Assalamu Alaikum

Distinguished members of the Advisory Committee,

I would like to warmly welcome you to the inaugural meeting of the Advisory Committee and to thank you for accepting to be part of this important endeavor. The challenge that lays ahead is not an easy one, but it is an important one.

The Advisory Committee is part of the inclusive and intra-Libyan political process to overcome the current political deadlock in Libya which I announced to the Security Council last December. UNSMIL is convening the Advisory Committee in line with paragraph 2 and 5 of Security Council resolution 2755 (2024).

We have convened this Committee to produce technically sound and politically viable proposals for resolving outstanding contentious issues in the electoral framework to enable the holding of elections. It is our expectation that the outcome of your deliberations will help inform subsequent phases of the political process and support Libyan decision-makers and institutions to overcome the current political deadlock, which is called for in paragraph 5 of the Security Council resolution, 2755 (2024).

As its name suggests, the Advisory Committee is not a decision-making body. It does not replace any of the existing institutions. It is our goal for the Committee to conclude its work in the shortest possible time.

In undertaking its work, the Committee will build on existing Libyan frameworks and laws including the Libyan Political Agreement, the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum Roadmap and the 6+6 Electoral laws.

With the experience and expertise which you bring, we hope this Committee can be a space to constructively discuss and propose pragmatic and politically implementable options paving the way for the holding of national elections.

You were identified and invited to take part in this Committee for your professionalism; expertise in legal, constitutional, and/or electoral issues; ability to reach compromise; and your understanding of the political challenges facing Libya. We need your collective wisdom to reflect on past experiences and draw lessons to identify a way forward.

I understand this is no easy feat.

Not only are the issues complex, but they lend themselves to political instrumentalization in a highly polarized context such as Libya today. It is our collective responsibility to safeguard the integrity of this Committee by staying focused on the task at hand, putting national interest first and staying above partisan interests.

Distinguished members of the Advisory Committee,

Libyans from all walks of life that I have had the honor to meet, have told me repeatedly that they want national elections and they need unified institutions.

Libya’s transitional architecture is crumbling under the weight of political polarization and the lack of a clear project for a permanent system of governance. The democratic legitimacy, won after the revolution, is quickly eroding. 

We need to reflect honestly and frankly on why presidential and parliamentary elections in December 2021 did not succeed to help overcome the obstacles preventing the holding of elections today.

We need to learn from the past so that we do not make the same mistakes in the future. There needs to be a genuine focus on comprehensively addressing the obstacles preventing the country from getting to national elections.

Distinguished members of the Advisory Committee,

Our goal is to generate options to help facilitate a resolution of the outstanding politically contentious issues pertaining to elections and to support Libyan institutions deliver inclusive and credible national elections within a realistic time frame, while preserving Libya’s fragile stability.

This Advisory Committee is a first step in this endeavor.

I am looking forward to working closely with you over the coming weeks.

Thank you.