Last Wednesday I had occasion to address a very well attended Business Breakfast on The New Libya while attending on behalf of the Opposition Leader
These are the main points that I touched upon: 11 days after the 17 February revolution had started in Libya I had stated on our TV station without any hesitation that no matter how long the Libyan people’s liberation struggle might last, I was confident that at the end the people’s aspirations would be fully addressed.
I stick to such views even more so, now that a Libyan government is moving towards taking shape.
If the new Libyan leadership will manage – as I am sure that it will endeavour to do - to translate its vision of a democratic Libya into practice, as set out in its vision statement, prior to the last summer, then the Libyan people have a bright new future ahead of them.
It is understandable that after the uprising that had developed, institution building can still take time the same way that infrastructure building might do.
One cannot expect overnight miracles to happen in a country where the institutional infrastructure was deliberately non existent.
At this point in time the country needs most the three Ss: stability, solidarity and security.
Without them neither will relations on a people to people prosper, nor can economic opportunities develop to mutual benefit. Equally so serenity, progress and well being will otherwise remain a chimera.
On the other hand there should not be any retribution. Now and in the future.
Libya belongs to the Libyans and it is up to them alone to decide what form and composition their future government and structures should take.
The democratization of Libya should be carried out by the Libyans themselves and not imposed from external sources.
The empathy between the Libyan and Maltese people enforces our feelings of good will towards one another.
Culturally the Libyans have always been known to be very strongly family oriented and the future Libya needs to ensure that their children have first class health care, education and future prospects.
We are fully committed to doing everything in our power to help Libya achieve its aims.
It was with this spirit in mind that prudently but firmly we had stated even as way back as March 20th that Malta had a duty to follow UN resolutions on Libya, that we should serve as a humanitarian hub, and that all those in need should be able to find their assistance in Malta as our island should be a country which helped the Libyan people in all practical ways.
Many youths I know were traumatized by the bloodshed in Libya because this generation was experiencing for the first time the value of peace and the importance of living in a peaceful zone rather than in one rife with conflict – so close to our shores.
On that same occasion we had not only continued to offer our bi partisan support to government but we had also stated publicly that Malta was right to also help all those countries that needed to evacuate their people from Libya when the uprising started.
We have been supportive of government’s efforts from the very beginning of the conflict.
Now more than ever the Mediterranean agenda of the EU should not just be economy driven but should also be underpinned by serious political dialogue.
The EU has a very important role to play in a post conflict Libya. Not just from the economic perspective, but also in the reconstruction of the civilian institutions, security and border control.
We are confident that with its emerging and now liberated talents, Libya itself will be guided by common sense, democratic instinct, a fair measure of idealism and the professional competence that can turn the whole scenario into a win win situation for them, for us and for the Mediterranean region as a whole.
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Leo Brincat is the Shadow Minister for the Environment, Sustainable Development & Climate Change