Government Under Qadaffi
Libya's political system had been theoretically based on the political philosophy in Qadhafi's Green Book, which combines socialist and Islamic theories and rejects parliamentary democracy and political parties. In reality, Qadhafi exercises near total control over the government.
For the first 7 years following the revolution, Colonel Qadhafi and 12 fellow army officers, the Revolutionary Command Council, began a complete overhaul of Libya's political system, society, and economy. On March 3, 1977, Qadhafi convened a General People's Congress (GPC) to proclaim the establishment of "people's power," change the country's name to the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, and to vest, theoretically, primary authority in the GPC. Qadhafi remained the de facto chief of state and secretary general of the GPC until 1980, when he gave up his office. He continues to control all aspects of the Libyan Government through direct appeals to the masses, a pervasive security apparatus, and powerful revolutionary committees. Although he holds no formal office, Qadhafi exercises absolute power with the assistance of a small group of trusted advisers, who include relatives from his home base in the Surt region, which lies between the rival provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica.
The Libyan court system consisted of four levels: summary courts, which tried petty offenses, the courts of first instance, which try more serious crimes; the courts of appeals, and the Supreme Court, which is the final appellate level. The GPC appoints justices to the Supreme Court. Special "revolutionary courts" and military courts operate outside the court system to try political offenses and crimes against the state. Libya's justice system is nominally based on Sharia law.
After the revolution, Qadhafi took increasing control of the government, but he also attempted to achieve greater popular participation in local government. In 1973, he announced the start of a "cultural revolution" in schools, businesses, industries, and public institutions to oversee administration of those organizations in the public interest. The March 1977 establishment of "people's power"--with mandatory popular participation in the selection of representatives to the GPC--was the culmination of this process.
The GPC was the legislative forum that interacts with the General People's Committee, whose members are secretaries of Libyan ministries. It serves as the intermediary between the masses and the leadership and is composed of the secretariats of some 600 local "basic popular congresses."
The GPC secretariat and the cabinet secretaries were appointed by the GPC secretary general and confirmed by the annual GPC congress. These cabinet secretaries were responsible for the routine operation of their ministries, but Qadhafi exercises real authority directly or through manipulation of the peoples and revolutionary committees.
Since 1998, Qadhafi set up new structures such as the "Popular and Social Commands" and, more recently, the chaabiyyates (town councils). Present in every region of Libya, the Popular and Social Commands were partly made up of tribal leaders. There were the focus of a new elite which played no role in the repression of Islamic fundamentalists between 1995 and 1998. This strata did not benefit from the embargo, and was poised to promote reconstruction once the embargo had been lifted. This new political instrument also responded to the hold on decision-making processes by religious confederacies, or zaouïas (Warfallas, Magherba and, of course, Qadhafiyya) which were close to Qadhafi. The Popular Commands broadened the tribal front supporting the government. This institutionalization of tribal power by the commands marked the end of the revolutionary period.
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