22 August 2011, Male; The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Maldives, H.E. Mr. Ahmed Naseem, today issued the following statement regarding events in Libya:
"The Maldives warmly welcomes the rapid advance of the military forces of the National Transitional Council of Libya, which the Maldives recognises as the sole legitimate body representing the interests of the Libyan people. The Maldives hopes that, following the arrival of rebel forces in Tripoli, Muammar Ghadaffi and his associates will immediately surrender themselves and thus avoid further bloodshed.
It is clear that we are witnessing the end of a dark chapter in Libya's history and the breaking of a bright new dawn for the country. For decades, the government of Muammar Ghadaffi has ruled through a system of patronage, repression and fear. The Muslim Awakening brought hope that this system could be dismantled peacefully, through dialogue, reform and free and fair elections. However, instead Muammar Ghadaffi chose to use his security forces to attack and kill civilians.
The Maldives was one of the first countries to call on Muammar Ghadaffi to step aside and was among the first five countries to recognise the NTC as the legitimate government. The Maldives, alongside Jordan, UK and Qatar, also took the lead in organizing an emergency debate at the UN on the Libya situation, and in negotiating two strong UN Human Rights Council resolutions which have played a key role in increasing international pressure on Ghadaffi, in holding him and his associates to account and in recognising the NTC.
The Maldives took these steps because of our conviction that men such as Muammar Ghadaffi should not be allowed to check, through violence, the recent march of democracy and human rights across the Muslim world - the Muslim Awakening.
With the imminent fall of Ghadaffi, the Muslim Awakening lives on, and the Maldives looks forward to welcoming a new, democratic Libyan State into the international family of nations".
ENDS.