9th June 2011, Geneva; The United Nations Commission of Inquiry (COI) into human rights violations in Libya today presented its initial findings to the Human Rights Council in Geneva. The COI concluded in its report that gross and systematic violations of human rights have taken place in Libya, almost exclusively by the regime of Muammar Ghadaffi, and that in many cases these violations amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Responding the COI, the Maldives Ambassador in Geneva, H.E. Ms. Iruthisham Adam, speaking to the full session of the Human Rights Council, repeated the Maldives' call for the Ghadaffi regime to stand down and to be held accountable for its crimes.
The three-person COI was established during a Human Rights Council Special Session on Libya in February 2011, a Session convened by the Maldives, UK, Qatar and Jordan. Since then it has traveled around Libya, meeting all sides in the conflict and taking witness testimonies. This was its first report back to the Council.
Addressing the Council, the COI noted that: for decades, the people of Libya have lived under a system of government characterized by "one-man rule using fear, intimidation and incentives based on loyalty". It was against this background that the rising tide of the Muslim Awakening reached the borders of Libya. Fueled by this hope, thousands took to the streets to protest and to call for reform.
Yet instead of listening and responding to the legitimate aspirations of the protest movement, the regime of Muammar Ghadaffi choose instead to use his state security apparatus to crack-down. The moment he did so, he and his government became directly responsible for the tragic events which have unfolded ever since - including the deaths of thousands of innocent men, women and children, and the serious and widespread violations of all human rights including through arbitrary killings, arbitrary arrest, enforced disappearance, torture, the targeting of journalists, and sexual violence.
The COI's report concluded by offering a series of recommendations to both the Ghadaffi regime and the National Transitional Council in Benghazi.
Responding the report, the Maldives, which is a member of the 47 country Human Rights Council, agreed with the COI's conclusion that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed by the Libyan authorities. "We concur with the report's findings and call on the Tripoli regime to fully and unconditionally implement the recommendations addressed to it. We also call on the National Transitional Council, which we recognize as the only legitimate body representing the aspirations of the Libyan people, to implement the recommendations put to it and to continue its efforts to strengthen human rights. It is important for the NTC to lead by example, and in-so-doing to point the way towards a better future for all Libyans".
ENDS.