The National Transitional Council (NTC) passed Law 37 this past May, which punishes the glorification of either Muammar Gaddafi or his sons, and imprisons critics of the February 2011 revolution. While the law has been compared to German legislation that criminalized the idolatry of Adolf Hitler, various human rights groups and civil rights attorneys say the law is comparable to repressive Gaddafi-era censorship and undermines the goals of last year’s uprising.
The National Transitional Council (NTC) passed Law 37 this past May, which punishes the glorification of either Muammar Gaddafi or his sons, and imprisons critics of the February 2011 revolution. While the law has been compared to German legislation that criminalized the idolatry of Adolf Hitler, various human rights groups and civil rights attorneys say the law is comparable to repressive Gaddafi-era censorship and undermines the goals of last year’s uprising.
Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa Director, Human Rights Watch:
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“It seems that NTC has done a cut and paste job with the Gaddafi-era laws!” The law violates Libya’s Provisional Constitutional Covenant and international human rights law,” she said, referring specifically to Article 14, which addresses free speech, opinion and assembly. The organization has called on the NTC to immediately revoke the law.
Under the law, spreading “false or vicious news” or “propaganda” that harms “military efforts to defend the country, terrorizes people or weakens the morale of citizens” is a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment for an unspecified amount of time. If the offensive statements damage the country, according to the law, the offender can be sentenced to life in prison. |
Philip Luther, Director, Amnesty International:
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“We fear that this law will have a chilling impact on the emerging media in Libya and may lead to prisoners of conscience. The major problem with this law is the lack of mechanisms ensuring that it will not hurt the innocent. It is sufficient that a citizen is falsely accused by another one to become a victim.” |
Abdulsalam Sabri Sharif, Human Rights Activist:
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“The law is a confiscation of freedoms. There is no point in passing a law to prevent supporters of Gaddafi from glorifying him. It would be useful to pass a law segregating them politically. The law violates the basic rule in politics. The NTC has taken us from the individual dictator regime to a collective dictatorship.” |
Fathi el-Baajeh, Chairman, NTC General Policy Committee:
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“It causes embarrassment about the rumours that Gaddafi’s agents are still in political power. This law, being released in this form, should have prevented the glorification of persons or rulers whoever they are, if this is the purpose.” |
Mahmud Shammam, Editor-in-Chief, Foreign Policy Arabic Edition
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On his Facebook page, Shammam called for Libyan legists to consider the constitutionality of this law. He questioned whether a transitional authority was entitled to pass such laws after only 47 days in power. “Is not the issuance of such laws a jurisdiction of an elected legislative power?” |
Jumaa Ateeqa, Lawyer:
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“The law has many disadvantages, especially that it reproduces the obsolete legislation system.” |
Abeer Amnina, Attorney:
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“The law is shameful by all means, and does not match the principles on which the February revolution was based. It is a law for censorship and muzzling mouths.”
“NTC has forgotten that the Libyans now do not need such unjust laws; rather, they need laws that protect their safety and ensure their humanity and violated dignity. NTC is insistent in always reminding us about the question being asked since the issuance of its covenant: Who actually drafts laws in the NTC?” |
Jamal al-Hajji, Human Rights Activist:
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“The role of the transitional authority is only to manage the stage. We would assume good faith and suppose that no one in NTC understands anything about the law to move away from the issue of integrity, because the situation is very suspicious! To say the least, this law is a circumlocution and was acted to impose the prestige of the state.”
“Why does the NTC not consider a more important issue that puts it under suspicion, i.e. activation of judiciary? They should restructure the judiciary branch and cleanse it from the corrupt ones in both the State Security Court and the People’s Court, whose judges used to sentence innocent people to life imprisonment or death, based on oral instructions from intelligence services.” |
Mohamed Bayou, Journalist:
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“Passing laws and ordinances that restrict freedoms, especially the freedom of expression, monitoring consciences and punishing emotions are the most draconian consequences of dictatorship and tyranny.”
“Some experts in law and politics consider NTC constitutionally ineligible to pass laws that affect a future in which it will not be present. NTC does not have the right – whether or not based on the Provisional Constitutional Covenant – to violate the principles and values of citizenship, equality, human rights, and international conventions. Criminalization of Gaddafi does not need a law. His last brutal savage war against the Libyans is sufficient to incriminate him of committing high treason. Those who still glorify him are patients and need treatment rather than prison.” |
