Two delegates from the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council were in Malta to meet with government officials and Libyan nationals. They spoke to Kurt Sansone about Libya’s post-Gaddafi future.

Sitting around a coffee table in the lobby of the Excelsior Hotel overlooking Manoel Island, Khaled* asks to be interviewed about the lovely weather outside.

His serious look instantly breaks into a smile. Talking about the weather would be a welcome distraction from the turmoil facing Libya as the “war of liberation”, as he puts it, rages on.

He asks not to be named. “Just say we are two delegates from the Transitional National Council,” Khaled says, pointing to another delegate who sits silently in front of him.

In a Libya that is still trying to come to terms with the end of a regime that has so far refused to budge, security remains a major concern and although theboundaries of fear have been breached, extreme caution conditions the actions of those who want freedom.

Khaled and his colleague arrived in Malta aboard a humanitarian flight from Benghazi that brought over a number of Libyan children requiring medical treatment.

Their efforts are part of the wider diplomatic exercise undertaken by the TNC to gain international legitimacy and be recognised as the sole representative of the Libyan people.

But as the diplomatic effort, both visible and invisible, continues, the situation in Libya is gridlocked and has been so for more than three months since Nato started bombing military installations of the regime.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi remains in control in the capital Tripoli, the coastal city of Sirte and parts of the west while the rebels control the east and more recently vast swathes of oil producing areas in the west.

Khaled is not disheartened by the situation and insists Col. Gaddafi has nowhere to go as the noose tightens around him and his family. He is confident the dictator, who is wanted for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, can be deposed without the help of foreign soldiers on Libyan soil.

“Even the Libyan people by themselves can make it and it is only a matter of days before Gaddafi goes. My advice to those around Gaddafi is to take decisive action now before it is too late. You can calm down an individual who acts in a mad way but you cannot stop a mass of people. I ask them to come to their senses and try to find an exit strategy before it is too late,” he says.

The feeling of retribution gives way to a sense of justice when asked whether the national council wanted to put Col. Gaddafi on trial in Libya.

“The International Criminal Court has decided to bring Gaddafi to trial. The TNC and the Libyan people would like to adhere to international laws and respect whatever the international community has decided,” he says.

There is no place in Libya for Col. Gaddafi and his family, he adds, insisting this was made clear from day one by the national council.

Khaled says that every Libyan family has experienced suffering at the hands of the regime and those around Col. Gaddafi are possibly best-placed to know the capability of the state apparatus to terrorise people.

“It is this knowledge that possibly prevents them from detaching themselves from the regime,” he says, urging those supporting the Libyan leader to rejoin the people.

The same message is addressed to the Libyan ambassador in Malta. Unlike embassies in other parts of the world, the Libyan embassy in Malta still flies the all-green Libyan flag but Khaled’s tone is conciliatory.

“We urge all diplomats to think clearly and side with the people: their future and that of their children and society lies with the aspirations of the people. We welcome those who have not yet made up their mind. The TNC and the Libyan people have a big heart and will welcome with open arms anyone who repents and returns to his own people.”

Khaled says that Libyans are clamouring for freedom and democracy and the national council is promising “a gentle Libya” at peace with the world community and where everybody can prosper and flourish.

“Gaddafi has caused bloodshed beyond any limit. This is not a war between Libya and Gaddafi, it is a war between humanity and inhumanity,” he says.

But is the national council a platform for extremists?

Khaled smiles and insists extremism has always been Col. Gaddafi’s excuse to justify brutality.

“Gaddafi was the man behind extremism and terrorism in the world. Countries that fear Libya might drift towards extremism should first look inward to come to terms with their own fears and then reach out. There is no extremism in Libya,” he says.

The national council, which groups together politicians, businessmen, community leaders and technocrats from various parts of Libya, has only been recognised as Libya’s alternative government by a handful of countries.

Malta took the first step to recognise the council as the sole interlocutor but has not yet cut off all contact with the regime.

Khaled is very appreciative of Malta’s actions so far, including the solidarity it has shown with the people by aiding the humanitarian efforts, and promises that gestures like these will not be forgotten.

However, he says it would be very much appreciated if Malta went a step further and recognised the council as an alternative government.

“It would bring people closer and strengthen the relations between both countries. Malta is a front yard to Libya and it cannot be at its best without having a good peaceful relationship with Libya behind it,” Khaled says.

Migration has often been used as a pawn by Col. Gaddafi to threaten Europe into accepting his terms and cooperation to stem illegalities has only been bought at a hefty price by the Italians.

Col. Gaddafi’s past declarations have often given rise to speculation, some of it founded in fact, that the regime itself was organising migrant boatloads to cross the Mediterranean towards Europe.

Will things be any different in a post-Gaddafi Libya?

“We have to tackle the root cause of the problem, which is poverty in Africa. Europe and Malta have a duty to help Africans raise their standard of living. People living in poverty can be exploited and this is what Gaddafi had been doing by trying to manipulate Europe for his own ego,” Khaled says.

The national council, he says, assures the EU and Malta that they are on their side to bring an end to a dramatic phenomenon that has claimed the lives of many Africans.

Before setting off to meet a number of Libyan businessmen, Khaled says that oil operations in the west of the country are functional.

“We encourage investors to come back to Libya. We will give priority to those who stood by the Libyan people, including the Maltese,” he says in what sounds like a marketing pitch to lure businesses back to a country striving for a future where any discussion on the weather will not be a distraction from war.

*Name changed to protect the interviewee’s identity.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com