Gadhafi, Libya, counter-revolution, and the imperialist pack of hyenas

Fazal Rahman, Ph.D.

Note:  This article was completed on March 25, 2011 and was published shortly afterwards on Dandelionsalad.wordpress.com, from where it was copied and posted on many sites in the US, UK, and Africa.

Guarantee 10 percent and capital will do anything, guarantee 20 percent and it really comes to life, at 50 percent, it is ready to cut off its own head, at 100 percent, it will trample every human law, and at 300 percent, there is no crime it will not risk, even if it means the hangman’s noose.  English publicist T. J. Dunning, quoted by Marx and cited by Gromyko in his book, Memories: From Stalin to Gorbachev. P. 186, 1989.

Introduction

The invasion and destruction of Afghanistan and Iraq, by the forces of imperialism, have been thoroughly analyzed, documented, and publicized by numerous authors, including this one (1).  Numerous publications have also already appeared on the recent uprisings in the Middle East and their connections to imperialism, including this author’s (2), in which he stressed the ongoing and developing nature of these uprisings, their continuity with previous historical developments, and their potential for developing into genuine and profound social and politico-economic revolutions.  Within that general context, the Libyan situation and uprisings represent particularly complex and contradictory issues and problems for all the progressive and anti-imperialist writers and analysts.  As these contradictions are real, it is important to identify and explain them accurately, truthfully, and dialectically, and not to gloss over them for the sake of developing and maintaining a straight-line and contradiction-free position.

For more details on the nature of imperialism and its economic, political, and military operations in rest of the world, please refer to my two articles on the Egyptian Revolution and invasion of Iraq (1, 2).  The web links to these have been included in the Notes and these can be read on the Internet.

Libya, with its huge energy resources-proven reserves of 47 billion barrels of oil and 1.5 trillion cubic meters of natural gas (3)-greatest in Africa-, large area (1.76 million square kilometres), and a small population (6.5 million), has become a prime target for US and Western imperialism, since the collapse of USSR during 1991 and betrayal of socialism and its Third World allies.  Imperialists have been on a feeding frenzy after that greatest barrier to their insatiable greed for domination and control over human and natural resources of rest of the world disappeared.  They have concentrated on countries and regions that are rich in energy resources and invaded Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003 for that purpose.  Libya, under Moammar Gadhafi, had developed anti-imperialist positions and alliances in Africa and other parts of the world, and had also embarked on a largely non-capitalist path of social development, to which it gave a uniquely Libyan form, under the programs and objectives of the Green Revolution, as outlined in the Green Book and Green Charter.  Gadhafi had become a thorn in the limbs of imperialism long before the collapse of USSR and, under Reagan, US tried to assassinate him by air strikes in 1986, in which more than 100 civilians, including Gadhafi’s daughter, were killed, and hundreds were wounded.  In the post-Soviet new world reality and balance of forces, in which an unprecedented conglomeration of imperialist countries was taking shape, Gadhafi was forced to adjust his foreign and domestic policies, made an about turn in his relations with the imperialist centres, started satisfying some of their lust for profits and resources, as well as collaborating with and appeasing them, in the hope of averting the type of diabolical invasion and destruction that was inflicted upon Iraqis.  These changes in policy only worked temporarily and merely postponed the inevitable.  Imperialists now see a much greater opportunity for multiplying their gains and control over Libyan energy resources and political economy-in the midst of internal social explosions, in which they have been one of the causal factors and which they have fuelled maximally-through the installation of a much more obedient and compliant regime.  For that purpose, they have now gathered together once again, as a pack of lusting hyenas, which have seen an isolated, weakened, and wounded prey.  After baring their teeth and growling, they have now attacked their prey.  Only the blind and deaf, and those who are hyenas themselves, do not see and hear their bloodied teeth and claws and ugly noises, and for what they are, behind the humanitarian personae they are wearing.

Phoney “humanism” of imperialists and their Trojan Horse, the UN Security Council

Once again, the United Nations Security Council has proven itself to be an International House of Prostitution, by passing the imperialist UN Security Council Resolution 1973 of 2011 and giving the imperialist intervention and invasion of Libya a UN cover.  Even though every Arab and Muslim child can see that it is a US operation and it is for stealing Libyan oil and wealth, the news media anchors, academics, and experts-all grown up and supposedly highly educated-are stating it to be otherwise, a “humanitarian” operation of a coalition of humanist countries, which, in fact, are countries whose whole history is full of colonialism, genocides, plunders, and robberies of other countries and their resources.  US is also engaging in ridiculously clumsy manoeuvres to hide behind the NATO coalition, some puppet Arab countries, and the complacent Arab League, even though everyone knows that it is the US that has designed and is leading and implementing this imperialist intervention and invasion.

The apodictic hypocrisy of US imperialism, and its Trojan Horse, the UN, in relation to the uprisings in various parts of the Middle East and North Africa, is glaring so brightly and immensely that one would have to be in the Plato’s Cave, not to see it, and that is precisely where most Americans are.  In case of Egypt, it continued supporting Hosni Mubarak until the last moments.  Only when it became totally clear that his days were numbered, it discarded him like a piece of trash, just like it had done to Shah of Iran.  It has done nothing against the brutal repression and killings of demonstrators in Bahrain, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia.  Instead, with its encouragement, Saudi Arabia has sent its military forces to Bahrain to supplement the repression there and it plans to increase its annual aid to the Yemeni regime to $250 million, which it uses to repress and murder its people, and to maintain a system of horrendous social injustice, inequality, unemployment, poverty, and misery for majority of the population.  The Yemeni regime considers that amount inadequate for its participation in the war on terrorism and is asking for $6billion.  Imperialism’s “humanitarian” instincts-which, in fact, are the same disguised predatory instincts that are the structural parts of its constitution, and which are widespread throughout its imperialist society-are only activated in case of countries like Libya, which have addressed such problems and attempted to solve them effectively.  The big truth is that the US imperialism has been, and continues to be, the most powerful enemy of substantial human rights, human equality and dignity, social and economic justice, and peoples’ democracy, everywhere on the planet.  The UN Security Council has been providing a cover for its operations now for quite some time.  

Everyone in the US and West is expressing shock and disgust at the loss of life, resulting from the Libyan rebellion, and government’s efforts to control and contain it, without placing the matters in the past and contemporary historical contexts.  As terrible as it is, it is miniscule as compared to the mass murders of Iraqis, Afghans, and Pakistanis by the US and NATO forces, amounting to 3 million dead and countless wounded, widowed, and orphaned.  On the orders of their imperialist masters, the Pakistani government and military have been waging a war against their own people for years, in which tens of thousands have been killed and millions forced to flee their homes and lands, which have been demonically destroyed-all this with the weapons supplied by the imperialists.  Drone attacks, helicopter gunships, and bombings by airplanes are being unleashed daily by the US, NATO, and Pakistani military on the tribal populations of Pakistan.  And yet, no one asks the various professors and other academics and experts-including those with origins in the Middle East and employed by universities and other establishments in the US-why they do not utter a word about these atrocities in their TV appearances and articles, when condemning the loss of life in the Libyan conflict, not to mention their total omission of the historical role of imperialism in the latter.  Such intellectual and historical dishonesty and prostitution by the news media, experts, and academics is far worse than the oldest profession in the history of mankind.  They also continue to censor the analyses and views of authors who attempt to dig deeper into the nature, causes, potential solutions, and integrated history of the crisis, and continue to give totally one-sided exposure to the dishonest, omissive, distortionist, and complicit utterings of the loyal servants, beneficiaries, apologists, and advocates of imperialism, who have developed an astonishingly uniform and effective culture of singing the various versions of lullabys to keep the population in a permanent state of somnambulism.  The pretensions of humanism by these phonies are so transparent that only the most brain-washed and brain-dead cannot see through them.   

A summary of Libyan history and political economy

To begin with, Libya, like Iraq, Egypt, and other Middle Eastern and African countries, has a long history of foreign occupation and colonialism.  The original inhabitants of Libya were Berbers. Before the Arabs conquered the territories that comprise the present day Libya in 647 AD, these were ruled by the Greek and Roman Empires.  From 1551 to 1911, Libya was ruled by the Ottoman Empire, which was replaced by Italian invasion and occupation until 1943.  After the defeat of Italians by the Allied forces, Tripolitania and Cyrenaica regions of Libya came under British and Fezzan under French control.  As a result of a UN resolution, Libya gained its formal independence and sovereignty in 1951 and Idris as-senussi was installed as its king, who was extremely subservient to imperialists and under whom corruption and social injustice became rampant.  The first oil fields were discovered in 1959 but the new wealth generated by these became concentrated in the hands of the royal family and their aristocratic allies and the social inequality and injustice worsened, instead of getting better.  Under these conditions, a group of army officers, led by Colonel Moammar Gadhafi, staged a coup d’etat on September 1, 1969, in which they overthrew the monarchy and replaced it with a republic.    

Eight years after the revolution, in 1977, Gaddafi handed over power to the people through the establishment of the Jamahiriya which comprises Basic People's Congresses in each of the 1,500 urban wards, 32 Sha'biyat People's Congresses for the regions, and the National General People's Congress. These legislative bodies are represented by corresponding executive bodies (Local People's Committees, Sha'biyat People's Committees and the National General People's Committee/Cabinet). Every four years, the membership of the Basic People's Congresses elects their own leaders and the secretaries for the People's Committees.  Critical and heated debates are common during such elections. The leadership of the Local People's Congress represents the local congress at the People's Congress at the higher level.  Members of the National General People's Congress elect the members of the National General People's Committee, which is the equivalent of a Cabinet and that is headed by a Prime Minister, at their annual meetings. The Cabinet runs the government. These arrangements constitute the unique form of Libyan democracy. 

Following information was published recently in the Russian English language online paper, Pravda.ru.  Such facts are totally absent from the “free” and “independent” media of “The Land of the Free” and “Home of the Brave”.

“Few other countries live in such a social comfort, as Libyans do. They have free health care system and treatment. Their hospitals are provided with the best medical equipment in the world. The education in Libya is free of charge. Talented youth have an opportunity to study abroad at the expense of Libya. After getting married, a couple can get more than 60 thousands dinar (50 thousand dollars) of financial help. State credits are non-interest-bearing, and often the principal is written off as well. Automobile's prices are considerably lower, than in Europe and affordable for everyone. Petrol costs 18 cents (per gallon), and bread 4 cents. Libyans have been provided a very good environment as regards social and job-security, and their general educational level (both males and females can be seen pursuing all branches of university education) is better than that in so-called very affluent Arab countries like Saudi Arabia.” (4).

According to IMF/World Bank data, Libya now has one of the highest GDP per capita in Africa of more than US$12,000 in 2010 and is projected to be about US$18,000 by 2015 (IMF). The literacy rate is 82.6 percent, rising from 10 percent before the revolution; life expectancy at birth is 77.47 years and infant mortality rate is 21.7 deaths/1,000 live births. The revolution also greatly elevated the educational, professional, and social status of women.  In the early 1980s, before the Western blockade and economic sanctions, Libya was one of the richest countries in the world. Its GDP Per Capita was higher than that of developed countries like Italy, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and Spain.  Its foreign exchange and gold reserves are estimated to be more than $107 billion (3).  In 1951, per capita income in Libya was less than $50 per year, even lower than that of India.  After the formal independence, the poverty situation did not change significantly, until the 1969 Revolution that brought about great strides in every area of social, economic, and political life of the people, including the almost complete elimination of poverty and hunger.  In that respect, it is far superior to the leading advanced capitalist “democratic” country, the US, which is engulfed in the swamp of a prolonged and all-round structural economic, political, cultural, and social crisis.  The more it tries to extricate itself from it, the deeper it sinks.  With close to $14 trillion national debt; more than 50 million of its citizens without health insurance (according to a recent Harvard Medical School Study, 45,000 Americans die every year because of lack of health insurance and medical treatment); 20 percent unemployment; 43 million so poor that they cannot even feed themselves and have to depend on food stamps to survive; 22 percent poverty and hunger rate in the children; 3 million suffering the horrors of homelessness; the greatest inequality of wealth and income in the industrialized world (according to a recent publication, relative inequality in the US is greater than even in Egypt.  It certainly is much greater than in Libya.); and systematic state violations of domestic and international laws and its own constitution; application of draconian laws and practices, like the Patriot Act; prolonged incarcerations without judicial trials; international tortures and kidnappings; putting around half a million of its citizens and residents on the “No Fly List”, without even informing them that they are on it; widespread espionage and violations of the privacy of its own citizens; systematic firing of people from their jobs because of minor political dissent; widespread racist discrimination and injustice against the minorities, etc. etc., US is in no position to advise or assist other nations in the solution of their economic, social, or political problems, or to preach them about democracy, freedom, lawfulness, and human rights.  One would have to be robotically deluded, dishonest, callous, shameless, or a psychopath, or both, to do that.  As is obvious, there is no dearth of such beings in the US.  In fact, it is a requirement for success throughout the various institutions of this society that deal with the international as well as domestic affairs.

There have been widespread and unrefuted reports of the lavish and extravagant lifestyles of Gadhafi’s sons, some of whom are reported to have paid millions of dollars for their birthday parties and to some American singers for singing some songs at these parties.  They seem to be living just like the princess of the oil rich kingdoms, emirates, and sheikhdoms.  If true, this would also be betrayal of the revolutionary ideals and principles, as well as violations of Islamic principles and teachings, and clear evidence of corruption within the Gadhafi family.  How have they acquired so much money that they are able to squander it like that?  Where did this money come from?

Freedom of the press

Libyan leadership has demonstrated more tolerance, openness, and freedom of the press than almost any other country would under similar circumstances of being under attack by the unified forces of Western imperialism.  In the US, all the media reports are extremely anti-Gadhafi, pro-rebellion, and pro-imperialist, in lockstep with their government.  Some of the field reporters, like Arwa Damon of the CNN, have been literally instigating the revolt, demanding the No-Fly-Zone, arming and training of the rebels, and imperialist intervention.  And yet, these reporters have not been arrested or expelled from Libya, and are, instead, being assisted by the Libyan government in compiling and filing their reports that are overwhelmingly hostile, venomous, derogatory, and condescending.  It is hard to imagine any other government being so tolerant and open to the press coverage under similar circumstances.  In the main aggressor country, the US, unofficial censorship and self-censorship are so rampant, widespread, effective, and standard in all the mainstream media-even though the US is not under any military attack from anywhere-that there is no need for the official censorship.  In the “Land of the Free” and “Home of the Brave”, the Free and the Brave freely practice slavery, cowardice, intellectual-spiritual prostitution, and censorship. Capital is the great underlying force and glue that is regulating all the brain processes-including thinking, feeling, and analysis-of these progenies of Capital.  They are the most shackled slaves of Capital, and yet, they make the loudest and incessant noises about freedom and democracy.  When people are enslaved by the Capital in the depths of their souls and minds, there is no possibility of any real and meaningful freedom or democracy in that society.  In such a society, the best slaves are put in charge of all the levers of power.  Of course, in what Herbert Marcuse had called “the sublimated slavery”, in the modern advanced technocratic societies, slaves do not see themselves or others as such.  They imagine themselves to be the epitome of freedom.  Near the end of Marcuse’s very complex historical, dialectical, and politico-philosophical analyses and ideas in his “One-Dimensional Man”, one finds this insight and prediction, which has been repeatedly confirmed by the high tech politico-economico-military barbarism of US imperialism: “The facile historical parallel with the barbarians threatening the empire of civilization prejudges the issue; the second period of barbarism may well be the continued empire of the civilization itself.”  (5). We are in the midst of that Second Period of Barbarism.

The Libyan uprisings and their real nature

The rebellion in Libya is concentrated in the Eastern part of Libya, around Benghazi.  Overwhelming majority of people live in Western Libya, who continue to support Gadhafi.  Also, there are numerous traditional tribal divisions and rivalries in many parts of Libya.  The civil unrest and strife have now been fuelled by the US and other Western powers into a civil war.  In any case, this is an internal matter of Libya, and would have been settled in relatively short period of time, if there was no support and fuelling of the rebellion by the West.  The rebels themselves do not amount to much in themselves.  Gadhafi showed great patience and generosity towards the rebels and even sent them food and other supplies during the uprisings.  He also offered negotiations about reforms and later declared a unilateral ceasefire.  However, the rebel leaders, on the orders of their masters in Washington, DC-at first hidden but now standing naked-rejected both efforts for a peaceful resolution of the crisis, and continued the lawlessness, hooliganism, and violence.  If Gadhafi had not practiced patience and generosity towards the rebels in the beginning and had ordered the military to crush them instead, and if the West had left Libya alone, the rebellion would have ended within a very short period of time.  Now, it is not the rebels that constitute the main force against the Libyan government, it is the Western militaries that have inserted themselves into that position and are using the rebels as a cover.  Within the Western governments and militaries, it is the US government and military which constitute the main and driving force in that grouping, and which are, once again, trying to cover themselves under the façade of a coalition, just like they did in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Only those who want to be fooled, will be fooled by such a transparent persona.

The real top leadership of the Libyan uprising resides safely in Washington, DC, and it has an agenda that is only known to it.  Most common rebels have no idea of this agenda, which, if successful, will impoverish them and rob them of their human dignity, national pride, freedom, sovereignty, and resources, just like it did to the people of Iraq.  Only their leaders-who know it-will benefit enormously from the Libyan plunder.  For the imperialists, it would be an unmatchable bargain, as they will pay a tiny fraction of the loot to their Libyan collaborators and transfer most of it to their imperialist centres. 

As proven in Libya, masses can also be manipulated astoundingly into paving the way for imperialist interventions and invasions of their own countries, strengthening imperialism, against their own self-interests, and against the sovereignty of their nations.  The history of 1953 overthrow of democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran, Dr. Mohammad Mossaddegh, who had initiated important political and economic democratic reforms for the benefit of peasants, poor, and the working masses-organized by the CIA agents, Donald Wilber and Kermit Roosevelt-is being repeated in Libya.  Wilber had designed a step by step plan for the overthrow that was implemented by Roosevelt and his American, British, and Iranian teams.  It was known as Operation Ajax and involved the American CIA,   British MI6, and their Iranian agents.  The overthrow was engineered after Dr. Mossaddegh nationalized the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company-which became the British Petroleum (BP) later-that was in control of the Iranian oil industry since 1913, on 1 May 1951.  The plot was carried out successfully by the organization of massive protests-in which tribesmen and others were paid to participate in violence, looting, and destruction and burning of properties in Iran-by the conspirators. More than 300 people died and thousands injured during that staged rebellion.  Dr. Mossaddegh was overthrown on 19 August 1953 and replaced by a government, headed by General Fazlollah Zahedi, which was chosen and kept in secret by the CIA, until the success of the coup. After the overthrow of Dr. Mossaddegh, the King, Reza Shah Pehlavi, returned to Iran from exile and was restored to power.  The CIA agents were rewarded fabulously by him.  Iranians had to suffer his repression and brutality for decades until the 1979 Revolution, in which he was finally overthrown.  The highest US government officials were involved in that plot, including President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles.  Even though they never admitted their involvement, it came to light after partial information from a secret CIA document was published in The NewYork Times in 2000.  Now, full information of that document is available online (6).  In the 1920s and 1930s, Italian and German masses were also similarly manipulated in the interests of fascist capitalism, their own worst enemy, as well as the worst enemy of mankind.  The key point is that not all mass uprisings or movements are right or justified. Some are dead wrong, totally unjustifiable, and irrational.  Libyan uprisings clearly fall into that category.  Moreover, the leaders of those uprisings are now standing naked, as puppets and stooges of Western imperialism.  In relation to mass movements and uprisings, it is always of fundamental importance to discern their politico-economic essence, and take logical positions on that basis. 

Plans to plunder and steal the frozen $30 billion Libyan assets in the US

Libyan assets in the US amount to more than $30 billion.  These were frozen by the US government during the uprisings.  Some political commentators, like Fouad Ajami and David Gergen on the CNN, have started making heinous noises about using these to fund, arm, and train the rebels.  Some of the defectors, like the former Libyan Ambassador to the US, Ali Suleiman Aujali, have also started making similar demands.  It seems to be part of a predetermined and elaborate plot to loot, plunder, and steal these enormous financial resources of the Libyan people and government.  Libyan leadership is, of course, responsible for putting such huge resources in the imperialist centres, to begin with.  They learnt nothing from the invasion of Iraq, during which, similarly huge financial resources of Iraqi people were stolen, plundered, and disappeared.  It is very likely that Gadhafi’s son, Dr. Saif-al-Islam, was responsible for this great blunder.  Adding all the dots together, it is now certain that the Libyan rebellion was manufactured in the US and UK-which got other imperialist powers on board too.  US based Libyan Front for National Salvation (LFNS) and the UK based National Conference for the Libyan Opposition (NCLO)-the well known CIA and MI5 supported and trained organizations of anti-Gadhafi and counter-revolutionary Libyans, living in these countries, which have been collaborating with these governments, in joint plots and efforts to overthrow Gadhafi-are now being used as spring boards.  Now, they want to finance the imperialist invasion of Libya with Libyan money and steal and loot it too, in that process!  All this is being said and done with straight wooden faces and electronic voices; pretensions of purest of humanisms, generosity, benevolence; and self-righteousness that would put any demon to shame. One is left speechless and in a traumatic state of mind at such an ugly sight, in which the form is not only substituted for the content but is completely the opposite of it, and this process is the norm and standard in the media as well as other institutions of society.

Post-Soviet changes in Libya    

In Libya, just like in the former USSR, the initial steps towards a counter-revolution were taken by the Libyan leaders themselves, in the post-Soviet era.  These consisted of a complete turnaround in relation to imperialism and foreign policy, again following the footsteps of Gorbachev et. al. and betraying some of the fundamental goals, ideals, and allies of the revolution.  On the personal level, one of the worst betrayals was inflicted on the Pakistani nuclear scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, who had been helping Libya in developing a nuclear deterrence against imperialist threats and dangers.  All the confidential information about his involvement was handed over to the US.  Libya also started collaborating with the US in other intelligence matters as well as in its phoney war on terrorism.  The revolt in Eastern Libya is essentially a counter-revolution in its essence and aims to complete that process.

In the post-Soviet era, some of the most important policies of the revolution were subverted and turned on their heads, first and foremost, that of anti-imperialism and its subversion to collaboration with and capitulation to imperialism.  It is very likely that Gadhafi’s Westernized capitalist sons, particularly Saif-al-Islam, had a determining influence on these changes, which, objectively, constituted steps towards a counter-revolution, which now has taken the form of a large scale counter-revolutionary revolt in eastern part of the country that is being sponsored by the US and Western imperialism, the powerful high-tech military forces of which have now not only joined the counter-revolution but have become its mind and muscle. 

What was the nature of Gadhafi’s about-turn in the post-Soviet era?  Unlike the world-historical treachery of Gorbachev and Yeltsin et. al.-who betrayed the USSR, socialism, and entire progressive mankind, as part of the elaborate conspiracy of counter-revolution and restoration of capitalism-Gadhafi’s changes of policy were motivated by the necessity to save Libya and its people from the threat of a devastating imperialist assault and invasion, under the great changes in the international situation and balance of forces that resulted from that Grand Betrayal of all history, and, after which, US imperialists started acting as the “Sole Superpower” and proclaiming “Full Spectrum Dominance” over rest of the world.  What else Gadhafi could do after seeing the capitulation and prostitution of such great powers and countries, like the USSR and China, and the genocidal invasion of Iraq?  Obviously, he went too far in that direction, but the underlying reasons for such changes must be clearly understood, if one is to avoid falling into abstract idealistic pontifications.

Gadhafi faced a fundamental choice between:

1.  Acting on the commands of his soul and the spirit of Libyan Revolution, which would have exposed Libya and its people to destruction by the powerful forces of the West.

2.  Manoeuvring in every possible way to avert that great danger.

He chose the latter alternative, at the expense of the integrity of his own soul and the spirit of Libyan Revolution.  But this choice only postponed the catastrophe temporarily. 

The reversion to earlier anti-imperialist rhetoric by Gadhafi, at this stage, sounds hollow and does not carry the same weight.  After repeatedly blaming Al-Qaeda for the uprisings, the reality of their imperialist nature has now struck him hard, indeed.  It is hard to imagine Al-Qaeda throwing the red carpet for the invasions of Western powers in the Muslim countries, like the leaders and others in these uprisings have done.  It is a great tragedy to witness such a great man, and great leader of the Third World, like Gadhafi, in the process of losing both his soul and the world.  Obviously, he went through these trapezes in order to save Libya and its people from the kind of devastation and destruction that US imperialism and its allies inflicted on Afghanistan and Iraq.  It must have been very hard on him personally to do that.  And it did not even work!  In retrospect, he and Libya would have been much better off if they had stuck to the policies, goals, and spirit of their revolution, instead of changing, reversing, and betraying them.  Iranian, Venezuelan, and Bolivian revolutions have been able to maintain their anti-imperialist soul and policy in face of all the threats and difficulties thrown at them.  Even though, Libya faced far greater threats and difficulties, the policy of total capitulation and appeasement of imperialism was completely irrational and unjustifiable, and was doomed to tragic failure, from all perspectives.  It is very likely that Gadhafi was influenced and misguided towards falling into this trap by his Westernized sons, particularly Dr. Saif-al-Islam, who has a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and has been acting as a clever know-it-all, unable to foresee the ensuing results of his “cleverness”, which has now revealed itself as a devastating idiocy, not only for his father but for all Libya. 

Conclusion

It is beyond dispute that the 1969 Libyan Revolution, under the leadership of Moammar Gadhafi, initiated and brought about great progress in the political, educational, economic, industrial, medical, social, cultural, and other areas of Libyan society.  In the international arena also, it extended practical support to nations and movements struggling for their politico-economic and national independence and progress.  The programs, goals, and objectives of the Green Book, Green Charter, and Green Revolution involved highly creative, imaginative, and intelligent concepts for solving the problems of democracy, social justice, and politico-economic independence.  These were especially suitable for Libya, because of its unique economic and demographic situation and constituted a unique and innovative Libyan path of non-capitalist development.  In the entire history of Third World countries, no other intellectual or leader had come up with or designed such a comprehensive program of non-capitalist social development.  It was undoubtedly a reflection of the high intellectual, spiritual, and imaginative level of Moammar Gadhafi.  As a Muslim leader of a Muslim country, he went as far as he could, or anyone else could, to design and implement a politico-economic and social structure that would be consistent with both Islam and socialism.   

What rational and just stand should the progressive Arabs, Muslims, Africans, and people from other parts of the world must take in this great moment of truth and crisis?  To answer that question, it is necessary to identify and clarify the nature of main contentious forces on the global level.  The real universal dichotomy and opposition in the contemporary world is between imperialism and anti-imperialism, between the imperialist and anti-imperialist forces.  From the perspectives of all the great religions and philosophies of the world, imperialism is an indescribably great evil, as it stands for global injustice, exploitation, domination, plunder, robbery, wars of aggression, and mass murders.  US imperialism and its allies are currently occupying two major Muslim countries, Iraq and Afghanistan, and are waging brutal genocidal wars of aggression and the most extremist forms of state terrorism there.  They have now added Libya too to their sinister agenda.  The above-mentioned dichotomy and opposition between imperialism and anti-imperialism becomes fundamental in defining the nature of forces in situations where imperialist forces have invaded other countries and waged wars of aggression against them.  All the other differences and variations fade into relative insignificance in face of the overwhelming importance of this great opposition.  From that perspective, it becomes imperative to oppose the Western imperialist forces-which are waging a war on Libya and violating its sovereignty and independence-and their treacherous Libyan stooges and collaborators, who either seem to know nothing about imperialism or have sold out to it and expect to profit from it.   Brother Gadhafi-who helped various oppressed people throughout the world so generously and courageously for decades and is now reverting back to his authentic revolutionary soul and the spirit of Libyan Revolution-deserves the full political, moral, and practical support of all progressive mankind, in spite of the various contradictions, identified and explained above.

In regard to the leaders, let us never forget for a moment that the real heroes of the Third World and socialist countries-like Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ahmed Sukarno, Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba, Mohammad Mossaddegh, Saddam Hussain (in spite of his contradictions, he took a valiant stand at the end and died a martyr’s and hero’s death), Ho Chi Minh, Vo Nguyen Giap, Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Salvador Allende, V. I. Lenin, Leonid Brezhnev, Andrei Gromyko, Mao Zedong, Zhao Enlai, Lin Piao etc.-are villains in the virtual reality of imperialism, and real traitors and villains of the former-like Anwar Saadat, Hosni Mubarak, Reza Shah Pehlavi, Suharto, Mobutu Sese Seko, Ferdinand Marcos, Nguyen Van Thieu, Nguyen Cao Ky, Augusto Pinochet, Hamid Karzai, Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, Dmitry Medvedev, Chiang Kai-Shek, Deng Xiaoping, and the current Chinese leadership etc.-are its heroes.  There may be a few exceptions in this regard, but, generally, this conclusion operates like one of the laws of imperialism.  Currently, this law is operating in relation to Gadhafi and he is being processed by its grinding and demonizing machine.

More than anyone else, Russia and China can effectively thwart this new aggression.  However, they even failed to do the minimal in this regard by not vetoing the UN Security Council Resolution No. 1973 of 2011, which authorizes the creation and enforcement of the No-Fly-Zone over Libya, and which is being stretched, interpreted, and applied at will by the invaders.  African Union too-in the formation and financing of which, Libya played a key role-has done nothing so far and some of its members voted for the UN Resolution 1973.  Rest of the Third World is silent too.  It is unbelievable that they have learnt nothing from the long sinister history of genocidal imperialism, colonialism, neocolonialism, and robbery and plunder of their resources.  As Arabs say in extreme states of rage, revulsion, and hatred of evil and injustice, LAANAT on all your houses (LAANAT is difficult to translate.  It includes a combination of curse, shame, misery, and punishment). 

Postscript- April 4, 2011

References 7, 8, and 9 have been added to the Notes, which contain specific information that supports and supplements the analysis and conclusions of this article, in regard to the political economy of Libya and the Libyan rebellion and its leadership being under the control of CIA and British and French intelligence services.

Notes

1.  War in Iraq in perspective: the developing US imperialism and demonocracy.  Dandelionsalad.com, November 16, 2010.  Web Link:

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2010/11/16/war-on-iraq-in-perspective-the-developing-us-imperialism-and-demonocracy/

2.   Imperialism and the historical context of the developing 2011 Egyptian Revolution. Dandelionsalad.com, February 24, 2011.  Web Link:

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/imperialism-and-the-historical-context-of-the-developing-2011-egyptian-bourgeois-democratic-revolution/#more-100418

3.  CIA. The World Factbook. Libya, 2011.

4.  Libya: Media manipulation. Pravda.ru. March 9, 2011.

5.  Marcuse, H. One-Dimensional Man, Beacon Press, Boston. 1964, p. 257.

6.   http://web.payk.net/politics/cia-docs/published/one-main/main.html

7.  Perreira, G.  Libya, getting it right: A revolutionary Pan-African perspective.  Blackagendareport.com, March 2, 2011.

http://blackagendareport.com/search/node/gerald%20perreira

8.  Martin, P.  Mounting evidence of CIA ties to Libyan rebels.  World Socialist Web Site, April 4, 2011.

http://wsws.org/articles/2011/apr2011/liby-a04.shtml

9.  Hyland, J.  The agents of Washington and Britain within Libya’s opposition.  World Socialist Web Site, April 2, 2011.

http://wsws.org/articles/2011/apr2011/oppo-a02.shtml