There are somewhere between 65,000 and 80,000 internally displaced people (IDP) in Libya, according to UNHCR.  Entire families fled cities that were destroyed during the liberation war, or challenged by conflicts with neighboring cities, and they are still suffering from governmental lethargy in finding a solution. 

There are somewhere between 65,000 and 80,000 internally displaced people (IDP) in Libya, according to UNHCR.  Entire families fled cities that were destroyed during the liberation war, or challenged by conflicts with neighboring cities, and they are still suffering from governmental lethargy in finding a solution. 

The Ramco camp— which once housed workers from the Turkish real estate company before the revolution— implemented the al-Hadaba (The Hill) residential project, which serves today as a camp for IDPs from Tripoli.

The camp is inhabited by 122 families, 20 of them from Tawergha, two from Bani Walid and 98 from Tripoli. They were all obliged to live in the camp because they do not own houses and cannot afford rent, given the extremely high prices of real estate. 

A bad situation

Conditions in the camp are bad— residents complain about the severe salinity of the water and the piling garbage everywhere, while the concerned authorities do nothing to collect it.  From time to time residents put their money together to collect garbage although they have barely enough money for their basic needs.

“No one from the government came to us but the Tripoli’s local council is continuously following up,” said Ashraf al-Qimati, the supervisor of the camp. “Members of the Social Affairs Department’s branch came about eight months ago and counted the numbers of families residing in the camp, but nothing happened afterwards.“

Al-Qimati also became a resident of the camp once his landlord raised the rent from 150 dinars (US $120) to 500 (US $per month. “This is equal to my full salary and I have a family to support. It was for this reason that I came to this camp,” he said. 

Unguarded

Al-Qimati also complained about the security in the camp, which has already had three battalions guarding it although now it remains unguarded. At night, says Al-Qimati, there are outlawed people, drug traffickers and drunken people who come to the camp. “Some of them have attempted to burn some of the houses and they left seven families with no shelter other than the street.” 

When heavy rain started to fall, many of the huts were drowned and caused a problem with the exposed electrical cables. “We informed the control room and asked the electricity company to disconnect the master key.  They promised us to do so but no one came.  It was God’s care that the rain stopped but the cable is still a source of danger to all of the camp’s residents.” 

I have no income

Ramadan Ghazal is another resident at Ramco Camp, who originally came from Tawergha, right before the liberation of Tripoli in 2011. The people of Tawergha were driven out by revolutionary battalions and many had been accused of having been supporters of Gadaffi.

Ramadan gets no assistance from the state and he is not registered in any of the investment funds and he has no retirement salary despite having been a solider who served in the Chad War.  “I have two wives and 11 sons and daughters and I live a very simple life,” he said.  “I have a broken pelvis and I cannot perform any work that requires physical efforts. 

“When the war ended, we were sacked from the service and we did not get any compensation. We came out of the war semi-crazy. I sent my file to all state institutions but nothing happened.  My wife has a sewing machine and it brings us some money every now and then and this is how we are surviving.” 

Dream of return

Despite the intensity of the conflict, al-Ghazal did not lose his hope of returning to his city.  “The outbreak of fury between Misrata and Tawergha is only a temporary thing. The people of Misrata will always support the people of Tawergha and the opposite is true. Reconciliation is going to happen and I have lots of hope that I will be able to return to our Tawergha even if I will have to wait for a long time.” 

“We will not accept any place other than Tawergha. Even if the government provides us with other houses, we will not accept them and even if we live for another 40 years as displaced people. Any person who accepts other solutions is not from Tawergha. Our destiny is our return to our hometown and the land of our ancestors.” 

A burnt hut

Abdul Salam Muhammad lives with his father, mother and sister in the camp. He is a student at Tripoli University and his family was forced to go to the camp because they don’t have a house and no income for rent.

Abdul Salam was unable to attend university for a time because the hut, where he lives, was completely burnt and the family lost everything it owns in the incident that was told by the camp supervisor. The fire had also made him lose his university identity card and his books and today he and his family are living as guests at one of the other families’ house who live in the camp. 

“The representative of Tripoli’s local council came to our house after it was burnt.  He gave us 150 dinars, and a 14-inch TV. That was all.”