By Libya Herald reporter.
Tunis, 10 June 2015:
Many analysts, unlike the president of the House of Representatives (HoR) Ageela Saleh, who has . . .[restrict]already rejected it, have withheld their verdict on the fourth draft of UNSMIL’s peace agreement.
The peace agreement aims to find a compromise solution between the two contending military and political factions in Libya that have de facto split the country into two opposing entities since the GNC-Misrata-led Islamist militia coalition invaded Tripoli last July forcing the newly elected parliament to flee to the east of Libya.
One initial reading of the latest text suggests that the HoR has lost power to the outgoing GNC.
The GNC negotiation team, meanwhile, has said that it is waiting to return to Tripoli for a discussion with the rump GNC members for a final decision.
Azza Maghur, prominent lawyer, human rights activist and independent member of the GNC February Committee that had amended the 2011 Transitional Constitutional Declaration (TCD) that ended the GNC’s tenure and brought about the 2014 HoR elections – agreed that draft IV was very complicated.
‘‘It is complicated to the extent that it becomes dysfunctional’’.
‘’I shall withhold my comments on the 4th draft of the political agreement presented by Bernardino Leon to the two Libyan parties, which I shall start on shortly’’, she said when asked by Libya Herald for her initial reaction to the lengthy and complicated multi-layered text.
However, even upon reading through the draft quickly, Maghur reacted to one particular ‘’dangerous’’ article.
‘’But the most dangerous text of all in the fourth draft is the text in article number 18 which states “the term of the House of Representatives (HoR) will continue as per article 16 of this agreement until the end of the mandate of the Government of National Accord (GNA) or until the convening of the first session of the legislative authority as per the Libyan constitution, whichever comes earlier”.
Whereas article 16 states, Maghur explained, that “the HoR after being joined by the boycotting members who wish to do so, shall convene a session dedicated to the following matters”….
The newly added provision of ‘’who wish to do so’’ is a big flaw, Maghur said. ‘’If the attendance by the boycotting Representatives is optional, how is the HoR going to be completed and how can it then continue?’’, she inquired.
Maghur saw the right by boycotting HoR members to continue their boycott as a means by which the anti-HoR faction could undermine the HoR.
‘’Why was it amended in this way and the word “completed” added to it? Keeping in mind that the original text in draft 3 (article 51) stated “the work of the HoR will continue until the end of the mandate of the GNA or the convening of the first sitting of the legislative authority as per the Libyan constitution, whichever comes first’’.
A perplexed Maghur added ‘’Where do they come up with these texts from and where are they leading Libya with them?’’
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