By Libya Herald reporters.
Tunis, 2 February 2016:
The Constitutional Drafting Assembly has not thrown in the towel through lack of agreement, a . . .[restrict]senior member said today.
He told this newspaper that reports that the CDA had decided to suspend its work because of deep divisions, were incorrect. He added that a press conference was due to be held tomorrow in Beida where an update on its work was due to be given.
Nevertheless it is clear that the assembly is not yet close to the unanimity that its chairman Ali Tarhouni predicted before it gathered in Ghadames last October. At the time he said that only one of the 211 articles had yet to be resolved. In the event not enough members turned up to allow the meeting, in a large marquee, to make a decision.
One key area of discord has revolved around Tebu and Tuareg claims for stronger recognition of their languages and cultures. The Amazigh have boycotted the CDA from the outset and have no members.
Meanwhile Tarhouni’s own position has come under attack. Three members, who have been working with him since the CDA’s start in April 2013, have now taken exception to what they claim is his US as well as Libyan citizenship.
Daw Al-Mansouri, one of the six Tripoli members, has launched an action in the Beida Appeals Court on the basis that Libyan law bars individuals with dual nationality from holding public office. The court is due to deliver its verdict later this month. [/restrict]
