By Sami Zaptia.
London, 10 December 2020:
A group of seven Libyan NGOs and 60 individuals have called on the House of Representatives (HoR) to respect the 2011 Transitional Constitutional Declaration (TCD) as the sole source of Libyan legitimacy during the ongoing UNSMIL-brokered Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF).
Lobbying the HoR as one of the parties participating in the LPDF, the group yesterday reminded them that they must ‘‘preserve its identity as the last elected legitimate institution in the country, and as a national establishment that can be coherent in order to contribute to the nation’s crossing of this stage towards the prospective democratization path’’.
The group said they believe that the “Roadmap for the Preliminary Stage: The Comprehensive Solution”, published by UNSMIL as an outcome of the LPDF talks ‘‘is a breach (of the TCD) and must be amended for the following two reasons:
(1) – The aforementioned document neglects the interim Constitutional Declaration on the basis of which you were elected, and you passed legislations accordingly.
(2) – The above-mentioned document made the Libyan Political Agreement a constitutional framework as stated in Article 7 therein, entitled (Legal Framework for the Road Map), which states: “The outcomes of the political dialogue, combined, are considered as an additional agreement to the Libyan Political Agreement signed in Skhirat in December, 2015, and constitutionally included, which means “excluding the existing Constitutional Declaration,” which is the country’s transitional constitution until a permanent constitution is issued.
For this purpose, we call on you to adhere to the TCD as the sole source of legitimacy in Libya, which has established, accompanied, and consolidated your existence; and this situation still exists. You must not replace the TCD, or bypass it, without constitutional procedures that authorize you to do so. We also hold you responsible for preserving the unity of Libya and its sovereignty and the rejection of the presence of any foreign forces or mercenaries on Libyan soil’’, concluded the lobbying statement addressed to the eastern-based HoR.
UNSMIL calls for virtual meeting of LPDF tomorrow | (libyaherald.com)
