Marvelous news from Libya. Abdel Jalil of the Transitional National Council is speaking on Al Jazeera; stating that the New Libya will be a country based on a "moderate" Islamic framework, where all Libyans regardless of religion or ethnicity will be equal, and people from all areas of Libya will live in freedom and respect. This is what the TNC have been saying since the start of the revolution six months ago. Gaddafi's hold on Tripoli has largely fallen apart in a few days, showing that he ruled mainly by fear and bribery. His power is now evaporating, although some will still be connected to him by the stain of their past crimes.
Let us give thanks to God , the courage of mainly ordinary people fighting Gaddafi's mercenary army and the skill of Nato's armed forces (who in this case) have given the Libyan people the military space to shake off the internal colonisation of the Gaddafi family. One citizen soldier said early in this conflict that this was a "revolution of common sense." This summed up for me the madness of the Gaddafi regime, the maturity of politics in the Middle East especially amongst young people and the popular realization that time is running out for a new approach to change in this crucial region.
Now the question is, how many powerful authoritarian regimes outside Libya will want the New Democratic Libya to fail (Iran? Saudi Arabia? Bahrain? Algeria? and even some right wing American and European elites?). Let us therefore pray that God will give the Libyan people the strength of purpose to overcome the obstacles of the near future, when others will be tempted to privately exploit their weaknesses. More importantly pray that God will speak to ordinary people in outside countries that the success of Libya and the Arab Democratic Uprising is in our continuing common interest.
Remember that Iraq was a disaster because the authoritarian regime of Saddam Hussien gave way to sectarian strife. The Sunni versus Shia versus West conflict was fought out in Iraq. This was fueled by Iran, Saudi Arabia and Sunni Fundamentalists in general. On top of this the United States pursued the policies that encouraged a vacuum for the Iraqi civil war to take off.
Next let us pray that Muammar Gaddafi and his sons will appear in the International Criminal Court in the Hague or a similarly constituted tribunal in Libya. This will be right in itself, and the right start for the New Libya.
The next problem is to :
1. Remove Bashir al-Assad from control of Syria. To put at the very heart of the projected "Transitional Council of Syria", the truth that common humanity and a shared believe in the one God, rises many times above smaller differences of Sunni, Shia, Christian and Jew.
2. Prevent the governments of Israel and Iran from derailing the Arab Democratic Uprising (which is not in the interests of either of these countries elites) by genocide in Gaza.
3. Of critical and urgent importance to put pressure on the Egyptian military council, to change the current plan, so that international observers will be present to ensure fairness in the upcoming elections in Egypt in November this year.
If it is right that Gaddafi has gone, then is many times more right that Bashar al-Assad goes. I say as a Christian, but more importantly as a believer in God and his kingdom in this world, “Next Stop Damascus God Willing”.
(see Winning the battle of Libya after Gaddafi.)
