Summary:
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The Mission also admits for the first time that migrants were the victims of sexual slavery.
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The Mission claims that during the past three years, despite a “weakening of State institutions” and the growing influence of armed groups, the situation for women in Libya has only worsened.
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The Mission reaffirmed its demand that the Benghazi authorities, the scene of the two high-profile crimes, “adequately investigate” them and bring the offenders to justice.
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The Human Rights Council established the Mission in 2020 to investigate human rights violations by all parties since the beginning of 2016. In this regard, the Mission requests that the UN Human Rights Council created a “sufficiently resourced, independent international investigation mechanism” and that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights establishes a second mechanism “with an ongoing mandate to monitor and report on gross human rights violations in Libya.
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Political impasseElections scheduled to take place in December 2021 after a cease-fire brokered by the UN in October 2020 was postponed.
With no hope of prosecution, State security forces violated human rights to suppress opposition and exploit vulnerable migrants.
It provides evidence of the “widespread practise” of murder, rape, forced servitude, arbitrary incarceration, and torture in the nation. The Mission also admits for the first time that migrants were the victims of sexual slavery.
The head of the Mission, Mohamed Auajjar, stated a pressing need for accountability to end the widespread impunity. “We demand that Libyan authorities immediately create a human rights action plan and a thorough, victim-centred roadmap for transitional justice and hold those accountable who violate human rights accountable.”
Since overthrowing longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has been torn apart by warring militias and rival governments. The UN-recognized Government of National Accord is based in the capital Tripoli, and General Khalifa Haftar’s so-called Libyan National Army’s forces control the east and southern regions of the oil-rich country.
No responsibility
The Mission, which has been reporting since 2016, highlighted a severe lack of accountability for the crimes because most survivors were too terrified and distrustful of the legal system to report the abuse. The Mission claimed that as a result, the infractions continue “unabated”.
When its mandate ends next week, the Mission asked to develop new rights monitoring and investigation procedures to “assist Libyan reconciliation efforts” and aid the government in establishing “transitional justice and accountability.”
Migrants are frequently exploited.
The report states that between July 2022, when the Mission’s mandate was last extended, and March of this year, more than 670,000 migrants from more than 41 countries were present in Libya.
The Mission questioned around 100 migrants during its investigations, and according to its findings, there is “overwhelming” proof of breaches, including systematic sexual enslavement and torture.
Detention facilities, including the Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration and the Libyan Coast Guard, were “within the actual or nominal supervision” of the authorities.
According to the Mission, the “widespread” exploitation of migrants is a lucrative industry that “produced enormous revenue for individuals, groups, and State institutions” through trafficking, enslavement, forced labour, detention, extortion, and smuggling.
Abuse while in custody
Detention-related infractions were also discovered to impact Libyans negatively, and the Mission blames State leaders for this.
According to the report, victims “came from every segment of Libyan society and included children, adult men and women, human rights advocates, political participants, civil society representatives, members of the military or security forces, legal professionals, and persons of perceived or actual diverse sexual orientations and gender identities.”
Most persons the Mission spoke with were being held in appalling conditions, “frequently subjected to torture, solitary confinement, held incommunicado,” and denied access to food, water, and other necessities.
Women’s rights are regressing.
The Mission claims that during the past three years, despite a “weakening of State institutions” and the growing influence of armed groups, the situation for women in Libya has only worsened.
Inequality against notable women leaders, such as the forced abduction of Sihem Sergiwa, a member of parliament, almost four years ago, and the murder of Hannan Barassi in 2020, are all documented in the research. There is also an increase in domestic abuse, which is not criminalized.
The Mission reaffirmed its demand that the Benghazi authorities, the scene of the two high-profile crimes, “adequately investigate” them and bring the offenders to justice.
Still required: investigation mechanisms
The Mission’s mandate expires on April 4, at a time when “the human rights situation in Libya is deteriorating, parallel State authorities are emerging, and the legislative, executive, and security sector reforms needed to uphold the rule of law and unify the country are far from being realized,” according to the report. The Human Rights Council established the Mission in 2020 to investigate human rights violations by all parties since the beginning of 2016.
In this regard, the Mission requests that the UN Human Rights Council create a “sufficiently resourced, independent international investigation mechanism” and that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights establishes a second mechanism “with an ongoing mandate to monitor and report on gross human rights violations in Libya.”
Violators ought to be shunned.
The report urges nations to “cease all direct and indirect support to Libyan actors engaged in crimes against humanity and gross human rights violations against migrants, such as the Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration, the Stability Support Apparatus, and the Libyan Coast Guard” among other things.
The Mission also claims to provide the International Criminal Court with a list of “potential offenders” of global crimes and its findings.
Rights experts chosen by the UN Human Rights Council, such as the members of the Mission, operate on a volunteer and unpaid basis, are not employees of the UN, and are independent of any state or organization.
Political impasse
Elections scheduled to take place in December 2021 after a cease-fire brokered by the UN in October 2020 were postponed.
Abdoulaye Bathily, Special Representative for Libya and commander of the UNSMIL, announced to the Security Council last month a new initiative to make it easier to hold presidential and legislative elections by the end of the year.
Mr Bathily stated at the time that “reconciliation is a long-term process that should be inclusive, victim-centred, rights-based, and built-in transitional justice principles” about the requirement for reconciliation in Libya.
