The structure of Libyan society under the Qadhafi regime, as well as during its demise and aftermath, was and remains peculiarly fragmented. The former dictator deliberately kept state institutions weak (in particular the army) in order to prevent the formation of an organised opposition and to create a cult of leadership centred on himself and his family. The consequence for the nature of the uprising was that rebel forces were fragmented, their control over the country was acquired piecemeal, and the internationally recognised National Transitional Council has had tenuous legitimacy outside its base in Benghazi and the east.
Now that the regime has fallen, the process of rebuilding should be underway; but Libya has many autonomous, disconnected and heavily armed militias, all of whom have independent claims on their country's liberation as well as the fire power to back those claims. A Crisis Group Report from December 2011 examines the tricky path that the authorities must navigate in order to successfully disarm, demobilise and reintegrate into society Libya's rebel fighters, without plunging the country back into violence. Many of the young men who took up arms and joined the rebellion found in it a dignity long denied them by lack of economic and employment opportunities. So while the number of weapons in circulation must be dramatically reduced, the status that they bestow needs to be met by other means.
Article Source: Crisis Group. To read the full Report, click here
Image Source: United Nations
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