Libya: Protests Against Gaddafi Start Ahead of Schedule
This post is part of Global Voices special coverage on Libya Uprising 2011.
Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi has been ruling Libya for more than four decades. According to Wikipedia, he is the longest serving of all current non-royal national leaders in the world. Hoping to emulate recent popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, Libyan pro-democracy activist have been calling for protests against the 41-year-old autocratic rule of Gaddafi. They set February 17 as a “Day of Rage”, using social networking websites to convince millions to take to the streets and peacefully call for change. But it seems that Libyans are too eager to voice their rage and anger at their leader as many decided to demonstrate today.
In the city of Benghazi, the second largest city in Libya, protesters gathered in front of police headquarters and chanted slogans against the “corrupt rulers of the country.” The response of the authorities was reportedly heavy handed.
This video, posted on YouTube by enoughgaddafi is from Benghazi:
Another video from the same demonstration in Benghazi by enoughgaddafi:
This post is part of Global Voices special coverage on Libya Uprising 2011.
4 comments
The people are being used so the greedy can move in and make North Africa oil sands just like they are doing in Canada. Better to stick together and not ruin your own property. Think of how much time and money goes into building. Think of the lives that have stood for so long. These protests are a distracton to bring you all down. Wake Up!