unfortunately, every citizen understands these actions that indicate the narrow-mindedness. Right will prevail over wrong”, Thinni proclaimed, painting a picture to his audience of his good versus Libya Dawn’s evil.
“I would like to salute the Libyan people, who have suffered a lot and salvation is coming soon. The people of Tripoli should be prepared to rally with the army to eliminate the dens of these (military and terrorist) groups. They should prepare for the defense of their city with their head held high”, he said in what sounded like a rallying call for his supporters in Tripoli.
“There will not be an assault on their property, as had happened when the groups that are called Libya Dawn did”, Prime Minister Thinni said, contrasting his “right” with that of Libya Dawn’s “wrong”.
“In the coming days Libya Dawn’s crimes will be revealed in front of everyone and they will be held accountable with all certainly. Victory is coming, God willing”, promised Thinni.
” They (Libya Dawn) should recall that after 42 years of injustice, (Qaddafi’s) tyranny ended in moments. God willing, the Libyan people will destroy them. They should not dream of imposing their will on the Libyan people in this way. For it is like Satan’s dream in Paradise”, concluded the seemingly newly empowered Prime Minister. [/restrict]
