National elites push for political reset and new elections

The National Action Coordination has held a meeting in Tripoli with a group of Libyan academics and civil-society activists to discuss the country’s political deadlock and the prospects for renewing the roadmap process.

The session was opened by Dr Ramadan Benzeer, Acting Secretary-General of the Arab-European Centre for Human Rights and International Law and a member of the Scientific Committee at the National Centre for Research and Scientific Studies. In his opening remarks, Dr Benzeer welcomed the participants and emphasised the need for coordinated national efforts and closer cooperation with the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) to ensure the success of the roadmap. He said the political figures currently dominating the scene had proved unable to resolve the crisis.

Speakers then took the floor, offering a variety of views, yet all agreed on the importance of supporting the structured dialogue scheduled to begin early next month. Participants stressed that national elites must work collectively to ensure the dialogue succeeds in serving the country’s wider interest.

They further argued that the time has come for genuine political change, calling for the departure of institutions that have lost their legitimacy. Several speakers backed the “fourth option” proposed by the Advisory Committee, which calls for the formation of a unified government tasked with delivering both parliamentary and presidential elections.