A relic of the past

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Qaddafi has to realise that with the immense oil resources at his disposal, 40 years were sufficiently enough to change the fate of a small 6.4 million population. That he failed to do this is indicated by the protests which started in the middle of this month and have spread to the entire country now. This has happened despite Qaddafis attempts to drench the movement for rights in blood. By Tuesday, there were about 500 dead amid reports of aerial bombardment on towns under the protesters control.

Qaddafi is a relic of a bygone era. He could have realised that slogans once popular are no more a bona fide currency. The Third Theory that he propagated while opposing both market economy and communism worked only for a while as it helped raise the literacy levels and brought the population out of abysmal poverty. What he failed to comprehend was that the people want constant development and uninterrupted improvement in their lives besides a right to differ and elect their own rulers. As time passed, Qaddafi was seen as one of the several autocrats of the Arab world who promoted their families and groomed their sons as heir-apparents.

Out of sync with the times, the Libyan autocrat has ruled with an iron hand, putting a ban on opposition parties, resorting to arbitrary arrests and keeping political prisoners without charge or trial for prolonged periods. Judiciary is under state control and those arrested have no right to a public trial. Freedom of speech, media, association and religion are restricted. Ethnic and tribal minorities suffer discrimination and the state continues to restrict widely recognised rights of expatriate labour. Qaddafi now wants to shoot his way out of the protests. The terror he has let loose has caused revulsion even in sections of the establishment leading a number of important functionaries to resign. The repression has rightly been condemned by the UN Security Council which has called on the regime to address the legitimate demands of the population. After more than four decades of Qaddafis rule, Libya faces the dilemma of lack of alternate leadership, a malaise it shares with Tunisia, Egypt and other countries ruled by autocrats.

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