SECURITY CONCERNS AHEAD OF LIBYAN ELECTION

B92 : SECURITY CONCERNS AHEAD OF LIBYAN ELECTION

TRIPOLI -- There is a concern over possible sabotage and unrests in Libya
ahead of the first democratic elections scheduled for July 7.





Election material was set on fire in a warehouse on Thursday.



There is no shortage of actors who have threatened to boycott or sabotage
the landmark vote on Saturday, AFP has reported.

Security services have warned that supporters of the former regime may seize
the opportunity to disrupt the vote to elect a national assembly, which
will be tasked with appointing a new government and a constituent authority.

Libyans will on Saturday choose MPs for the 200-seat national congress
whose main goal will be to draft a new Constitution.

Interim government spokesman Nasser al-Manaa late on Wednesday called on
"all Libyans to participate, protect and take pride in these elections
which are a step towards stability and development."

“The Electoral Commission is ready for the elections, there are no
logistical problems,” Electoral Commission Chief Nuri al-Abdar said.

However, federalists have in the east of the country called for the boycott
of the elections and announced various violent actions. There are also
security issues in the port city of Kufra where there have been clashed
with the Tabu minority.

The Libyan electoral system is fairly complicated. Aside from 2,500
individual candidates, more than 130 parties and political groups are
running in the election.

Situation on the political scene is not clear since Libya does not have
any party tradition bearing in mind that political parties were banned
during Muammar Gaddafi.

Many parties were formed after he was toppled and many of them have only
about a dozen members. The only party with somewhat longer tradition is the
Muslim Brotherhood party which faces accusations of being funded from abroad.

There are no opinion polls in Libya so it is impossible to predict the
outcome of the elections but it is certain that Islamists will have a
good result.

The main storage center for election materials in the eastern Libyan town
of Ajdabiya caught fire on Thursday in a suspected arson attack two days
before a July 7 parliamentary election, eyewitnesses and a security source
said, Reuters reports.

The security source said the fire at the storage center, which contained
ballots and other election equipment, was being investigated as suspected
arson.

Protesters demanding greater powers for Libya's eastern region last weekend
stormed an election commission office in the main eastern city of Benghazi,
160 kilometers further east, the agency stressed.