Speaking at a Youth Forum held in his city of Misrata yesterday, Tripoli based Libyan prime minister, Abdel Hamid Aldabaiba, distanced himself from the comments made recently by his Interior Minister about adopting a hard line on enforcing public morals.
Trabelsi, it will be recalled, had warned in an official speech that couples found sitting together in public places, such as cafes, who were not related to each other, would be detained. The statement caused a public storm and was interpreted as the new adoption of a hard line (Morality Police) by the Aldabaiba government.
Aldabaiba made it clear that there is no need for new policy on the enforcement of public morals as the overwhelming majority of Libyans are conservative by nature.
Incorporating youth and militias
On incorporating youth and militias into society and government, Aldabaiba said he appointed Libyan sons who were previously militia leaders to positions of responsibility in order to supervise/guide them. This, he explained, after he found that their goal is to defend the country and fight crime. He said it needs/needed ten years for these militias to return to their bases (DDR).
Trabelsi: from militia leader to Interior Minister
Aldabaiba said the Minister of Interior, Imad Trabelsi, was a militia leader, and today he is the Minister of Interior with responsibility ensuring safety and security, and has other advantages in maintaining security.
Minister spoke out of turn
However, he said the Minister of the Interior went too far in “chattering” about public morals, and this provoked an empty public whirlwind (of debate). By this, Aldabaiba wanted to clearly signal that the Interior Minister was simply ‘‘chattering’’ and not announcing a new policy line by the Tripoli government.
Libyans are naturally conservative
To justify this Aldabaiba said ‘‘We (Libya) are a conservative society, and this conservatism came from every Libyan home and mother – not by whip or fear (force or coercion)’’.
Staying onside with the conservatives in Libya, Aldabaiba stressed that ‘‘We are against those who try to corrupt public taste or morals’’, but made it clear that ‘‘we will not activate the (morality) police for the ‘‘promotion of virtue and the prevention of vice’’ (Enjoining the good and forbidding the evil). We are far from (the need for) that, and we are with public freedoms and rights’’.
He assured that the new decree on public morals does not affect freedoms and liberties. It is there to fight those who want to introduce forbidden materials or behaviour such as (alcohol, drugs) sorcery. Aldabaiba stressed that the public should focus on what is said in the decree – implying not what his Interior Minister had said or implied.
The Islamic morality police
The ‘‘police’’ for the ‘‘promotion of virtue and the prevention of vice’’ is the proactive public morals police that exists in some Gulf states and Iran, for example. These Morality Police tour towns and cities and will use force such as batons or whips to strike at (usually women) those who are not modestly dressed or uncover their hair or not sufficiently segregated from the male sex in public places. This included sitting at cafes, restaurants with males who are not relatives.
Religious justification
This morality police takes its justification for its actions from the prescription in the Quran of ‘‘enjoining the good and forbidding the evil’’. This is interpreted by the more conservative believers as a duty by Muslims and their state to proactively encourage good behaviour and forbid what is perceived as evil behaviour such as allowing unrelated males and females to publicly socialise. Those males and females who publicly socialise are not deemed to be free to do what they want in the public sphere if it conflicts with perceived public morals.
In Libya the wearing of the hijab or niqab is not compulsory
In Libya, there has been no law, or at least enforcement, of the wearing of the hijab or niqab. Women overwhelmingly dress conservatively by choice/social or public pressure. In general, they are much more conservative than Tunisia but less conservative than the Gulf states. For example, they will not swim in a public beach in a bikini.
The Libyan state does not participate proactively, officially anyway, in enforcing this. There are many conservatives in Libya who are not happy with what they see as the government’s liberal approach to this. They are unhappy with the culture of cafes and restaurants as well as various cultural and social events where the sexes are not segregated.
