Thousands of Libiyans flooded central Benghazi today to rally for autonomy of the eastern region of Libya, Cyrenica.
Staging a pro-federalism rally, the activists called for the creation of a semi-autonomous region of Cyrenaica, which contains almost three quarters of Libya’s accessible oil reserves.
“Ignoring our demands for federalism has dire consequences on the future of Libiya, “ proclaimed an activist.
The movement released an official declaration, which stated their “full support for the elected government, which won the confidence of the General National Congress, in order to draft a constitution on the basis of the legitimate constitution of 1951.”
The 1951 constitution divided the country into three separate administrative zones: Tripolitania,Fezzan and Cyrenaica. Federalists claim that, the subsequent regime of Colonel Gaddafi neglected the zones that were created under the 1951 constitution.
As a result, the Federalist movement, want the issue of negligence of states to be addressed in the new constitution, by basing it on the 1951 federalist union system.
Libya’s transitional government has condemned the movement for autonomy, and denounced it as the result of foreign plots aimed to disturb national unity and foster instability.
