Why Qaddafi Has Already Lost

Category: Middle East, World Affairs Topics: Conflicts And War, Libya, Muammar Gaddafi Channel: Opinion Views: 3948
3948

The fight is not over. Whether or not Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi defeats the rebels in eastern Libya, any legitimacy he once had has been extinguished. He has weapons, tanks and planes, but he has lost the allegiance of even those elements of Libyan society that had once been willing to wait and hope for political reform. His base of support is now only diehard allies and foreign mercenaries. They might win on the battlefield, but they will lose in the end. 

The uprisings in neighboring Tunisia and Egypt were precipitating events, but the resistance has drawn its core motivation from Libya's brutal experience of colonialism. What is most striking about the rhetoric of the rebellion is how the anticolonialist theme that Colonel Qaddafi once deployed has now been turned against him and is being used on Twitter and Facebook. Even as they are assaulted by Colonel Qaddafi's forces, the rebels have resisted calling for forceful Western intervention, though they support the imposition of a no-flight zone. 

Libya's history explains why. From 1911 to 1943, half a million Libyans died under Italian rule, including 60,000 in concentration camps run by the fascists. Colonel Qaddafi's nationalist populism is rooted in the traumas of the colonial era, which were papered over during the modernizing but out-of-touch monarchy that ruled from 1951 to 1969. 

The regime that came into existence in a bloodless coup in 1969 was led by officers who came from lower-middle-class backgrounds, represented all three regions of Libya and had the backing of a population that was largely rural. Although it was anticolonialist and anticommunist and advocated Arab nationalism and Islamic cultural identity, the new government did not have a clearly delineated political agenda; instead it looked for guidance from the 1952 Egyptian revolution. To this ideological mix the Qaddafi faction, which consolidated power in 1976, added its vision of an indigenous, pastoral, socialist society supported by oil revenues and the labor of workers from abroad. 

Western analysts focused on the leader's cult of personality and eccentric style have often misinterpreted his regime as a historical aberration. In fact, it was rooted in the hinterland of south-central Libya, with its pan-Islamic culture, kinship networks, fear of the central state and mistrust of the West. Colonel Qaddafi transformed anticolonialism and Libyan nationalism into a revolutionary ideology, using language understood by ordinary Libyans. He employed his charisma to mobilize Libyans and attack his opponents. He spoke, ate and dressed like a rural tribesman. 

But "tribalism," so frequently mentioned in coverage of the revolt, is not a timeless feature of Libyan society. It was merely one facet of Colonel Qaddafi's divide-and-conquer style of rule. To weaken opposition from students, intellectuals and the middle class, the regime pursued a policy of "Bedouinization," attacking urban culture; promoting rural dress, music, festivals and rituals; and reviving institutions like tribal leadership councils. Tripoli, the capital, lost much of its cosmopolitan character even as it grew. 

In its first two decades, the revolution brought many benefits to ordinary Libyans: widespread literacy, free medical care and education, and improvements in living conditions. Women in particular benefited, becoming ministers, ambassadors, pilots, judges and doctors. The government got wide support from the lower and middle classes. 

But starting in the 1980s, excessive centralization, greater repression by security forces and a decline in the rule of law undermined the experiment in indigenous populism. Institutions like courts, universities, unions and hospitals weakened. Civic associations that had made Libyan society seem more democratic than many Persian Gulf states in the 1970s withered or were eliminated. A hostile international climate, and fluctuations in oil revenues, added to the pressures on the regime. 

It responded by transforming its rituals of hero-worship into a rhetoric of pan-African ideology. It also turned to violence. After repeated coup attempts, it beat, imprisoned and exiled dissidents. It staffed security forces with reliable relatives and allies from central and southern Libya. During the 1990s, as economic sanctions took their toll, health care and education deteriorated, unemployment soared, the economy became ever more dependent on oil and the regime grew increasingly corrupt. 

But what has escaped notice since the rebellion began in mid-February is the demographic transformation that made it possible. About 80 percent of Libyans now live in urban areas, towns and cities. Libya today has a modern economy and a high literacy rate. The leaders of the uprising include lawyers, judges, journalists, writers, scholars, women's rights activists, former army officers and diplomats - a sizable urban elite that is battered and restive. 

Had Colonel Qaddafi responded with openness to the calls for reform and not overreacted to the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, the urban elite might have been placated, and the violent rebellion avoided. He blew it. Once his army and police shot at protesters, the pent-up disaffection of Libyan society was unleashed, and it is too late for the regime to bottle it up. In recent weeks the revolt has even gained support from the historically pro-Qaddafi rural populace. No matter how much blood is shed today, the uprising will not be stopped. 

*****

Ali Abdullatif Ahmida, a professor of political science at the University of New England, is the author of "The Making of Modern Libya: State Formation, Colonization and Resistance, 1830-1932."

Source: New York Times


  Category: Middle East, World Affairs
  Topics: Conflicts And War, Libya, Muammar Gaddafi  Channel: Opinion
Views: 3948

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Older Comments:
STU FROM AUSTRALIA said:
well the no fly zone would soon be enforced. It would return Libya as isolated as it was 10 years ago, but this time it is different as there is and will continue to be civil war.

Perhaps an senario would be for Lybia would turn into an failed state like Somalia.
2011-03-21

LEENA FROM USA said:
Thank you Sabeena. You are absolutely right. you expressed the feelings that I have in my heart.
2011-03-20

SABEENA FROM INDIA said:
Who started the rebellion. any body knows all of sudden even though libyan leader may not be normal he still gave stability and security in the country from american israeli or iranian invasion for sure. So many indians and pkiatsni who worked in libya that we know of never said nothing bad about the ruling goverment and were satified. This rebllion is to make it unstable in the region so that israeli invaison which was supposed to start in 2010 would start soon and engulf the whole arab world and make arabs merely slaves of the pharoah this destabilistaion is done by the famous facebook which initself is fitnah for facebook f for fitnah you think the man who owns it zuckerberg who is orthodox jew will support muslims fairly muslims in the present arab world who are protesting are the biggest fools in the world and they will pay heavy price at hands of colonial invaders at the momet another iraq in the making with millions of children homeless or orphaned . and more american charties makeing money out of them . and the woldd watching in disguise rest of the arabs in muslim countries go about doing their daily business of buying the most expensive western clothes merchnadise continueto watch shameless televison on programs from arabiccountries until their turn comes next do you know what I am getting at yes the emman of muslims in arab countries has become very weak not that gaddafi is spiritual but . according to the laws of almighty as ong as the leader allows you to practice islam withoutrestrictions do not overthrow him even if he is a oppressor in other ways . because the people who will not allow you to practice Islam like france whose first lady is nude model , whose leader is womaniser, and britains and US and so..on.
I have lived in arb world and i am deeply shocked at the actions of the common people. they try to imitate the west in all wrong waysand end up in distater losing their homes and land and familiies how stupid they ar, muslim from INDOPak
2011-03-19

RIDWAN KOLAWOLE FROM NIGERIA said:
I am not saying that Col Al-Qaddafi should not leave in at least for peace to reign in the country I have held in relatively high esteem. But anti Qaddafi government should also be wear of external interests which may prevail over the internal ones after the exit of Qaddafi. In my own country that has witnessed series of change in government (millatary, civilian) and pseudo-civilian (interim government), the level of illiteracy among the adults alone is about 61%, the economy is dwindling, thepower supply is more than epileptic, our hospitals are less functioning, education is less taken care of, roads are death traps- many die on daily basis and no water runs in both cities and rural areas! The reality is that Nigeria is stil refered to as the Giant of Africa.
2011-03-19