The present escalation of events in nearby Libya is, unfortunately, bringing out a clear common denominator among different European states and the US: greed for money and business concerns that always prevail over the defence of basic human rights.
According to an Associated Press article, Tony Blair’s role in 2004 was particularly vital in Muammar Gaddafi’s international rehabilitation, so much so that after praising the Colonel in his Bedouin tent, Britain ended up selling “Libya about £40 million ($55 million) worth of military and paramilitary equipment in the year ending September 30, 2010, according to Foreign Office statistics. Among the items: sniper rifles, bulletproof vehicles, crowd control ammunition and tear gas”.
According to the same AP report: “The Bush Administration approved the sale of $3 million of materials to Libya in 2006 and $5.3 million in 2007. In 2008, Libya was allowed to import $46 million in armaments from the US. The approved goods included nearly 400 shipments of explosive and incendiary materials, 25,000 aircraft parts, 56,000 military electronic components and nearly 1,000 items of optical targeting and other guidance equipment”.
Germany was not immune to the siren call of money. In 2004, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder inaugurated an oil well operated by the German Company Winterstall in the Maghreb country.
Not to be outdone, France’s Nicolas Sarkozy rushed to Libya in 2008 to sell nuclear technology to Col Gaddafi, technology that was supposed to come in handy for the building of a reverse osmosis plant.
Even Italy, that imports 60 per cent of its oil and 40 per cent of its gas requirements from Libya, succumbed to the Gaddafi blackmail in 2008 and this soon after Silvio Berlusconi was re-elected Prime Minister in 2008. Mr Berlusconi pledged to pay the Gaddafi regime €250 million a year for 20 years in exchange for handing over to the brutal regime all refugees fleeing in search of political asylum in Europe.
Now that Col Gaddafi, his son Saif and their entourage have declared publicly they are prepared to die as martyrs, utilising the last bullet in Libyan possession and shedding the last drop of Libyan blood in the process, all the major European stateswomen/men have scrambled to freeze the assets of the Gaddafi family and entourage and also all weapons’ exports to Libya. Unfortunately, however, the Gaddafi horses have now already bolted.
This crisis has also exposed the doublespeak nearer home. Col Gaddafi was one of the first leaders Joseph Muscat rushed off to visit soon after his election as Labour Party leader. A second visit of a strong contingent of “moderates and progressives” (sic!), courtesy of the private plane provided by the Libyan government and leader, was held last summer.
Not to be outdone by their Labour opponent, with Egypt and Tunisia burning and with a “Day of Shame” already announced in Libya, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and his Foreign Minister gave us a taste of their perfect timing and intuition by rushing to Libya on February 9 to meet Col Gaddafi, thus helping to give him a vestige of credibility in the process.
It took some time for the Prime Minister to state openly that Col Gaddafi does not respect basic human rights. This clear condemnation, though late, did arrive on February 27. On the other hand, the PL has to date not condemned Col Gaddafi. Indeed, while condemning the violence in Libya, after much dilly-dallying, it has failed to condemn the perpetrator of this violence and mention him by name.
Why was the Nationalist Party and PL condemnation late in coming? Have any of the two political parties received any aid from Col Gaddafi? Have any of their politicians? European Commissioner John Dalli has openly admitted he had “established a strong network at the political and executive levels of that country”. Mosta-based Labour candidate Joe Sammut was mentioned by The New York Post as the man who handled thousands of dollars on behalf of Mutassim Gaddafi. At least, these are open secrets. Are there other hidden ones?
In 2008 and 2009, we at Alternattiva Demokratika were the only politicians not to sell our basic principles when we denounced the sending back of refugee seekers into the claws of Col Gaddafi. We paid for our principled stand dearly in the June 2009 European election. What did others say? In the same period, Dr Muscat was fully supportive of sending the refugee seekers back to the Gaddafi regime. He even went as far as to say he was ready to suspend Malta’s human rights obligations as per the Geneva Convention. What a true progressive!
In 2005, Deputy Prime Minister Tonio Borg was quoted by the Financial Times as considering suspending Malta’s international obligations. The report was denied by Dr Borg... in MaltaToday.
As for MEP Simon Busuttil, in 2008, he rightly wrote that “populist statements to the effect that we must refuse entry to illegal immigrants or that we should push back their boats to the point of departure knowing full well that Libya is not accepting them, are very dangerous by far.
And when put in the context that not doing so would betray our national interest these statements become truly inflammatory”. But, then, in the September 2010 radio interview, in order to justify Mr Berlusconi’s pushback policy, the Prime Minister said conditions inside Libyan detention centres, “as witnessed by an MEPs delegation led by Simon Busuttil, are not entirely bad”. In 2010, Dr Busuttil reported to his party leader that detention centres in Libya must have some few good things. What changed his opinion regarding the treatment of migrants by the Gaddafi regime? And why has this version changed again in the space of six months, with Dr Busuttil now correctly writing: “one cannot remain neutral in the face of senseless violence. One cannot remain neutral and non-aligned in the face of massacres and genocide. One cannot be neutral between right and wrong”. Is it possible that six months ago it was not clear to one and all that Col Gaddafi’s political history has always been synonymous with senseless violence, massacres and wrongdoing?
In view of all that is happening, it should become clear to one and all that the imposition of tough conditions with regard to the respect of social, civil, political rights etc. should be entrenched as a strong precondition imposed by the EU and the US on any country before conducting any business transaction.
Hopefully, this tragedy the Libyans are living will bring politicians to their senses and teach business people to be careful with the zeros on their invoices.
arnoldcassola@gmail.com
Prof. Cassola is EU and international affairs spokesman of Alternattiva-Demokratika – the Green party.