Who is Muammar Gaddafi?

How can you call someone a dictator leader who overthrew a corrupt monarchy, modernized the country, won the highest HDI in Africa, and applied a direct democracy system of government?

Gaddafi has always supported revolutionary movements around the world. When the media – in the service of the U.S. – praised the apartheid regime South Africa, young Gaddafi in Libya trained and sent them back with the best weapons to win freedom in South Africa.

Suddenly the press began a daily attack on the leader Muammar Gaddafi, to distill hatred, spreading lies, forging videos for what? What does it prove? The crimes of the Libyan government? Apparently this journalistic line was caused by popular uprisings in Algeria, Tunisia, Yemen and Egypt.

In fact, it is more a question of one more terrorist strategy of the government of the United States of America to recover influence in the Arab world. In Egypt, the government fell in U.S. confidence. Mubarak was merely an agent of U.S. and Israel interests in the region. With the fall of Mubarak, Iranian ships began to circulate in the vicinity of Israel, causing unease and anger in the diplomatic environments subservient to imperialism and Zionism.

After losing Egypt, the U.S. government tries to divide and weaken Libya, and this effort receives support from the supporters of Bin Laden, and thousands of Egyptian refugees that over the years have taken refuge in eastern Libya, fleeing the repression in Egypt. After the Egyptians came Algerians, Tunisians and Somalis, followers of Al Qaeda. They enjoyed the hospitality of the Libyans and then the next thing they stabbed them in the back, triggering a revolt that has left tens of victims, through sabotage, terrorism and destruction of public property.

But who is this Gaddafi that the media suddenly started to attack in all forms, and even in a most cowardly form? Gaddafi led a revolution to overthrow King Idris, a puppet of Italian and American interests in the region. At the time, the largest U.S. military base abroad was in Libya, Gaddafi and his supporters surrounded the base and gave 24 hours for all invading foreigners to leave the country.

In power, Gaddafi did not like the Arab monarchs, did not build palaces with gold, not buy luxury yachts or collections of imported cars. He devoted himself to rebuilding the country, ensuring better living conditions for the people. Today Gaddafi is not president or prime minister of Libya, but the media wants him to resign a post which does not exist.

The lies of the media cannot hide the fact that Gaddafi has supported the struggles of peoples for liberation in Nicaragua, Cuba, Angola, Mozambique, South Africa and many other countries, specifically concretely helping the people who fought for liberation. In practice, Gaddafi has always been a benefactor of mankind, but for the mercenary media, a benefactor is one who creates wars in search of profits for the arms industry or to dominate the world, as were the wars created by the U.S. in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan, El Salvador, Nicaragua and many other countries.

This utterly ridiculous gossip of wealth and strange customs have always been exploited by the media, it was with Saddam Hussein, Yasser Arafat, Fidel Castro, Ahmadinejad, Hugo Chavez and etc. It is enough to be a serious ruler that does not seriously kneel down and cower in fear before the United States and is not intimidated to be demonised and disparaged by the mercenary media.

Another fact that the media cannot falsify is the HDI (Human Development Index) measured by UN officials. These data indicate, for example, that Libya had in 1970, a situation a little worse than Brazil (HDI of 0.541, against 0.551 of Brazil.) The Libyan index surpassed the Brazilian years later, and in 2008 was well ahead: 0.810 (ranked 43rd), compared to 0.764 (ranking 59th). All three sub-indices that comprise the HDI is higher in the African country: income, longevity and education.

In the HDI recast the difference remains. Libya is ranked the 53rd (0.755) and Brazil 73rd (.699). Libya is the country with the highest HDI in Africa. Therefore, the best distribution of income, and health and public education are free. And almost 10% of Libyan students receive scholarships to study in foreign countries.

So what kind of dictatorship is this? A dictatorship would never allow this kind of policy for the benefit of the people.

Gaddafi wrote the Green Book, the Third Universal Theory, which deals with controversial and real issues. He complains, for example, about the falsification of democracy through parliamentary assemblies. In most countries that consider themselves democratic, including the United States of America, political parties are organized criminal gangs to loot the people’s money in legislative assemblies, City Councils, House of Representatives, etc.

This observation – and a book in publication – certainly irritate and anger them? The defenders of parliamentary democracy? The Green Book, written by Gaddafi, says that workers should be involved and self-employed, and that the land must be of those who work it and those who live in the house. And power shall be exercised by the people directly, without intermediaries, without politicians, through popular congresses and committees, where the whole population decides the fundamental issues of the district, city and country. These words, which everyone knows are true, revolt and irritate those few who benefit from the falsification of democracy, especially the capitalist regimes.

But the press will keep on on forging the news, boiling hatred by spreading lies, because it is following orders from the U.S. government, very interested in the large oil reserves of Libya.

Major newspapers and television channels in the world use news agencies from the United States, all biased, misleading and deceptive. The lies that the news agencies sell buy public opinion, and most people? By naivete or misinformation they behave like puppets, repeating whatever the U.S. government determines and imposes.

This is not the first nor will it be the last, the Libyan Arab people face powerful foreign powers. Again the Libyan people will win, because they have the leadership of Muammar Gaddafi, an effective, strong and honorable guide.

In a rare interview with Western journalists in January 1986, only months before the U.S. terrorist bombing of Libya, the Leader of the Revolution spoke frankly about his life and how he had been misunderstood by the West. Meeting the journalists in his tent he told of how he admired former US Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln and of other world leaders he admires like “Egypt’s late Gamal Abdul Nasser, India’s Mahatma Gandhi, Sun Yat-Sen of China and Italy’s Garibaldi and Mazzini.” (Really, I’m a Nice Guy, Kate Dourian, Tripoli, Libya.) ((Mathaba.net))

He spoke of his favourite book The Outsider by British author Colin Wilson and others he likes such as Uncle Tom’s Cabin and Roots. Throughout this interview the profound thinking and innate humanity of Muammar Gaddafi shone through.

He also stated in another interview: “I see the press as being the messengers between me and the world to tell them the truth.”

Antonio Cesar Oliveira is a writer. This article was translated from the Portuguese by Lisa Karpova and appeared in Pravda. Read other articles by Antonio Cesar.

8 comments on this article so far ...

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  1. MichaelKenny said on March 3rd, 2011 at 9:58am #

    As I said in regard to Eric Walberg’s article, the American Empire and Israel are trying to get the genie back into the bottle! By the way, modern Pravda has nothing to do with the old communist newspaper, which was shut down after the dictatorship was overthrown. The present Pravda is owned by Greek businesspeople.

  2. Rehmat said on March 3rd, 2011 at 10:06am #

    Qaddafi’s problem is no different than the problem Saddam Hussein had – both wanted to get out of Zionist-controlled world domination.

    Qaddafi was a good friend of West as long as he allowed the western companies to loot Libyan oil resources. However, after Gamal Nasser’s death, he tried to become – first the leader of Arab world and then a leader of African world.

    Interestingly, his usual anti-Israel rhetorics – he has hired 50,000 African mercenaries through Israel to control the protesters. Acoording to Israeli source – Qaddafi is paying US$2000/mercenary/dayday to Israeli Global CTS, which pays $100 to the sheep and rest goes into the Jewish pocket.

  3. shabnam said on March 3rd, 2011 at 5:00pm #

    {Gaddafi has always supported revolutionary movements around the world.}
    I agree with you. Apparently ignorant Americans, whose economic system is based on war, must kill to survive, therefore, this time they go after Gaddafi and Libyan people’s resources to continue their meager existence as consumerists, no matter this translate into thousands of deaths on the ground like in Iraq. The arrogant people think it is worth it.
    The majority of Americans are WAR CRIMINALS who watch Obama lies on TV to frame a leader and a country for invasion and destruction. Americans do nothing except watching the show on TV when the war criminals are bombing the country to keep them interested until the new victims is framed.

    Obama, wants to establish ‘no-fly zone’ to have an excuse to bomb Libyan children based on FAKE evidence where ignorant Americans cannot tell the difference. Americans, including the phony ‘progressives’ want their terrorist government do it as soon as possible, so they can continue their meager existence without TOO MUCH interruption. This shows the nature of the dominant culture and its actors that how savage they are, which is unique in the history of the planet. Now, I understand what American Exceptionalism means!!

    I am shocked to see Obama, a war criminal, lying on TV with NO SHAME and ordering Libyan leader to leave his country now. OBAMA, the world tells you; get out now so Muslims can breathe a little. The terrorist US government is hated all over the world.

    According to NYT journalist David Rhodes, who escaped from captivity in Afghanistan, said the US president is hated so much that everyone who sees a picture of the president spit at it. How much hatred do you need before you leave the scene?
    I am SHOCKED to watch an evil man ordering an independent leader, not a Zionist stooge, to get out of his country so the arrogant and thieves can get hold of the Libyan people’s resource to feed themselves. This is an alarm to everyone in the world that US CONSTRUCT FAKE evidence to condemn a foreign leader with the help of the citizens including the phony ‘progressives’ and spread it around using a propaganda campaign based on LIES and DECEPTION so they can get their hands on Libyan resources and control their market, no matter how many people are going to be killed including children like in Iraq, Palestine, Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen and elsewhere. No one can call these people human.

    Obama as a black man should know how these people must feel about being slaves of an evil empire who kills to survive, apparently ‘power’ has corrupted him so much that he forgets promises that he made to Gaddafi. Gaddafi on World stage told everyone that Obama has betrayed me. We all trust Gaddafi not the war criminals in Washington where their dark history is known to every moving creature.

    This is an alarm to all Iranian people and their civilization of more than 7000 years that tomorrow a person from a country with 400 years on a stolen land of indigenous population may ask your leaders to get out. What are Iranians going to do? All Iranians must be prepared to destroy the evil empire if dares to come to our shore. The evil empire has no clothes. Thus, it is necessary for all Iranians form A FRONT with other communities and countries against the evil empire and its savage supporters NOW.

  4. Derek said on March 4th, 2011 at 6:30am #

    So, wait … your position is that Gaddafi is a revolutionary liberator, and that the uprising against him has been entirely fomented by the West, and he his not massacring protesters? There is no lust for change in Libya, in fact, it’s practically a paradise?

    This article contains not a single nod to the fact that there might be genuine dissent in Libya against their oh-so “strong and honorable guide”?

    This is just bizarre.

  5. shabnam said on March 4th, 2011 at 8:10am #

    {This article contains not a single nod to the fact that there might be genuine dissent in Libya against….}

    You are so ignorant and illiterate about other people’s history, that you have left your TERRORIST government, the United State, alone and have come after Gaddafi who has kept a tribal society fairly rich and together against numerous acts of violence and FAKE accusations by the West.
    You are so arrogant that have accepted LIES of your war criminals posing as *politicians* at the WH and elsewhere so you can abandon your conscientiousness once again in case of another genocide committed by your terror5ist state similar to Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, which makes it easy for you to stay silent like many times before since KILLING OTHERS AND STEALING THEIR RESOURCES have become your way of life which is *necessary* for you survival.

    You have come to the conclusion that accepting HOAX ‘genocide’ against leader s of other countries who are not from Anglo-American war criminals; like in Darfur, is the best way to bring the highest return for your tax $$$$ investment in killing other people in far away countries.

  6. Derek said on March 4th, 2011 at 8:28am #

    Well, shabnam, at least you didn’t make any assumptions about me! And glad to see you’re sticking to the commenting guidelines!

  7. lichen said on March 13th, 2011 at 9:32pm #

    Gaddafi quickly threw off any democratic reforms he put into place, and switched to right wing, neoliberal politics decades ago. Whitewashing him to pretend that he is still the revolutionary that he was in his youth is really stupid. When faced with an uprising such as the prison strikes in his own country, he responded by killing them all. He is guilty of genocide, and much more; it doesn’t have a damn thing to do with the US media, but with the truth. Conspiracy theories deny people their human rights every day.

  8. MichaelKenny said on March 14th, 2011 at 5:57am #

    The “war for oil, not war for Israel” mantra is a classic Israel Lobby propaganda line going all the way back to Iraq. What Russia wants is for other European countries to stop trying to “diversify” oil supplies under US presure and that pressure is, itself, part of the Lobby’s attempt to fabricate a new cold war in Europe. I assume that Hayate’s post is part of the latter campaign. In practice, the perfect solution for Europe would be for Gadaffi to survive (as in fact seems to be happening), for there to be no military intervention and for him, vengeful as ever, to sell all his oil to the Chinese, allowing Russia to become the principal supplier of oil to the other European democracies. For several reasons, that would be a serious blow to the American Empire and its Israeli master.