Gaddafi sets 3 conditions for stepping down from power
Almaty. April 13. Kazakhstan Today - Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi has announced his three conditions in which he will step down to a rebel representative, Kazakhstan Today reported.
Sources within the Libyan opposition National Transitional Council have informed Asharq Al-Awsat that they have received indications, from international mediators, that Gaddafi is willing to step down from power. This proposal would see Colonel Muammar Gaddafi remaining in a symbolic position, with power being transferred to his son Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, who would rule the country for a transitional period to be decided on by the parties concerned. Asharq Al-Awsat was unable to confirm whether this proposal was part of the African Union's ceasefire or not, Asharq Al-Awsat reported.
The dictator's first condition is to step down "honorably" and with his personal security guaranteed. The second one is for him to take a symbolic governmental position and the third - one of his sons, Seif al-Islam, to take over, the Arab press has reported, according to the Bulgarian Dnevnik daily.
Sources within the National Transitional Council told Asharq Al-Awsat that they have received confirmation that Gaddafi is prepared to step down so long as this is done in a dignified and secure manner. However the sources said that the messages they received from Tripoli did not clarify the kind of figurative or symbolic position that Colonel Gaddafi intends to hold in the future.
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat from the Libyan rebel stronghold of Benghazi, sources said that the National Transitional Council - which is led by former Libyan Justice Minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil - could accept Saif al-Islam Gaddafi as leader for an agreed upon transitional period, so long as Colonel Muammar Gaddafi is not present in any shape or form in the management of the executive affairs of the Libyan state. The source said that despite the public reservations expressed over Saif al-Islam Gaddafi as a leadership candidate - with him being viewed by some as nothing more than an extension of his father - it would be far easier to deal with him than Colonel Gaddafi, who is completely rejected by the majority of the Libyan population.
However, the source within the National Transitional Council also acknowledged the difficulty of convincing the Libyan public, particularly those in eastern Libya which has been under rebel control for more than a month, to accept this proposal, especially in light of the controversial and combative statements issued by Saif al-Islam Gaddafi during the early weeks of the popular uprising.
The anti-Gaddafi rebel stressed that any proposal must, at the very least, include Gaddafi stepping down from power. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that "if Gaddafi leaves power, and if Libya transforms into a modern and democratic state, then there is nothing to fight about...we are not bearing arms to fight the Gaddafi forces, but rather to protect the unarmed civilians."
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