Macron Brings Libyan Protagonists Together but Doubts Still Surround
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Editorial Arab Quartet’s Israel steps up Europe’s sanctions air war against response to the against Qatar, Iran in Syria migration crisis a year on Page 6 Pages 5,10 Pages 9, 13 June 3, 2018 Issue 159, Year 4 UK £2 www.thearabweekly.com EU €2.50 Macron brings Libyan protagonists together but doubts still surround election prospects ► Convening the meeting was an achievement as no one had been able to get all four main actors in the Libyan crisis in the same room at the same time. Michel Cousins president, government and House of Representatives, will either be through a referendum on the pro- Paris posed constitution or by an amend- ment to the 2011 Constitutional en months after French Declaration. President Emmanuel Ma- The latter option is important cron achieved a political as a constitutional framework is T tour de force by getting the necessary. However, the proposed two main contestants in the Libyan constitution, as it stands, is unac- divide — Field-Marshal Khalifa Haf- ceptable to federalists in the east tar and head of the internationally and to the country’s ethnic minori- recognised government Fayez al- ties — the Amazigh, Tebu and Tuar- Sarraj — to agree to elections and a eg. They would boycott or possibly ceasefire, he has done it again. sabotage a referendum. This time, Macron brought to- It was also agreed that the Cen- gether not just Haftar and Sarraj tral Bank of Libya and all other but also the other two main ac- state organisations, such as the tors in the Libyan crisis — Ageela Libyan Investment Authority and Saleh, the head of the House of the National Oil Corporation, be re- Representatives (HoR), and Khalid united. Additionally, it was agreed (AFP) al-Mishri, the head of the State the HoR would move to Benghazi Council and member of the Muslim from Tobruk as soon as feasibly Conflicting agendas. Brotherhood’s political wing, the possible. (L-R) Libyan Field-Marshal Khalifa Haftar, President of the eastern Libyan House of Justice and Construction Party — The question is whether the deal Representatives Ageela Saleh, head of the internationally recognised government Fayez al-Sarraj for meetings May 29 in Paris. will be implemented or delayed to and President of Libya High Council of State Khalid al-Mishri during an international conference Convening the meeting was an the point of rendering it meaning- on Libya at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on May 29. achievement. No one had been able less. to get all four in the same room at UN Special Envoy Ghassan Sala- the same time, let alone have them me, who has been pushing for agree to specific steps to reunite elections, said he was optimistic. Haftar, he added, assured those Misrata and Tripoli let it be known eral governments privately ques- Libya, including presidential and Under the deal he is to convene an- at the meeting that the Libyan they were opposed to it, particu- tioned that Libya would be able to parliamentary elections on Decem- other meeting of the four to work Army would keep the country unit- larly because it was organised by have elections before the end of ber 10. out details of the elections and ed, protect the elections and “abide the French, whom they see as too the year. Before the meeting Macron pro- constitutional arrangements. by their results by working under close to Haftar. There are also sug- The Italians are known to be posed a draft agreement covering Also optimistic was Aref Nayd, an elected president, like many gestions, coming from Haftar’s deeply unhappy with Macron’s not just the elections and accept- the former Libyan ambassador to other countries.” Libyan National Army, that since initiative, seeing it as an attempt to ance of the results but also a com- the United Arab Emirates who at- Several HoR members expressed nothing was signed in Paris, noth- gain influence in Libya at their ex- mitment to support efforts medi- tended the Paris meetings and support for the Paris meeting. Many, ing is binding. pense. The Americans are reported ated by Egypt to reunite the Libyan who, in March, became the first however, were not convinced that There is also the fact that several to be less than enthusiastic, pub- armed forces. Even after the deal Libyan political figure to formally the deadlines will be kept. Some foreign governments, notably Italy licly supporting elections in prin- was decided, Mishri refused to sign announce he would be a candidate are sceptical about the meeting it- and Egypt, were not happy about ciple but not convinced the timing it, leading French officials to sug- for the presidency. self, seeing it as little more than a the meeting and are expected to is right. gest that no one sign. “It was a spectacular success, political show that the four Libyan do little to help implement the It was agreed that the constitu- despite the many doubts raised leaders felt they had to attend but outcome. Michel Cousins is a contributor to tional framework, which must be beforehand and despite the diffi- who will find reasons not to keep Although it supposedly had the The Arab Weekly on Libyan issues. in place by mid-September spell- cult negotiations. For the first time, their promises once back in Libya. backing of nearly two dozen coun- ing out the responsibilities of the deadlines have been set,” he said. Before the meeting, militias in tries attending the meeting, sev- P2 Syria’s television industry staggers through another Ramadan Sami Moubayed Syria to rescue his sister, who was and the Islamic State. gering anger from Damascus-based kidnapped during the conflict. He The opposition claims these actors who complain bitterly of the gets arrested shortly after setting works provide only the “point of disparity in hiring practices. Some Beirut foot in Damascus. view of the regime,” arguing that have turned to dubbing Turkish Syrian censors refused to air no works reflect that of the anti- soap operas to make ends meet. yria’s television production the work, saying that it had been regime camp, simply because Saudi This year, only 12 soaps were pro- industry, once a source of “postponed” — a polite way of say- Arabia is not interested in political- duced in Syria. Some actors who pride and joy for all Syrians, ing “banned” — which triggered ly driven works that wouldn’t sell used to earn $15,000-$20,000 per S has started to cave in, near- a backlash from Nouri. “I have during Ramadan. work are settling for salaries that ing collapse after seven years of re- adopted this project,” he told The As a result, even works that cost barely reach $8,000. lentless war. Arab Weekly, “because it achieves as little as $600,000 are having a The industry boomed in the ear- Before the conflict, the public and a small part of my personal ambi- difficult time recouping costs be- ly 1990s when Arab Gulf money private sectors used to produce 30- tions. It touches on reality, present- cause none of the big buyers, such poured into Syrian production after 50 television dramas per season, at ing people you see on the streets.” as MBC, want to air them, and be- Damascus joined the Gulf War. an average cost of $1 million per se- Because of the “postponement,” cause advertisement budget has That “reward” ended when Syria ries of 30 episodes. The private sec- Nouri was absent from television dropped in general throughout the put its full weight behind Hezbollah tor no longer has the money needed screens this Ramadan, given that region. during the summer war of 2006. At for such investment, resulting in “Bab al-Hara,” the cash cow of Syr- Before the crisis, such channels the time, Syrian President Bashar mediocre low-budget productions, ian drama, is off the air due to legal used to pay $300,000-$450,000 per Assad instructed state-run televi- with low salaries for A-list stars. It disputes between the director and a work, making it a goldmine for Syr- sion to buy “all works” produced by has also ramped up censorship for producer. ian producers. Now, the only chan- Syrians, to cover at least parts of the (AFP) shows that are politically sensitive. Another problem is an Arab boy- nels that buy Syrian works with a production costs. That put the in- Witnesses to decline. One example is “Tarjuman al- cott of locally produced Syrian domestic story are those that either dustry on life support. Now it faces Ashwak,” a state-produced drama shows, as well as viewer fatigue of get them for free, such as Syrian TV, total collapse. Syrian actors check that had been scheduled for this productions set against the back- or don’t pay well, like Iraqi TV. a mobile phone on set Ramadan, starring Abbas al-Nouri, ground of war. Much of Syria’s own Production companies wanting Sami Moubayed is a Syrian during the filming of a the celebrated star of the hugely output focuses on the rise of jihadi to reach a wide Arabic audience historian and author of “Under television series in the popular Arab soap “Bab al-Hara.” groups to kidnapping, checkpoints, have resorted to hiring Lebanese the Black Flag” (IB Tauris, 2015). mountains of Damascus’s “Tarjuman al-Ashwak” tells the electricity blackouts, war profiteer- actors and actresses, for much more eastern Yafour area. story of a dissident who returns to ing, economic grievances, refugees than their Syrian counterparts, trig- P20 2 June 3, 2018 News & Analysis Maghreb Cautious optimism among Libya’s neighbours after Paris meetings Ahmed Megahid Priority issue.