Libya: Post Qaddafi

The first article is a video that mentions the different groups in Libya who are fighting against each other. General Haftar is one of the major players in the attacks. He is against Islamist groups and he says that he will never retreat until Islamist groups back down. After watching the video I am reminded that the need for power, especially economic gain, is one of the reasons why democracy is so difficult to achieve. Until everyone in Libya wants and understands free elections, then democracy will not happen– one despotic family will replace another despotic family in a never ending cycle in the fight for one’s own point of view.

The second piece of research is a profile on the Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia that calls for strict Sharia law across Libya. The group, whose name means “Partisans of Islamic law” in Arabic, emerged following the February 2011 anti-Gaddafi uprising. (BBC news). The group opposes the interim government and democracy in the country and has pledged to fight back and warns the US not to get involved. In 2012, the group reduced its military presence in Libya and began focusing on charity. Their charity efforts such as social services like establishing cultural centers, cleaning the streets, and regulating traffic. Because of their social efforts, the group increased followers. However, the group as resorted to violence when threatened. Some people are suspicious that the group is affiliated with Al Qaeda. This profile is similar to the first article in that the need for power trumps what everyone really wants– to be able to believe what they want to believe. Everyone one of these groups is fighting for what they believe in and is afraid that the other group with take it away from them. No one will be satisfied until everyone agrees that everyone wants the same thing — to be free from being told to do things that they do not agree with.
These groups are both radicals in nature because they want to assert control and use revolutionary means in order to challenge globalization.