Zawaya

The law of the jungle prevails in the absence of justice

By: Monia Ferjani

Every nation on earth may rise up against injustice one day. No nation is excluded, whether it is civilized or underdeveloped, rich or impoverished. People surrender to their arbitrary regimes for a long or short period of time, depending on the country’s circumstances, the nation itself, and the extent of the dictatorship of the ruling regime.

However, when people revolt, their demands are similar, i.e. freedom, dignity and equitable distribution of wealth. The only difference lies between a nation who believes in the justice of the judiciary and in the supremacy of the law, and another who invokes the law of the jungle and takes its own revenge, thus retreating to the brutality of the centuries of darkness.

The way Saif al-Islam Kadhafi and his father were arrested, and the way Moamer Kadhafi was lynched and his body was treated after his death, can absolutely not be associated with the revolution, despite my strong condemnation of the two men and their crimes against the Libyan people. The vindictive tendency of the rebels will drag Libya into a long-term cycle of violence, which may be explained by the violence endured by Libyans from Kadhafi’s regime, but that remains a reason, not a justification.

The revolution aimed supposedly to break with authoritarian dictatorship, and welcome a new era where the safety of bodies and souls is preserved, human beings and their dignity are respected, and criminals are held accountable for their crimes.

Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi cried when he was leaving Tunisia to head to his country, not because he regretted his involvement with Khadafi, as such people are trained to obey and oppress; but rather because he was dreading what he was going to endure by the people who will receive him.

Therefore, the Libyan Transitional Council bears today the major responsibility of ensuring a fair and transparent trial of Saif al-Islam; holding him accountable for his actions based on evidence; and enabling him to have a defense committee as guaranteed under international law.

Firstly, the trial of Saif al-Islam proves the existence of justice and ensures the supremacy of the law; the same law that the Kadhafi regime stepped on and amended to suit its interests. Let’s not forget that justice is a popular demand that tops the list of the claims in the Arab revolutions. Secondly, his trial and conviction under the law are the right of every Libyan citizen, and a restitution for the martyrs of the Libyan revolution.

To go beyond mere slogans, the Libyan interim government should use its powers to ensure security, prevent the indiscriminate use of weapons, impose the respect of the state and ensure the independence of the judiciary, in order to reassure the people. The trial of Saif al-Islam should be just another stage of the revolution, so that Libyans can move on, heal their wounds, rebuild their country and promote their economy. Violence will only transform the country into an easy prey, as it happened to Iraq.