Advocating Constitutional Democracy in Libya
March 9, 2009
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon
Re: UN-Libya Relations Past and Present
Dear General Secretary:
The American Libyan Freedom Alliance (ALFA) was founded on September 29, 2003, and registered in the State of Virginia. Its primary mission is to promote human rights and democracy in Libya through advocacy and education.
The United Nations had actively participated in authoring Libya’s 1951 constitution, which was initiated on October 1949, and concluded on October 7, 1951. Soon afterwards, the United Nations General Assembly’s voted to grant Libya its independence on December 24, 1951. Given such unprecedented UN involvement in Libya’s creation, the country could justifiably be described as a UN legitimate child. Libya continued its development into a constitutional monarchy as stipulated in the second article of its 1951constitution. (Article2: Libya is a State having a hereditary monarchy, and its system of Government is representative. Its name is "THE KINGDOM OF LIBYA".)
Since Libya gained its independence soon after World War II, after major battles were fought on its soil, the country had to contend with devastations of war, and extreme poverty due to lack of natural resources. However, despite the harsh prevailing reality of its beginning, Libya made significant advances in rebuilding its shattered infrastructure, health, education, and other vital services of civil society. The discovery of oil and development of its export at commercial levels at the early 60’s had enabled Libya to expedite all of its programs of development at phenomenal rate; this frantic development continued until a military coup on September1, 1969 halted all developments in all aspects of life.
The military coup was led by Muammar Gaddafi and a handful of junior officers in the army. The military coup was not merely an assault on Libyan civil society, but also on UN legitimacy, which had created Libya as an independent nation and helped write its constitution. Now, representatives of that dictatorial regime are treated with all fanfare afforded to credible nations, with freely elected governments. Such an acceptance of Gaddafi by the United Nations undermines the credibility of the UN, and shows its lack of resolve in defending the integrity of member nations, even when it comes to a nation that it had helped to create. Dictators, such as Gaddafi, should not be afforded a seat at the United Nations, since they are never representative of their people. We ask that the UN undertakes all necessary steps to restore Libya’s constitutional monarchy as envisaged in Libya’s 1951 Constitution.
Sincerely,
Mohamed M. Bugaighis, Chairman
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ALFA, P.O. Box 22262, Lehigh Valley, PA 18002, USA; website: http://www.alfa-online.net
Telephone: 610 703 1382, e-mail: info@alfa-online.net