Mr Bernard Membe, the Tanzania's foreign minister and International Cooperation
THE foreign affairs and international cooperation minister Mr Bernard Membe has categorically stated that Tanzania does not recognise the administration of Libya’s rebel-led National Transitional Council (NTC).
He said this when addressing members of the press in Dar es Salaam yesterday.
But, said Mr Membe, Tanzania would only recognise the group if it takes over the government and establishes the necessary organs that respect the division of power between the executive, legislature and the judiciary.
Apart from that, the minister said, there should be elections through which the people of Libya would choose the leaders they want.
With this stand, Tanzania becomes one of the 41 African Union member states that have declined to recognise the western allies created group the NTC.
Some 11 African countries have so far recognised the NTC, namely, Botswana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Tunisia, Senegal, Gabon, Burkina Faso, Benin, Kenya and Djibouti.
Over the weekend, the Libyan interim administration released names of members of its governing council for the first time and promised to increase its roster rapidly to provide representation to the newly liberated parts of the country.
But, Mr Membe said, it was not yet clear whether the rebel group has taken over the country.
“The issue of Libya is like a bunch of spiralling worms in a can, whose heads and tails you cannot see and whose number or sizes you can’t determine,” he said.
He said what Tanzania and the African Union (AU) see as an important step now was the restoration of peace in order to safeguard lives of innocent people in the country engulfed in sporadic fighting.
“Our concern is not whether Gaddafi remains in power or not. We’re concerned about the future of the country and prosperity of its people,” he argued.
Reports from Libya yesterday indicated that the rebels closed in on Colonel Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte from both east and west.
A senior military commander said, as the insurgents also scrambled to get Tripoli back on its feet.
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