The People’s Will

In Sept. 1969, Muammar Gaddafi overthrew the Senoussi monarchy in a coup d’etat, while his motto was rebelling against international tyrants. He supported liberation movements all over the world; from the Irish liberation army (IRA) to many African movements. His anti-imperialism and anti–Zionism mottos were broadcast by news agencies. And all of these, as well as the bombing of Pan Am 103, led to President Reagan bombarding Libya.

It is noteworthy that Qaddafi’s ideological government was unique in the world. He created people’s committees and covered walls with the slogan “Government is for the People” along with his pictures. He attacked prisons, destroying them with bulldozers.

That was the image of Qaddafi in the mind of the world. But it was just the appearance of the Libyan government, and the reality lied underneath. In Libya there were few magazines, newspapers, or publishers, while Qaddafi’s “Green Book”  was translated into virtually all languages and given a large circulation. Secret prisons were reported by various people under the seemingly popular and anti-imperialist government.

Libya’s recent popular uprising indicates the will of the people who have been abused by the conflict between appearance and reality. Although Qaddafi and his regime severely suppressed the people, showing their real face, the dictatorship never thought the Libyan people might defy orders. The two combat fighter planes that took refuge in Malta, refusing to bomb people, and the resignation of many of the diplomats and officials of the country has showed that the ideological dictatorship has no choice but to follow the people’s wish.

The severe repression that now flows in Libya prevents people from achieving their demands, because it is the tradition of God that the earth is inherited by his righteous servants. Is not the dawn that close?