Libya under Qaddafi

Πηγή: The Nation
By DR. IMTIAZ ATHAR SIDDIQUI
Feb 4 2012

Libya under Qaddafi was quite prosperous. There was no interest on loans. The banks were state owned and loans were given at zero percent interest by law. Having a home was considered a human right. All newlyweds received a substantial amount from the govt to buy their first apartment and to help them start a family. Likewise, education and medical treatments were free. Before Qaddafi, 25 percent of the population were literate. Today this figure has gone up to 83 percent. Should Libyans want to take up farming, they would receive land, a farmhouse, equipments, seeds and livestock to kick start their operation, absolutely free of charge. If citizens could not find the education or medical facilities they needed, the government would fund them to go abroad, free of charge, and would get some US$2,300 per month for accommodation and car allowance. Cars were government subsidised to the tune of 50 percent. Fuel prices were also kept under control. The country had no external debt and its reserves amounted to some $170 billion. Any graduate unable to find a job would get the average salary for the profession, as if he/she was employed. A portion of oil sales were credited once a year to every citizen’s bank account.

A mother who gave birth, immediately got $5000. 15 to 25 percent of citizens had a university degree. An immense project bringing water from aquifers in the south made it available all over the country, free of charge. That is what that “tyrant” Qaddafi gave to his people. There are some 150 tribes in Libya and a strong hand was necessary if the country was to remain in one piece. Every citizen was in possession of a military weapon. Qaddafi was not frightened of his own people. The so-called rebels who took over, so we are told, would not have lasted a few days without Nato air power, British and French commandos and thousands of mercenaries. Those are the winners. Now another Karzai has been installed in Tripoli, and the country can be plundered at the victors’ whim and fancy. The main aim is to loot the country’s oil reserves. Total, the French company has already grabbed some 30 percent of the Libyan state oil company. BP (British Petroleum) is starting exploration. And of course massive contracts for the reconstruction of Libya will be handed over to US and European companies. Of the sovereign fund, only some 1.2 billion have been released out of the $170 billion. With the state of the European economy, I doubt very much if Libya will see the rest any time soon.

Now Libyans are free as you say, but freedom is just another word for nothing else to lose, as Libyan queuing for funds at their bank’s door are finding out. Qaddafi is gone and so are the perks. What will be left is a terrible civil war. The price of democracy!