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 LIBYA

 

  

 

  

 PROFILE
 

Official Name
 

Geography
  People
  Government
  Economy
  History
  Principal Government Officials
  Travel & Business Information
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OFFICIAL NAME:

Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

 

GEOGRAPHY:

Area: 1,759,540 million sq. km.
Cities: Capital--Tripoli (2003 pop. est. 1,150,000). Other--Benghazi (2003 pop. est. 637,000).
Terrain: Mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions.
Climate: Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior.

 

PEOPLE:

Nationality: Noun and adjective--Libyan(s).
Population (July 2004 est.): 5,631,585 (includes non-nationals, of which an estimated 500,000 or more are sub-Saharan Africans living in Libya).
Annual growth rate (2004 est.): 2.37%.
Ethnic groups: Berber and Arab 97%; Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, and Tunisians.
Religion: Sunni Muslim 97%.
Languages: Arabic is the primary language. English, French, and Italian are understood in major cities.
Education: Years compulsory--9. Attendance--90%. Literacy--82.6%.
Health (2004 est.): Infant mortality rate--25.7/1,000. Life expectancy--male, 74.1 yrs.; female, 78.58 yrs.
Work force (2001 est.): 1.6 million, an estimated 500,000 of whom are sub-Saharan African foreign workers. Work force by occupation (1997 est.): Industry--29%. Services and Government--54%. Agriculture--17%.

 

GOVERNMENT:

Official name: Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.
Type: "Jamahiriya" is a term Col. Mu’ammar al-Qadhafi coined and which he defines as a "state of the masses" governed by the populace through local councils. In practice, Libya is an authoritarian state.
Independence: December 24, 1951.
Revolution: September 1, 1969.
Constitution: December 11, 1969, amended March 2, 1977--established popular congresses and people’s committees.
Administrative divisions: 31 municipalities (singular--"shabiya", plural--"shabiyat"): Butnan, Darnah, Gubba, Al Jabal al-Akhdar, Marj, Green Belt, Benghazi, Ajdabiya, Wahat, Kufra, Surt, Al Jufrah, Misurata, Murgub, Bani-waleed, Tarhuna and Msallata, Tripoli, Jfara, Zawiya, Subrata & Surman, An Nuqat al Khams, Gharyan, Mezda, Nalut, Ghdames, Yefren and Jadu, Wadi Alhaya, Ghat, Sabha, Wadi Shati, Murzuq.
Political system: Political parties are banned. According to the political theory of Col. Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi, multi-layered popular assemblies (people's congresses) with executive institutions (people's committees) are guided by political cadres (revolutionary committees).
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory.

 

ECONOMY:

GDP (2003 est.): $35 billion.
Per capita GDP (2003 est.): $6,400.
Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, gypsum.
Agriculture: Products--wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle; approximately 75% of Libya's food is imported.
Industry: Types--petroleum, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement.
Trade: Exports (2003 est.)--$14.32 billion: crude oil, refined petroleum products. Major markets (2003)--Italy (39.4%), Germany (13.6%), Spain (13.6%), Turkey 6.6%, France (6.2%). Imports (2003 est.)--$6.282 billion: machinery, transport equipment, food, manufactured goods. Major suppliers (2003)--Italy (27.2%), Germany (10.3%), Tunisia (7.7%), U.K. (6.9%), South Korea (6.9%), France (5.8%).

 

HISTORY:
  For most of their history, the peoples of Libya have been subjected to varying degrees of foreign control. The Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Vandals, and Byzantines ruled all or parts of Libya. Although the Greeks and Romans left impressive ruins at Cyrene, Leptis Magna, and Sabratha, little else remains today to testify to the presence of these ancient cultures.

The Arabs conquered Libya in the seventh century A.D. In the following centuries, most of the indigenous peoples adopted Islam and the Arabic language and culture. The Ottoman Turks conquered the country in the mid-16th century. Libya remained part of their empire--although at times virtually autonomous--until Italy invaded in 1911 and, in the face of years of resistance, made Libya a colony.

In 1934, Italy adopted the name "Libya" (used by the Greeks for all of North Africa, except Egypt) as the official name of the colony, which consisted of the Provinces of Cyrenaica, Tripolitania, and Fezzan. King Idris I, Emir of Cyrenaica, led Libyan resistance to Italian occupation between the two World Wars. From 1943 to 1951, Tripolitania and Cyrenaica were under British administration, while the French controlled Fezzan. In 1944, Idris returned from exile in Cairo but declined to resume permanent residence in Cyrenaica until the removal in 1947 of some aspects of foreign control. Under the terms of the 1947 peace treaty with the Allies, Italy relinquished all claims to Libya.

On November 21, 1949, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution stating that Libya should become independent before January 1, 1952. King Idris I represented Libya in the subsequent UN negotiations. When Libya declared its independence on December 24, 1951, it was the first country to achieve independence through the United Nations and one of the first former European possessions in Africa to gain independence. Libya was proclaimed a constitutional and a hereditary monarchy under King Idris.

The discovery of significant oil reserves in 1959 and the subsequent income from petroleum sales enabled what had been one of the world's poorest countries to become extremely wealthy, as measured by per capita GDP. Although oil drastically improved Libya’s finances, popular resentment grew as wealth was increasingly concentrated in the hands of the elite. This discontent continued to mount with the rise throughout the Arab world of Nasserism and the idea of Arab unity.

On September 1, 1969, a small group of military officers led by then 28-year-old army officer Mu’ammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi staged a coup d’etat against King Idris, who was exiled to Egypt. The new regime, headed by the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), abolished the monarchy and proclaimed the new Libyan Arab Republic. Qadhafi emerged as leader of the RCC and eventually as de facto chief of state, a political role he still plays. The Libyan government asserts that Qadhafi currently holds no official position, although he is referred to in government statements and the official press as the "Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution."

The new RCC's motto became "freedom, socialism, and unity." It pledged itself to remedy "backwardness", take an active role in the Palestinian Arab cause, promote Arab unity, and encourage domestic policies based on social justice, non-exploitation, and an equitable distribution of wealth.

An early objective of the new government was withdrawal of all foreign military installations from Libya. Following negotiations, British military installations at Tobruk and nearby El Adem were closed in March 1970, and U.S. facilities at Wheelus Air Force Base near Tripoli were closed in June 1970. That July, the Libyan Government ordered the expulsion of several thousand Italian residents. By 1971, libraries and cultural centers operated by foreign governments were ordered closed.

In the 1970s, Libya claimed leadership of Arab and African revolutionary forces and sought active roles in international organizations. Late in the 1970s, Libyan embassies were redesignated as "people's bureaus," as Qadhafi sought to portray Libyan foreign policy as an expression of the popular will. The people's bureaus, aided by Libyan religious, political, educational, and business institutions overseas, exported Qadhafi's revolutionary philosophy abroad.

Qadhafi’s confrontational foreign policies and use of terrorism, as well as Libya’s growing friendship with the U.S.S.R., led to increased tensions with the West in the 1980s. Following a terrorist bombing at a discotheque in West Berlin frequented by American military personnel, in 1986 the U.S. retaliated militarily against targets in Libya, and imposed broad unilateral economic sanctions.

After Libya was implicated in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, UN sanctions were imposed in 1992. UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs) passed in 1992 and 1993 obliged Libya to fulfill requirements related to the Pan Am 103 bombing before sanctions could be lifted. Qadhafi initially refused to comply with these requirements, leading to Libya’s political and economic isolation for most of the 1990s.

In 1999, Libya fulfilled one of the UNSCR requirements by surrendering two Libyans suspected in connection with the bombing for trial before a Scottish court in the Netherlands. One of these suspects, Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, was found guilty; the other was acquitted. Al-Megrahi’s conviction was upheld on appeal in 2002. In August 2003, Libya fulfilled the remaining UNSCR requirements, including acceptance of responsibility for the actions of its officials and payment of appropriate compensation to the victims’ families. UN sanctions were lifted on September 12, 2003. U.S. International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA)-based sanctions were lifted September 20, 2004.

On December 19, 2003, Libya publicly announced its intention to rid itself of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR)-class missile programs. Since that time, it has cooperated with the U.S., the U.K., the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons toward these objectives. Libya has also signed the IAEA Additional Protocol and has become a State Party to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

 

PRINCIPAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS:

Head of State--Mu'ammar Abu Minyar al-Qadhafi
Secretary General of the General People’s Committee (Prime Minister)--Shukri Ghanem
Secretary of the General People’s Committee for Foreign Liaison and International Cooperation (Foreign Minister)--Abd al-Rahman Shalgham

 

TRAVEL & BUSINESS INFORMATION:

 

Following are are the top 10 tips you need to make your trip easier:


1. Make sure you have a signed, valid passport and visas, if required. Also, before you go, fill in the emergency information page of your passport!

2. Read the Consular Information Sheets (and Public Announcements or Travel Warnings, if applicable) for the countries you plan to visit.

3. Familiarize yourself with local laws and customs of the countries to which you are travelling. While in a foreign country, you are subject to its laws.

4. Make 2 copies of your passport identification page. This will facilitate replacement if your passport is lost or stolen. Leave one copy at home with friends or relatives. Carry the other with you in a separate place from your passport.

5. Leave a copy of your itinerary with family or friends at home so that you can be contacted in case of an emergency.

6. Do not leave your luggage unattended in public areas. Do not accept packages from strangers.

7. You should register with the nearest embassy or consulate of your country. Registration will make your presence and whereabouts known in case it is necessary to contact you in an emergency. Remember to leave a detailed itinerary and the numbers or copies of your passport or other citizenship documents with a friend or relative in your own country.

8. To avoid being a target of crime, try not to wear conspicuous clothing and expensive jewelry and do not carry excessive amounts of money or unnecessary credit cards.

9. In order to avoid violating local laws, deal only with authorized agents when you exchange money or purchase art or antiques.

10. If you get into trouble, contact the nearest embassy of your country.

 

USEFUL LINKS:

 
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