Country/entity

Libya

Region

Middle East and North Africa

Agreement name

Statement of the Fezzan Forum for Libya

Date

20 Feb 2018

Agreement status

Multiparty signed/agreed

Interim arrangement

Yes

Agreement/conflict level

Intrastate/local conflict

Libyan Conflicts (1969 - 1994) (2011 - )

Agreements relate to two distinct conflict dyads.
Libya-Chad. Since the 1970s, Libya under Colonel Muammar Gaddafi had a tense relationship with its neighbour Chad, predominantly focused on the resource-rich Aouzou Strip in northern Chad. Libyan claims of the Aouzou Strip were held in an un-ratified treaty between France and Italy in 1935, similarly Chadian claims of the Strip were argued with support of a 1955 treaty between Libya and France. In 1973, Libya effectively annexed the Strip to gain access to natural resources. This spurred cross-border clashes between 1979 until 1987 until escalated to a brief war known as the Toyota War, wherein Chadian government troops succeeded in repelling Libyan forces. A brief and repeatedly violated ceasefire was held from 1987-88, followed by a series of unsuccessful negotiations, until an International Court of Justice ruling in 1994, which granted sovereignty of the Strip to Chad.

Libya post-Gaddafi. Gaddafi’s downfall following the Libyan Civil War in 2011-2012, led to several factions fighting for the country’s leadership. Since 2013, the country effectively split into three entities, with the National Army controlling the east including the city of Benghazi, and the New General National Congress and their militias such as the Golden Dawn controlling the northwest including the capital of Tripoli. Significant portions of the country in the south-west are currently held by Tuareg forces. The civil war and chaos continued into 2014 as the General National Congress refused to disband after the expiry of its mandate, resulting in eruption of mass protests. The UN efforts continue to broker peace between the Libyan Army and the Libya Dawn factions, and a partial ceasefire was declared in January 2015. A new interim-government (Tunisia-based) called ‘Government of National Accord’ is formed with the backing of UN despite the refusal of the other forces to recognise its authority and arrived to Tripoli with the UN in 2016. A state of emergency was declared by the UN backed government amid clashed between rival militia in Tripoli’s southern suburbs. Since April 2019 there has been sustained fighting between the Libyan National Army and the UN-backed government in Tripoli as the Libyan National Army aims to seize Tripoli.

Close

Libyan Conflicts (1969 - 1994) (2011 - )

Stage

Framework/substantive - partial

Conflict nature

Inter-group

Peace process

Libyan local processes

Parties

"We, the people of Fezzan, from all of the different components, groups, and parts"

Third parties

-

Description

Statement emphasises (1) the lack of state presence in the region; (2) affirming the unity of Libya and its institutions; (3) provision of transitional justice and provision of rights; (4) ending illegal migration; (5) inclusion of Fezzan into the state; (6) lifting of social cover; (7) development; (8) retention of some of the goods of natural resource extraction; (9) addressing prisoner conditions; (10) a general amnesty.

Agreement document

LY_180220_Fezzan Agreement_EN.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Agreement document (original language)

LY_180220_Fezzan Agreement_AR.pdf (opens in new tab)| Download PDF

Local agreement properties

Process type

Informal but persistent process

Rationale

-> Link to national level; no external support mechanism; culture of signing The agreement is clearly embedded in a culture of signing (and supporting) agreements to bring an end to violence between the tribes inhabiting this locale (Fezzan region).

Is there a documented link to a national peace process?

Yes

Link to national process: articulated rationale

The statement was drafted by a mixture of figures; it is uncertain whether it includes state actors from the document. However, on multiple occasions it invokes legal state processes, for example in the implementation of the transitional justice law and the prisoner release and amnesty, thereby relying on legal state structures and lamenting the lack of them. This is rectified by the creation of a sub-state pseudo-legal body, the Supreme Council for Fezzan. The agreement also reiterates "Libya's unity, as a land and a people that cannot be divided, that all Libyans are equal in their rights and responsibilities, and that the interests of the country are above all else".

Name of Locale

Fezzan

Nature of Locale

Region

GPS Lat/Long (DD)

25.372630, 13.834697

Participant type

Domestic religious organisation/leader or other elder
Local community/civilian group(s)/civil society organisations

Mediator, facilitator or similar

No mention of mediator or similar

Local issues

Ritual/prayer and process (including use of scripture)

Page 1, In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
All praises be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon his Prophet, the companions, and his allies.

Grievance List

Page 1, We, the people of Fezzan, from all of the different components, groups, and parts, have met in the city of Sabha Manarat Arafat in An Nasiriyah on Tuesday, 20/2/2018, to announce our rejection of the divisions, wars, and insecurity that are going on in our country, all of which has hindered development in all of Libya, and especially in this area.

The intentional marginalization and neglect of the area of Fezzan by the political forces in Libya, which has led to the complete loss of livelihoods in this active and vital important in Libya, and the complete absence of the institutions of the state, especially the security apparatuses, has made us, the people of Fezzan who are gathered here in this forum, reiterate the importance of working to get out of this catastrophic situation due to these political divisions, polarization, and foreign agendas, all of which have greatly damaged the unity of our country and our people and Libya’s stability. The impact that this situation has had on the people has been overwhelmingly negative in every sense of the word.

Despite Fezzan being a vital part of the country, with the resources and human capacity in it, the area is now under the control of crime and illegal migration, which have had a negative effect on people’s livelihoods.

Cattle rustling/banditry

No specific mention.

Social cover

Page 1, 7. Removing social protection for outlaws so that they can be apprehended and handed over for justice.

Statement of the Fezzan Forum for Libya

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

All praises be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon his Prophet, the companions, and his allies.

We, the people of Fezzan, from all of the different components, groups, and parts, have met in the city of Sabha Manarat Arafat in An Nasiriyah on Tuesday, 20/2/2018, to announce our rejection of the divisions, wars, and insecurity that are going on in our country, all of which has hindered development in all of Libya, and especially in this area.

The intentional marginalization and neglect of the area of Fezzan by the political forces in Libya, which has led to the complete loss of livelihoods in this active and vital important in Libya, and the complete absence of the institutions of the state, especially the security apparatuses, has made us, the people of Fezzan who are gathered here in this forum, reiterate the importance of working to get out of this catastrophic situation due to these political divisions, polarization, and foreign agendas, all of which have greatly damaged the unity of our country and our people and Libya’s stability.

The impact that this situation has had on the people has been overwhelmingly negative in every sense of the word.

Despite Fezzan being a vital part of the country, with the resources and human capacity in it, the area is now under the control of crime and illegal migration, which have had a negative effect on people’s livelihoods.

The attendees of the forum have agreed, after discussing and studying the matter in depth, on the following:

1- Reiterating Libya’s unity, as a land and a people that cannot be divided, that all Libyans are equal in their rights and responsibilities, and that the interests of the country are above all else

2- That a national community reconciliation is the foundation upon which the country should be built, within a framework of reconciliatory justice that gives people their rights, ends oppression, provides reparations, instills tolerance and reconciliation, and builds confidence between all sects

3- Creating a social contract or a code of conduct to be signed by all of the groups in Fezzan and is binding for everyone

4- Uniting the legislative, executive, judicial, and military institutions of the state and ending the political divisions in the country to ensure a safe future for the country and its people.

5- Seriously working to find an urgent solution to stop illegal migration into the country through all entry points, and fighting against their settlement in Libya because of the problems this migration poses to the identity of the country

6- That Fezzan has an active role in building Libya on a foundation of equal partnership and ending the excessive centralization, marginalization, and exclusion that have affected Fezzan for far too long

7- Removing social protection for outlaws so that they can be apprehended and handed over for justice.

8- That development is the solution for the problems of the south and will stop the suffering of its people

9- Allocating a percentage of the revenue from the production of oil, gas, water, and other resources for the development of the area

10- Addressing the conditions of prisoners and detainees

11- Activating the transitional justice law and continuing with a comprehensive national reconciliation between Libyans because the unity of the country is more important than any conflict or dispute, and this Forum expresses its appreciation and support for all efforts for reconciliation all over the country

12- Confirming the return of the displaced and forcibly displaced, internally and externally, and the swift return of the forcibly displaced from Tawergha to their homes, and the Forum calls upon the dignitaries of Misrata and Tawergha to facilitate the safe return of the people of Tawergha, taking into account the issue of reparations for all

13- The Forum reiterates the importance of implementing the general amnesty and calls for the immediate release of political prisoners in implementation of the decree of the parliament

The Forum also agreed on the establishment of a Supreme Council for Fezzan, with the following committees in it:

- A security committee

- An economic committee

- A national reconciliation committee

- A development committee

- A committee to follow up the activation of the Sabha Airport

- A committee to follow up with the Ubari Gas Power Plant and working to secure the release of the abducted engineers

This Council shall be responsible for the functions and implementation of the goals that this Forum came to discuss, and they are:

- Security

- Reconciliation

- Development