TRUTH to tell, I have never been a great fan of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. I never found his love for grandiosity and uncanny ways of stealing the limelight appealing. His antics were at times, to say the least, not befitting a person of his posture as a world leader.
But I will also give credit where it is due, Gaddafi was no pushover. He stood his ground and made it clear to the world that he was not a puppet of any foreign interests. Perhaps that was his undoing; he pushed too many wrong buttons with his stance.
It is no wonder then the powers that be wanted him out of the way, they just could not be too conspicuous. But when the opportunity presented itself in a golden platter, it was time to go. The rest will be rest to history.
For complicated reasons of his own, Gaddafi also encouraged diversity in Libya. According to recent article in TIME magazine, Tripoli is known to be a racially diverse city, with skin colors ranging from pale to very dark, largely because Gaddafi encouraged such integration.
But a latent racism festers, along with the hazy rules that only locals seem to understand that distinguish between "good" black people from "bad." The logic follows the lines of Gaddafi's uneven favors, which even in Tripoli often served personal ambitions more than the public good.
The report further states that the line between regime soldier and dark-skinned southerner or migrant worker has grown murkier in the fog of war. Throughout the conflict, rebels have often been eager to offer reporters their proof of foreign fighters in the form of dark-skinned bodies, foreign passports and ethnic charms that they've found along the front lines.
And in the aftermath, foreign blacks and southern Libyans remain prime suspects, even as rebels sweep pacified neighborhoods of Tripoli. Rebels would time and again produce darkies they arrest as mercenaries solely because of the color of their skins.
If one chooses to blame Gaddafi, it may suffice to state that he may have done more to divide his country's future than to encourage tolerance and respect. But in a country where racial, tribal and geographic mistrust is commonplace, it would take more than a Gaddafi to change attitudes.
And that may well be the handicap that will make the country very difficult to govern after the dust settles. Since rebels took over most of the country there have been incidents of racial intolerance, this will in due time have a spillover effect. Libyans will start prodding at each other because of their tribes and geographic origins.
The sad part is that this will not be the first time that it happens. We have seen it in other countries where America and allies tried their adventurism. The allies have left an insecure Afghanistan and Iraq after ousting those countries’ regimes and the same is looming in Libya.
The need to get rid of Gaddafi was so pressing that filling the vacuum after his ouster was not a matter of substance at the time the fighting started. As they are going through the list of puppets to replace Gaddafi, no one knows how long it would be before Arabs run out of darkies to taunt and start turning on each other just because they come from different tribes.
With all the arms in the streets of Libya following the war, it would be no surprise if the streets of Libyan cities will the most dangerous places to roam about. All of this is because those who helped to start the war never really cared about what would happen to Libyans, but rather what they would get after Gaddafi is out of the way.
As for black Africa, past relations with Libya should remain but a distant memory. I mean what should we expect if red carpets have been rolled for NTC leaders in as far off places as Russia? The killing is done and now even those who did not want to take part in the kill want a share of the spoils. That was well thought out!
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