31 December 2003
Lagos — THE surprise decision of Libya's Ghaddaffi in renouncing the pursuit of his weapons programmes that included mass-destruction capabilities, should be of interest to all the globe's peace-seekers and disarmament proponents.
Penultimate Friday, Libya's Foreign Minister, Mr Abdel Rahmad Shalqam had announced to a stunned world that his country, henceforth, would not embark on, or encourage all military programmes that had the capacity for mass-destruction of enemies.
The renounced programmes included all nuclear weapons programmes, all chemo-bacteriological experiments, or research programmes that exceeded United Nations' agreed limits.
Previous clandestine programmes, according to the Libyan spokesman, would be discontinued. And all future activities in that direction of banned weapon's capability would not be initiated, or supported, by the Libyan government.
Libya went further than that eventhough she had long been a signatory to the International Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) which she had roundly ignored. The government of Muammar Ghaddaffi had offered international nuclear programmes inspectors unfettered access and chance to check on Libya's domestic weapons programmes and activities. This is very welcome.
Hitherto, UN arms control experts had suspected but have been unable to determine conclusively that Libya was amassing offensive chemo-bacteriological and nuclear weapons' capability. As such, Libya's threat to world peace, going by UN standards was potent and extremely unpredictable.
That is why Libya's decision to publicly turn her swords into plowshares is very welcome to the world and a statesman- like move by the Libyan leader, Muammar Ghaddaffi.
Whatever the motives or promptings for this strategic decision, Ghaddaffi's conclusion that world peace lay not in weapons of war, but in negotiated human relationships and co-habitation is a sublime act of statesmanship.
Furthermore, the Libyan initiative is a testimony that threats to global peace can as well be removed through dialogue, diplomacy and persuasion, than military action.
For correctly reading global trends and positioning his country accordingly, Col. Muammar Ghaddaffi deserves all commendations and support in her strategic decision to turn Libya into an accepted member of the international community and away from the pariah state which the desert nation's previous activities had placed her.
Predictably world opinion and reactions to Ghaddaffi's disarmament moves have been positive, supporting and encouraging. We support and applaud the Libyan leader's moves for its statesmanship.
Having for over two decades (1981-2003) staved off the impositions of the global powers that have sanctioned her, Libya's recent moves should earn the reprieve of the world who have sanctioned the Ghaddaffi regime.
The global welcome of Libya's new song is an indication that the country would be fully integrated into comity of nations once again.
However, it would be an irony of fate that the countries which have up till date opposed the Libyan leader's erstwhile belligerent posture are still in possession of not just chemo-bacteriological weapons, but are at no restriction to their use.
Until and unless the major powers of the world rid themselves of weapons of mass-destruction, the world would remain unsafe for small countries like Libya desiring to shield themselves from annihilation.
More pointedly, all nations in the Middle East, including Israel that have mass-destruction weapons should borrow a leaf from Libya and disarm. Otherwise, the Libyan gesture would be lost to irrelevance as the quest for nuclear capability is fired by the need for mutual deterrence among nations.
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