Last year I visited Berlin at the invitation of the Federal Foreign Office as part of a programme entitled “Democracy and the role of women in the Middle East” which included female professionals and activists from a number of countries in the MENA region.

Being a journalist under the autocratic rule of Libyan dictator Moammar Qadhafi was an exercise in choice: between promoting state propaganda and spending time in jail. Now that NATO has toppled the regime, Libya is a little better at letting reporters practice their trade. But the press in Libya is …

This is the first of a series of articles that will tackle psychosocial issues of war in Libya, the goal being to brainstorm and extend an invitation for all of us to grieve and heal together.

Due to recent media attention painting a negative picture on certain incidents related to women’s rights issues in Libya which are undermining the progress that has been made in this area, I would like to highlight some positive progress.

The first thing women’s rights activists in Libya mention about women’s rights in Libya now, is that having 33 women in the parliament is somehow a measure of the “positive steps” towards women rights in Libya and should be judged as a big success. But is that assessment truly indicative …

Public participation in the Constitution-drafting process is essential to ensure the final document enshrines the rights and freedoms of the Libyan people. (Photo: George Grant)

Libya’s Col Muammar Gaddafi is dead, but his shadow and the decades of his iron rule have not quite departed to the other side.

Countries transitioning to democracy must change old models of organizing the police, armed services, and intelligence services, which typically were characterized by mistreatment of the public, for models that stress transparency, accountability, and citizen involvement. Yet each new government in the Middle East and North Africa must tailor its reforms …

It is difficult to sum up the alliance of parties that has done so well in Libya’s first elections since the overthrow of Col Muammar Gaddafi.