UN warns Libyans against returning to ‘discord and disarray’

The United Nations yesterday warned Libyans against returning to “discord and disarray” which prevailed across the country over the last decade, Anadolu reported.

In a press conference held in New York, Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson of the secretary-general, said: “Our Special Adviser, Stephanie Williams, is in touch with the parties and is trying to make sure that we do come out with a unified approach by the Libyan parties on the way forward, including with the elections.”

Speaking to journalists after Libyan Parliament Speaker Aqila Saleh announced that a new prime minister would be chosen by parliament on Thursday, Haq said: “The entire point… The importance of the elections was so that there can be greater unification among the Libyan people, and we don’t go back to the sort of discord and disarray that have marked, really, the past decade.”

“The Secretary-General and Ms. Williams have both made very clear to the parties, as well, that there’s no way forward in the sort of rivalry between authorities that has marked the recent past.  And so, we are trying to proceed forward.”

READ: Libyan parliament says no elections this year, moves to choose new PM

“The way we’ve been going forward in recent months, towards a more unified executive, more unified banking system, that is the way forward.”

Elections were due to be held in Libya in December, however they were cancelled just days before they were to take place.

The UN special adviser on Libya, along with Western countries have, since December, been urging political institutions to prioritise a new election date rather than setting up another transition period.

Libya has gone through several ostensible transitions during the decade of violent chaos after the 2011 NATO-backed uprising against Muammar Gaddafi. Many of the same political leaders have been allowed to retain their power throughout the process.