"Qaddafi
in prison and on trial would likely have given him every opportunity to continue
to incite unrest and confusion. In the end he would probably have adjusted to
his role as defendant and would have used the dock as a platform for his
infamous speeches. A quick glance at neighboring Egypt, where Hosni Mubarak's trial
has been stumbling along for months, should be warning enough."
First, the death Muammar al-Qaddafi
is sufficient cause for a party. It is to be hoped that this will reinvigorate
the Arab Spring.
No sooner had Libyan
television confirmed the news than gunshots rang out in Tripoli, and in
Benghazi, people flocked together. General Muammar al Qaddafi is dead. In Libya
and many cities around the Arab world, people celebrated. And rightly so. The
end of the Qaddafi era is cause for jubilation for everyone in the region. Or
perhaps we should say, almost everyone.
For Bashar al-Assad, Ali Abdullah Saleh and
other Arab leaders of the old school that remain in power, this is a black day.
It makes clear to them that their end is also near. In recent weeks, they had to
a small degree regained the upper hand and were able to keep the protest
movements in check. Egypt's military government is slowly but surely expanding
its power, the Syrian government has repeatedly escaped intense global pressure
and Ali Abdullah Saleh has been holding out on his people for weeks.
The trendsetter of this
strategy of confusion was Qaddafi, who has survived the seven-month NATO
operation and successfully led Transitional Council troops around by the nose. Again
and again they stormed buildings in the search for the fugitive dictator, first
by besieging neighborhoods in Tripoli and later entire cities in the cases of Bani Walid and Sirte. The game of hide-and-seek
could have damaged Qaddafi’s reputation, but almost no one commented that was unworthy
of him it was to hide like a dog. Rather, he had acquired a reputation as the
Almighty and Omnipresent, seeming capable of anything.
Recently, when fighting broke
out anew in Tripoli, many suspected it was ordered by Qaddafi. It was also
thought that he had incited dissension among the tribes, and some even
predicted that he would make a successful comeback or at least permanently
prevent Libya from making a fresh start. How much more evidence is needed to
prove that an Arab dictatorship is hard to eradicate? Qaddafi’s message to his
fellow dictators is clear: Whatever you do, don’t give up! But his strategy
failed to ensure his survival. Transitional Council fighters - backed by NATO
bombers - threw a wrench into the works. Fortunately.
Now of course there are regrets
being expressed. It is said that Qaddafi got off too cheaply in his battle to
the death. They say they wanted him to stand trial; either before an
international tribunal or in a Libyan court. They also would have liked to see
those who helped him over the years stand trial - both his supporters in Libya and
in Europe and the United States. After all, in recent years, relations had
become increasingly close and criticism of Qaddafi’s style of governance
increasingly inaudible. Such a trial would undoubtedly have brought a lot of
interesting information about European politics to light. It is a pity that
this will not happen, but there is a positive aspect: Qaddafi in prison and on
trial would likely have given him every opportunity to continue to incite
unrest and confusion. In the end he would probably have adjusted to his role as
defendant and used the dock as a platform for his infamous speeches.
Example of a disaster: Egypt
A quick glance at neighboring
Egypt, where former President Hosni Mubarak's trial has been stumbling along
for months, bringing chaos instead of clarification, should be warning enough. Key
prosecution witnesses have retracted their testimony against Mubarak and are now
making statements to the contrary. With their thousand-and-one claims, lawyers
are turning the courtroom into a stage for an absurdist play. Proceedings like
these serve neither the search for truth nor promote a belief in democracy and
the rule of law among people who have lived for decades under a dictatorship. So
perhaps there is yet another cause for celebration in the fact that Libya - thanks
to the assassination of Qaddafi - will be spared a comparable catastrophe.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
But the most important thing
of all is that there is a celebration at all. Finally there is a reason to
celebrate again. In the past few weeks, there frustration among young people in
the Arab revolutions was growing. They too observed how the dictators has increasingly
regained their confidence and apparently weren't even dreaming of stepping down.
Even U.S. philosopher Gene Sharp, the intellectual instigator of the Arab revolts
and whose works were devoured by activists in the region, remarked in his
handbook for the peaceful overthrow of dictators that celebrations are extremely
important. Even the smallest victory should be celebrated, for joy gives people
courage. And courage is something that the Arab Spring desperately needs more
of.
