Libya - Country at glance 2006

COUNTRY PROFILE - AT A GLANCE, Libya
Date Posted: 13-Mar-2006

Jane's Sentinel Security Assessment - North Africa

COUNTRY PROFILE - AT A GLANCE
LIBYA AT A GLANCE TOP

Politics TOP

Official Name: Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Political System: Jamahiriya (State of the Masses)
Declaration of Independence: 24 December 1951 (from French and UK administered UN
Protectorate)
Leader: Colonel Muammar Muhammad Ghadaffi
Next Election: Not applicable
Secretary, General People's Committee (Prime Dr Al-Baghdaadi Ali al-Mahmudi
Minister):
Assistant Secretary, General People's Committee: Muhammad Ali al_Huwayz
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Abu-Bakr Mabruk al-Mansuri
Agriculture, Animal and Water Resources:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Nuri Dhaw al-Humaydi
Culture and Information:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Al-Tayyib al-Safi al-Tayyib
Economy, Trade and Investment:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Dr Ahmad Munaysi Abd-al-Hamid
Finance:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Abd el-Rahman Shalgam
Foreign Liaison and International Co-operation:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Dr Abd-al-Qadir Muhammad al-Baghdadi
General Education:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Dr Ibrahim al-Zarruq Sharif
Higher Education:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Dr Muhammad Abu-Ujaylah Rashid
Health and Environment:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Dr Fathi Hamad Bin-Shitwan
Industry, Electricity and Mines:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Ibrahim Ali Ibrahim
Inspection and People's Control:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Ali Umar al-Husnawi
Justice:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Tahir el-Hadi Juhaymi

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Planning:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Brig Salih Rajab al-Mismari
Public Security:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Bakhitah Abd-al-Alim al-Shinwi
Social Affairs:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Ali Yusuf Zikri
Telecommunications and Transport:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Ammar el-Mabruk Lutayyif
Tourism:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Matuq Muhammad Matuq
Workforce, Training and Employment:
Secretary of the General People's Committee for Mustafa Miftah Bel'id
Youth, and Sports:
Secretary General of the General People's Zanati Mohamed al-Zanati
Congress (Parliament):
Deputy Secretary of the General People's Ahmed Ibrahim
Congress:

Colonel Muammar Muhammad Ghadaffi TOP

Muammar Muhammad Ghadaffi was born in 1942 in Sirte, on the desert coast of central
Libya. His tribe, the Ghadhafa are a relatively small tribe of mixed Berber and Arab origin.
After completing school, Ghadaffi enrolled at the British Military Academy in Benghazi and
entered the army in 1965.

In 1969 he and a group of fellow revolutionaries seized power in a bloodless coup. Shortly
afterwards, Ghadaffi emerged as the new leader of the revolution and appointed himself head
of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. However, he later decided to refer to
himself as 'Leader of the Revolution' or 'Brother Leader' and claims he has no formal role as
head of state. In reality, all power rests in his hands.

In 1973 Ghadaffi launched Libya's cultural revolution and published the famous Green Book
(expanded to three volumes), his answer to Mao Tse Tung's Red Book. The book details his
alternative to capitalism and communism: the Third Universal Theory, which is based on the
concepts of Islam, Arabism and socialism and denounces private enterprise and ownership as
exploitative. Four years later, he declared the Establishment of the Authority of the People
and the start of the Jamahiriya (state of the masses). He also developed his own particular
interpretation of Sunni Maliki Islam, to which, like his other ideologies, he demands total
conformity. His other publications include Military Strategy and Mobilisation, The Story of
the Revolution and a short story collection called The Village...the Village...the Earth...the
Earth and The Suicide Of The Astronaut and Other Stories. He currently expounds his
philosophies on his own personal website: www.qathafi.org.

While certainly flamboyant and often considered unpredictable, Ghadaffi is in fact extremely
pragmatic and shrewd. He has remained firmly in power despite deep foreign and domestic
opposition to his policies through a combination of playing off Libya's various interest groups
and the brutal suppression of anyone who challenges his authority, whether they be inside
Libya or outside of the country. During the 1980s he adopted a 'stray dog' campaign whereby
his henchmen assassinated dissidents living abroad, including in Europe and the US. He has

expertly managed and manipulated Libya's tribal system and created a multilayered security
apparatus that has bred a climate of suspicion and fear. He has also maintained a close inner
circle around him drawn from old friends and family members. He has one son, Mohamed,
from a previous marriage, and seven children from his second wife, Saffiyya Ferkash el-
Haddad.

Shukri Ghanem TOP

Shukri Ghanem is the Secretary of the General People's Committee, a position at the head of
the Libyan government and conventionally referred to as that of prime minister.

He was born in 1942 and educated at Harvard University in the US and the School of
Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. He subsequently worked as an economist
with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) secretariat in Vienna, rising
to become its acting secretary-general. He was appointed Minister of Economics and Trade at
the very end of 2001. In mid-June 2003 he was appointed to replace Mubarak Abdallah el-
Shamikh as de jure head of the government. In contrast to Ghadaffi, he is known for his free
market views and is expected to oversee the privatisation of parastatal assets as well as new
investment in the oil sector.

However, Ghanem is frustrated by his limited room for manoeuvre as he is unable to choose
his staff, has limited resources and is facing significant opposition from the old guard within
the regime. Ghanem is very close to Saif el-Islam Ghadaffi, who reportedly persuaded his
father to appoint him to the post of premier, but is regarded by many within the regime and
among the wider population as an outsider. There is also much speculation and resentment in
Libya about his reported personal wealth. He maintains a private consultancy in Vienna.

Dr Abd el-Rahman Shalgam TOP

Abd el-Rahman Shalgam is the Secretary of the General People's Congress for Foreign
Liaison and International Co-operation, or foreign minister, a post he has held since 2001.

He was born in 1948 and originates from the Fezzan in the south. He attended university in
Egypt where he graduated with a BA degree in Journalism in 1973 and returned to Ghadaffi's
Libya, working as a journalist on a number of Libyan publications. In 1984 he joined Libya's
diplomatic corps and was appointed Ambassador to Italy. However, he soon returned to
Libya where he became an aide of Ghadaffi. After a short stint in the Ministry of Cultural
Affairs he became foreign minister in 2001.

He is close to Ghadaffi and is relied upon heavily in the international sphere. He was
instrumental in the UTA and Lockerbie talks, both of which led to settlements that have
enabled Libya to pull itself out of its isolation. Shalgam is considered to be reliable and a
linchpin of the current cabinet. He is thought to favour reform, but has his differences with
the Prime Minister Shukri Ghanem due primarily to political rivalries and competing
interests, but also over the speed and manner with which Ghanem is trying to adopt reforms.
He is particularly close to the current Libyan Ambassador to the UK and former Minister of
Justice, Mohammed el-Zwai.


Saif el-Islam Ghadaffi TOP

Saif el-Islam was born on 25 June 1972 in the Bab el-Azizya compound in Tripoli. He is the
oldest son from Ghadaffi's second marriage, and as such is regarded as the most important
son. There is significant rivalry between him and his brother Saadi, but he is thought to be
very close to his sister, Aisha.

Saif undertook his studies at El-Fateh University in Tripoli, where he specialised in
architectural engineering. He graduated in 1994 and then undertook national service for a
year, opting for civil rather than military duties. After completing a masters degree in Vienna,
Saif el-Islam returned to Tripoli, but later enrolled for a PhD in International Governance at
the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in the UK, where he spends
part of the year.

Since his return from Vienna, Saif el-Islam has come to play an increasingly important role in
Libya's political and economic life, prompting widespread speculation that he is tipped to
take over from his father, though he denies this. He presents the more pro-reformist face of
the regime and is a strong advocate of economic liberalisation, although like his father he is
still averse to any criticism of the regime or to genuine political pluralism.

He has undertaken a number of high profile international visits and has played a key role in
the negotiations over compensation in the Lockerbie, UTA and La Belle cases. In 1997, Saif
el-Islam founded the Ghadaffi International Charity Foundation, which has enabled him to
play an active international role with almost no constraints while claiming that his activities
are of a purely charitable nature. Under the auspices of this charity, Saif el-Islam was
responsible for securing the release of hostages held by the Abu Sayaf group in the
Philippines in 2000 and of former Arab fighters held in Pakistan after the fall of Afghanistan
in 2001. He is also pushing for a more open approach to the issue of human rights inside
Libya, having set up a Human Rights Association. He has been behind a push to release a
number of Islamist prisoners from the banned Muslim Brotherhood Movement, although this
has yet to bear fruit. Despite these moves, he has been accused of only making cosmetic
changes in these fields.

Saif el-Islam is also involved with a number of businesses and companies, including his One
Nine Investment Company, active in the energy sector. He also finds time to indulge his
passion for art and is a keen painter, regularly exhibiting his work in European capitals.

2006 Jane's Information Group


Libya - Country at glance 2006

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