Libya

Please provide us with your views on the state of peace in the country you will represent at the One Young World Summit.

Unfortunately, peace in Libya is scarce despite peace being what most of the Libyan community yearns for. Seven years after the fall of a dictatorship, the nation has been left to tear itself asunder after the NATO intervention and consequently has become the archetype of a failed state in the eyes of most onlookers. However, for its citizens, living in Libya entails intrinsically accepting that the country is on a perpetual brink and that having a sense of foreboding is a way of life. Communities in the East, West and South of Libya may have very different views on Libya’s past, present and future, but all can attest to the fact that sporadic conflicts and flare-ups of violence have become the norm. Thus, not only have many of Libya’s citizens lost faith in ‘peace’ as a concept, the international community seems to have tacitly accepted that political stalemate is the “Libyan status quo”, architecting foreign-policy schemes that aim to stabilize a country otherwise viewed as an irredeemable threat to its neighbours.

Nevertheless, some individuals have remained defiant, and although influential peace activists often meet tragic fates, the clout of local civil society organizations’ in the social Libyan sphere often brings a glimmer of hope.

How do you think your work and/or activism contribute to countering violent extremism and a sustainable peace?

I currently work with an international peacebuilding organization, the Peaceful Change initiative, where I focus on developing social peace intra and inter-community, with an emphasis on conflict sensitivity. In Libya’s conservative society, it is sensitive to bring up PVE because the community is generally dismissive, deeming it a foreign problem rather than an indigenous one. However, I have worked with multiple local communities in Libya who developed their own local development plans, and they regularly implement initiatives with objectives that overlap with those of PVE such as DDR and youth and women’s inclusion in peacebuilding through cooperation with local authorities.

My full-time engagement in Libya has not prevented me from broadening my scope to an international level. I have represented Libya in the Youth, Peace and Security consultation on Resolution #2250 in December 2016. Since, I have regularly spoken at events championing the role of youth in peacebuilding and PVE globally. Most recently, I instructed at Middle East Direction’s Summer School, exploring challenges affecting stabilization in post-IS scenarios.

I am also a YLVP_SI 2017 fellow and an intercultural leader and fellow with UNAOC, with main pillars of expertise in the areas of migration, counter-terrorism and conflict resolution.