5 Reasons To Support Libyan Rebels

Five Good Reasons To Support  Libyan Pro Democracy Rebels.

1. The conflict in Libya is between Gaddafi's security brigades and the Libyan people. It is not a civil war.

2. Gaddafi's security brigades have been armed and trained by foreigners for years, with money stolen from  the Libyan people. This is the real foreign intervention. Arming and training the pro democracy rebels is reversing the effects of foreign intervention.

3. UN Security Resolution 1973 allows all reasonable means to defend Libyan civilians. This must mean defending civilians who are pursuing reasonable activities, which must include demanding a representative government (especially in the context of the current regional wave of pro democracy movements). Given the violent and uncomprising response of Gaddafi's regime, they cannot defend themselves while pursuing  democratic change without arms and training. Recent events have shown that the direct assistance of foreign air forces is required to remove the threat of advanced weaponry. There is no other way that Libyans can stop Gaddafi terrorizing the public with planes, missiles and artillery.

4. To avoid chaos after Gaddafi's regime is removed, there must be a functioning and representative provisional government to replace it. This has been shown strongly in the Iraq and Afghanistan. The new government must have a functioning army to provide security. This obviously cannot happen without arms and training. Supplying these and other resources gives the rebel leadership more credibility, and gives leverage to foreign governments to ensure the rebels follow up on their democratic vision statement (see http://ntclibya.org/english/libya/). The process of creating a practical federal constitution, free media, independent judiciary .... must all start now.

5. Egypt has only started on the process of democratic transformation. The fall of Mubarak's government was due to a popular revolt and a split among the country's powerful elite. Groups close to the Army who were sidelined by Mubarak will attempt to steal power, which will then involve mass violent repression. Therefore Gaddafi's identical tactics must be shown to have failed, and this has to happen quickly. The same argument applies strongly to Syria, which is poised to revert back to the mass violence of  Hafez Assad's era.