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Books on Libya
REPUBLICAN REFERENCE
Area (sq.km)
1,759,540
Population
5,499,074
Capital
Tripoli
Currency
Libyan dinar
Leader
Col Mu'amar al-Qadhafi
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Update No: 028 - (28/02/06)
Italy, Libya's Open Wound?
Since the Italian colonization of 1911 -1943 ended, Libya has typically
maintained a love-hate relationship with Italy. Many Italians stayed after World
War II; in 1969 after the Qadhafi led coup or 'Revolution' of September 1st,
Italians (and others) were forced to leave, but many Libyans have retained
aspects of their former Italian colonizers from pasta to cappuccino, to the fact
that as late as the 1980'sLibya still owned some 15% of Fiat's shares. In 1986,
Italy refused to allow US bombers to take off from its air bases to strike
Tripoli and Benghazi, as president Reagan used an aerial attack in retaliation
for a terror attack attributed to Libyan terrorists. If Libya has benefited from
the cosiness that comes from the shared history and geography, so has Italy
gained access to strategic oil and gas reserves even at the height of the
sanctions in the 1990's. Against this historical and economic background of
intertwined interests, the image of an Italian minister, Roberto Calderoli
declaring his commitment to 'free speech' by wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with
one of the infamous caricatures of Muhammad that had fuelled the anger of
Muslims worldwide sparked an unprecedented anti-Italian protest in Benghazi.
Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini was concerned that the protests against Italy
would spread and that the country might become the target of an economic boycott
in the way that Denmark did - Libya closed its embassy in protest over the
cartoons - where the caricatures originated, lost hundreds of millions of
dollars in sales to countries in the Middle East.
Calderoli's gesture, was especially insensitive - or plain reckless - as it came
well after the world had witnessed the extent of the controversy of the
caricatures first published by the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, and then
reprinted by mostly right-wing publications elsewhere, as the Danish embassy was
attacked in Damascus and Beirut. If Calderoli, had not aimed for Libya
specifically, it should not come as a surprise that the reaction came from
Libya, whose colonial experience was under Italy. However, contrary to the
explanations proffered by several Italian political figures, both in government
and in opposition such as Gianfranco Fini or Emma Bonino respectively, the
demonstrations in front of the Italian consulate in Benghazi were hardly a
Libyan government orchestrated response to signal displeasure with the Italian
government. Indeed, even if there is little that resembles an organized
opposition, the 'caricatures' protests, represent something more insidious in
the long run. At least 11 people were killed by government police and more than
60 others wounded on Friday February 17 - and led to the forced resignations of
the Italian minister Calderoli and the Libyan interior minister Nasser al-Mabrouk
Abdallah - may have started as a staged protest by the authorities against the
blasphemous caricatures, but they soon turned into an unscripted one against
Qadhafi's rule. Calderoli's televised t-shirt stunt, merely provided the excuse
and the venue (Italian consulate) for a protest that has long been building
against the Qadhafi regime itself. There were no protests in Tripoli, and even
the Italian consulate staff and other Italian businesspersons taken to safety by
Libyan authorities, said that they were never threatened directly.
A History of Opposition
Benghazi and the region of Cyrenaica have traditionally been a centre of
opposition to the rule of the Qadhafi regime. The Sanusi monarchy deposed by
Qadhafi's 1969 revolution originated in Cyrenaica. Philip Luther, at
London-based Amnesty indicated that the protests might also have spread to the
eastern cities of Darnah and Tobruk. Ironically, just last month Human Rights
Watch issued a report suggesting human rights in Libya were improving, but this
event will surely raise the authorities' controls in the Benghazi area.
Surprisingly, however, Qadhafi dismissed his interior minister, Nasr al-Mabrouk,
and Benghazi police officials, because he claimed they used 'disproportionate
force' to stop the riots. Police launched teargas grenades and opened fire with
live ammunition on the 1,000 demonstrators, some of whom had overwhelmed
security forces to storm the consulate building and set it on fire. Similar
riots have taken place even after something as ordinary as a soccer game.
Notably on July 14, 1996 when a riot at a soccer match involving a team
controlled by a son of Libyan leader Qadhafi killed or injured up to 50 people.
No exact figures were reported in the Libyan-controlled press, but the riot
started after some fans started shouting anti-Qadhafi slogans during a summer
when the leader faced a series of attempts on his life. Such incidents in the
recent past give credibility to reports suggesting the Danish cartoons gave
religious fanatics and unorganized opposition elements an excuse to challenge
the government. In an interview with the Italian daily newspaper La Stampa,
Ambassador Francesco Trupiano said, "the situation can precipitate any
minute. "In Benghazi, Islamic radicalism has joined forces with domestic
opposition." He based this on accounts from Libyan witnesses, who said the
anger over the caricatures developed into general unrest over the political and
economic neglect of Benghazi residents.
How Will Italian - Libyan Relations Develop after the Incident?
Nevertheless, it is too early to tell if the promise of continued good
relations between Italy and Libya will proceed unharmed by the incident.
Berlusconi spoke to Qadhafi on the phone, and the conversation was said to be
cordial. However, if the instigator Calderoli, Minister of Reforms, was asked to
resign, the speaker of the senate Pera was one of several Italian government
leaders, who insisted on portraying the riots in Benghazi against the Italian
consulate as a wider problem between Islam and the West. He has made very public
comments to this effect, which could potentially unravel the close but delicate
relations that Italy and Libya have had since the post World War II period.
Thanks to that diplomacy, which always stayed away from the larger international
controversies such as the 1986 bombing, allowed Italy to benefit as Libya's main
trading partner. There are some 50 Italian companies doing business in Libya
from construction to oil exploration. Despite the Libyan government's
commemoration of some of the more tragic episodes of the Italian occupation -
during which time Libya cuts itself off from the world by shutting down
telecommunications and borders - and repeated and unresolved demands for Italy
to pay compensation for its occupation, Libya and Italy enjoy good relations at
the personal level from business to business. Pera's comments and the current
tensions might not produce political damage, but they could harm the
interpersonal advantage that many Italians enjoyed in doing business in Libya.
Italy also needs good relations with Libya to help reduce the inflow of illegal
immigrants, for which Italy promised to sell Libya new vehicles to patrol the
desert as well as new coast guard vessels. At a more general level, the riots
also indicate that the discontent in Benghazi and northeastern Libya in general,
that was more evident in the sanctions burdened nineties and low-oil price
eighties, has not gone away and that the Libyan glasnost has not been
accompanies by an economic 'perestroika'. The case of the Bulgarian nurses, who
are still in jail, has also become clearer in the context of the Benghazi
revolt. The Libyan government is clearly stalling the release of the nurses,
because it fears a reaction not unlike what was witnessed in front of the
Italian consulate in February. However, the fact that the interior minister was
suspended over the use of a heavy hand in quelling the riots also suggests that
Libya, at least at the leadership level, is serious about changing some of the
more draconian aspects of its rule. How Qadhafi deals with the potential for a
renewed Islamic challenge in Cyrenaica will be an interesting test to measure
the willingness to change in Libya over the next months.
Oil sector
Repsol YPF has made six other discoveries in the resourceful block in the
Murzuq basin, in which it has a 32% stake, in partnership with the Libyan
National Oil Company (NOC) and three European companies: OMV (Austria), Total
(France) and Hydro (Norway). Production has started at two of these discoveries
in the past two years, reaching 48,000 bpd, respectively. In 2005, Repsol YPF
operated production in Libya totalled 240,500 bpd, and net production totalled
25,100 bpd. Repsol YPF is the main operator in Libya, second only to the
state-owned company, NOC. The Murzuq basin, 800 km south of Tripoli, is one of
the most profitable for Repsol YPF. Production began in December 1996 at the El
Sharara fields, situated in block NC115. These fields produce some 200,000 bpd
of high quality light crude oil per day. Repsol YPF has exploration rights to 15
blocks are for exploration, with a net area of 65,517 square kilometres.
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