The EU exports around €340 million of military equipment to Libya each year. Here are the details — what country, what kind of equipment.

The official record is here. This is data for 2009, the most recent available. I’ve pulled out the relevant data, simplified the categories somewhat, and made a spreadsheet out of it:



What’s to notice in these numbers?

• €343m per year buys you a lot of weapons. This isn’t fiddling around the edges, it’s a major contribution to keeping Gaddafi in power.
• The 4 biggest exporters were Italy, Germany, France and the UK. Exactly the same four led the drive in 2004 for the EU to lift the arms embargo on Libya. Can anybody claim with a straight face that this wasn’t a case of commercial interests taking precedence ovr the people of Libya?
• Britain and France had the most varied arms exports, including much of the really nasty stuff. They provided respectively $210,795 and €476,604 of “Chemical or biological toxic agents, ‘riot control agents’, radioactive materials, related equipment, components and materials”
• There’s plenty happening that isn’t in these numbers. Take a look at my post on German training services, for a start.
• Malta’s €80m small-arms sale is an accounting fiction, or possibly some kind of legal dodge. They were sold by an Italian company, which moved them between ships in the sea near Malta.
• These figures are all for export licenses granted. It’s possible that in some cases the weapons weren’t sold in the end. But licenses are the best public figures we have

Nochmal ein Aufruf zur Demonstrationen, die nicht gut verbreitet wurde:

Bitte weiter leiten! Für Freitag 15.00 Uhr Brandenburger Tor

____________________________________________________________

Internationaler Solidaritätstag

mit den kämpfenden Völkern des Nahen Ostens und Nordafrikas!

Spätestens seitdem in Tunesien der korrupte Präsident Ben Ali aus

dem Amt gejagt wurde, hat sich in der arabischen Welt der Funke des

Aufruhrs in Windeseile verbreitet. Die Verzweiflung über Armut und

Perspektivlosigkeit, über Willkür und Folter hat die Menschen auf

die Straße getrieben.

In Ägypten hat der Aufstand alle Schichten der Gesellschaft erfasst.

Millionen von Menschen in allen Landesteilen, Arbeiter, Bauern und

Intellektuelle, Frauen und Männer, Alte und Junge, Muslime,

Christen und Säkulare haben sich auf den Straßen und Plätzen

vereint.

Jemen, Bahrain, Algerien, Jordanien, Irak und nun Libyen sind die

Länder, wo die Völker sich gegen die sie Unterdrückenden auflehnen

und die Tyrannei abwerfen. Die Diktatoren wollen Zeit gewinnen, um

die herrschenden Strukturen zu erhalten. Doch die neue Bewegung ist

nicht aufzuhalten. Die Völker brauchen unsere Solidarität und

Ermutigung.

Zur Stärkung der Kraft der betroffenen Völker findet

am Freitag, dem 25. Februar 2011 ab 15.00 Uhr

am Brandenburger Tor (Pariser Platz) eine Mahnwache statt.

Sie dient der Vernetzung und dem solidarischen Miteinander mit den

Bürgern aus dem Nahen Osten und Nordafrikanischen Raum in unserer

Stadt.

V.i.S.d.P. Deutscher Friedensrat e.V. (mailto:saefkow-berlin@t-online.de)

In Britain, there’s currently a certain amount of self-criticism over the UK’s

rapprochement

with Libya over the past decade — how our demands were about terrorism and biological weapons, how our desires were for weapons and oil deals, and how anything involving human rights or democracy within Libya was left out of the picture.

In Germany, there’s been nothing of the sort. When the German press has blamed anybody outside Libya, they’ve blamed the US — which is somewhat unfair, given that in this instance America has cleaner hands than any European government. There’s been occasional criticism of Britain, France, Italy and the EU, but almost none of Germany itself.

This is odd, given that Germany has by my reckoning been one of the main forces supporting trade, business and even military links with Gaddafi, and has been no more obviously concerned with the ethics of it than any other country.

I spent part of last night going through German newspaper archives, picking out past reports on German relations with Libya — be they around oil or engineering (common) or human rights (very, very rare). Here’s just one instance from the pile of notes.

Let’s go back to 2004. The EU arms embargon on Libya had just been lifted, thanks to lobbying by Germany, France, Italy and the UK. Denmark and Sweden had mentioned human rights, but the general feeling was that, by abandoning its biological weapons program and renouncing international terrorism, Libya had conceded on all the truly important issues.

Just days later, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder landed in Tripoli with an entourage of 25 businessmen. In passing he praised what he called the ‘political change’ in Libya. But his main reason for visiting was the promotion of German business. Openly so, and with the support of much of the German political spectrum, from his own center-left SPD, through the pro-business FPD to the conservative CDU. So he shook hands, made introductions, closed deals. He was photographed in an elaborate tent, and at an oil well, looking equally out-of place in both locations.

What didn’t emerge until four years later was that, alongside oil and engineering negotiations, Schroeder was fixing up a deal whereby elite German commandos would train the Libyan security services.

This caused controversy when it emerged in 2008. Not as military support for a dictator — the €43m of German jamming equipment bought by Libya in the last 2 years has raised few eyebrows — but because it was being provided by German security personnel, and thus involved sharing state military know-how with a potential enemy.

In fact, the Byzantine structure of the deal shows everybody knew they were bending the rules to breaking point. The German officers would receive €15,000 each, paid by a private security firm which in turn got a €1.6m cheque from Libya. They would take time off from their elite anti-terrorist unit. Their superiors thought they were vacationing in Tunisia, though the German embassy in Libya knew their real purpose. The officers set up shop in a barracks in Tripoli, where for 6 months they taught their Libyan counterparts how to storm buildings, board ships and operate out of helicopters.

Training can’t be identified in the same way as you might see ‘Made in Germany’ on a used shell. But it’s no less real; we can be sure that a hundred or so of the Gaddafi loyalists struggling to keep control of Tripoli have been trained by the German security forces.

[this is a modified cross-post from Ethnography of Light, a group-blog run by a few friends in Berlin. If you feel like browsing through there, do click through on the links. Much of the best stuff — like this collection of poetry — is hidden behind not-very-prominent links to Google Docs]

Here is a good article on how Europe and the US could influence what’s happening in Libya:

There are numerous steps the United States and its allies can take today to affect the immediate calculations of the Qaddafi regime. Europe buys 85 percent of Libya’s oil, after all. And the West largely controls the international financial system through which the Libyan leadership moves its money — and could block transactions with one word from the Treasury Department or other finance ministries. And there’s more: Western governments could say today that they will seek international investigations and prosecutions of Libyan officials who murder their people. And they could offer to provide humanitarian assistance to parts of Libya that have fallen to the opposition.

…

We should be under no illusion that Qaddafi himself will give in to international pressure at this point. As his brutal tactics show, he is fighting for his life. But Libya’s fate is not in Qaddafi’s hands; it is in the hands of those who must decide, today and tomorrow, whether to follow his orders. Every psychological blow to Qaddafi’s government — whether it is a Libyan official who defects to the opposition or a forceful repudiation of his government by the international community — gives them another reason to refuse to commit further outrages on their leader’s behalf, for which they may be held accountable when the crisis is over.

ETA: The International Crisis Group also has some suggestions.

Nir Rosen on Al Jazeera:

In Egypt, when established opposition parties and Muslim Brothers went to Umar Suleiman to cut a deal, Jazeera played a key role in scuttling this betrayal of the revolution by going back to the demonstrators and airing their demans and challenging the opposition leaders. Jazeera asked people what they wanted if Mubarak left, if they wanted Suleiman, etc and it pressured political leaders who were more inclined to compromise with the regime. Jazeera forced them to hear what the street was saying and prevented them from compromising.

In Libya, as in Egypt, Jazeera has been naming names and shaping public opinion, challenging people. People who come on Jazeera are calling on people by name, Libyan guests are naming senior government people and military people, like regional commanders, asking why aren’t they moving in to Tripoli. Its not necessarily Jazeera naming these officials, but it gives others the chance and then it interviews Libyan officials to ask them what they think

Edit

Noch eine Kundgebung — Morgen, 1530, nochmal vor der Libyschen Botschaft.

Das Folgende bekam ich heute durch einen Verteiler. Ich weiß nichts mehr darüber, aber propagiere es gerne weiter:

Freiheit für Libyen!

Als ein Teil der arabisch sprechenden Völker hier in der Bundesrepublik verfolgen wir mit großer Sorge

alles, was jetzt in unserem Bruderland Libyen geschieht sowohl auf politischer,

wirtschaftlicher, juristischer und konstitutioneller Ebene als auch auf der

Ebene der Sicherheit. Die letzten Ereignisse, soweit sie uns durch die

Nachrichtendienste und andere Medien zur Kenntnis gelangen, sind höchst

erschreckend und verachtungswürdig. Ghaddafi setzt das Militär und ausländische

Berufssoldaten gegen gewaltfreie Demonstranten ein, die sich für Gerechtigkeit, Meinungsfreiheit und

Demokratie versammeln, lässt mit scharfer Munition und von Hubschraubern

aus schießen, setzt Scharfschützen ein, die von Dächern aus auf Kopf, Brust und

Herz von Menschen zielen und sie bei einem Trauermarsch töten. Bis zum heutigen

Tage sind, jedoch unsicheren Nachrichten zufolge, seit Mittwoch, dem 16. 2.

2011, mindestens 1.500 Personen durch

Gewalt gestorben.

Im Sommer vergangenen

Jahres ließ Ghaddafi 1.500 politische Gefangene, die sich im Gefängnis Abu

Salim befanden, erschießen. Sein Sohn Saif ul Islam versuchte dann, die

Angehörigen der Getöteten durch Bestechungsgelder daran zu hindern, dass sie

sich an internationale Menschenrechtsorganisationen wendeten. Er verbot den

Familien, Trauerfeiern abzuhalten.

Ghaddafis Gewaltherrschaft, die seit über 41 Jahren besteht, und sein Terror mit

Unterstützung von weltweiten Terroristengruppen ist der Welt seit langem bekannt,

z. B. bei den Anschlägen auf Lockerbie 1988 und La Belle 1986 etc.

Libyen in ein Gefängnis zu verwandeln und den verschiedenen Sicherheitsbehörden zu erlauben, jegliche

Form der Freiheit zu unterbinden, wird dem Land sowie dem Volk ungeahnte Katastrophen bereiten.

Auch sind wir der Ansicht, dass das dauernde Ignorieren der Gesetze, die vielen Begünstigungen für die mächtigen Gefolgsleute sowie die ständige Anwendung des Ausnahmegesetzes in seinen unterschiedlichsten

Formulierungen den Menschen in Libyen ihr Recht auf Gerechtigkeit, Entwicklung

und bessere Zukunft rauben.

Wir glauben, dass mit dem Fortbestand des Ausnahmezustands, der Fernhaltung der Gerechtigkeit, den

Begünstigungen einer bestimmten Gruppe von Verwandten und Gefolgsleuten Ghaddafis sowie dem Ausplündern der

libyschen Wirtschaft das Ziel der persönlichen Bereicherung verfolgt wird und damit das Land Stück für Stück ruiniert wird.

Ghaddafi erhält jährlich 37,5 Milliarden Dollar für Erdöl und genau soviel Milliarden für Erdgas. Er

besitzt genug Geld, so dass es dem Volk gut gehen könnte. Stattdessen missbraucht er das Volksvermögen für Terrormaßnahmen oder Besitz und Erwerb von Liegenschaften im Ausland für seine Söhne.

Ghaddafis Versuch der Einschüchterung der zivilgesellschaftlichen Kräfte und der Gewerkschaften mit dem Ziel der

Machterhaltung und der Vererbung der Macht an seine Söhne wird keinen Erfolg haben. Diese Politik wird die Lage in

Libyen komplizierter machen und einen unvermeidbaren Zusammenstoß herbeiführen.

Wir fordern die Aufhebung des Ausnahmezustands und der daraus resultierenden

Umstände sowie die sofortige Freilassung der noch in Haft sitzenden politischen

Gefangenen.

Wir fordern auch einen friedlichen Machtwechsel und soziale Gerechtigkeit.

Wir lehnen strikt den Staatsterror, die Korruption und Vetternwirtschaft ab.

Hände weg von den zivilgesellschaftlichen Institutionen, Parteien und Gewerkschaften!

Wir versammeln uns

am Montag, dem 21. 02. 2011, um 15:00 Uhr

vor der Libyschen Botschaft

Podbielskiallee 42, U-Bahnhof Podbielskiallee

______-

Liebe Alle,

Morgen, Montag den 21.02.2011 um 15 Uhr findet vor der libyschen Botschaft

eine Kundegebung statt!!!

Bitte bemüht Euch, zahlreich zu kommen. Qadhafi verübt ein Massaker, es

gibt bereits hunderte von Toten – und aus dem Westen scheint sich niemand dazu

äußern zu wollen (wir brauchen ihn ja, um die Flüchtlinge zurückzuhalten…)

Lasst uns bis Freitag Qadhafi loswerden, damit wir uns dann endlich Ali

Abdallah Salih, Bouteflika und Konsorten zuwenden zu können!

Liebe Grüße,

Firas Maraghy und Wiebke Diehl

On Facebook, we’ve been compiling a list of demonstrations in support of the protests in the Arab world. This is the same information, for those without facebook

Please go to the list on facebook if possible — the version here will go out-of-date quickly.

MONDAY (21st)

——————-

Boston, MA – Libya

…http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=185352221505381

London, UK – Libyan Embassy

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494

Cairo, Egypt – Libya

http://twitter.com/#!/SultanAlQassemi/status/39429405340082177

Manchester, UK – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=131959340208250

Berlin, Germany – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=192616717425685

Paris, France – Libya

http://www.demosphere.eu/node/22927

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=190459450986797

Lyon, France – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=165054680210039

Brussels, Belgium – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=199904060020563

Tunisia

http://www.mosaiquefm.net/index/a/ActuDetail/Element/13310-Manifestation-de-soutien-au-peuple-Libyen-devant-l-ambassade.html

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=201680616509063

Sacramento, CA – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=110998615645366

Amman, Jordan – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=189905307707931

Seattle, WA – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=204806872866343

TUESDAY (22nd)

———————-

New York, US – Bahrain

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=202224233128244

London, UK – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494 (Libyan Embassy)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=131240333612231 (Downing Street)

Glasgow, UK – Arab Solidarity

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=135386309861565

Berlin, Germany – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=192616717425685

Bonn, Germany – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=191396744226496&index=1

Tunisia – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=200387639988338

Rabat, Morocco – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=181209048588995

Montreal, Canada

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=185800944792021

Melbourne, Australia

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=136206069778177

Alger, Algeria – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=203131753034942

Minneapolis, USA – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=152930121431194

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=181973065177856

Alexandria, Egypt – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=104070656339318

WEDNESDAY (23rd)

————————

London, UK – Libyan Embassy

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494

Geneva – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=164994166886344

New York, USA

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=133883690011027

THURSDAY (24th)

———————-

London, UK – Libyan Embassy

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494

FRIDAY (25th)

———————-

New York, US – Libya, Yemen & Bahrain

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=202227446461128

London, UK –

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494 (at Libyan embassy)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=169885193058579 (Bahrain embassy, to Libyan embassy, to Downing Street)

Nottingham, UK

4pm onwards, Old Market Square

Lake Eola, Orlando, USA

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=157201641001407

London, UK – Iran

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=165285383522107

SATURDAY (26th)

———————-

London, UK – Iraq Reform Demo

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=192937684059227

Toronto, Canada – Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=193043330720427

London, UK – Libyan Embassy

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494

26th March

———-

London, UK – Egypt

http://socialisimo.tumblr.com/post/3364674148/stay-4-one-day-turn-hyde-park-into-tahrir-square-for

On Going

————

More lists of Libyan protests.

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=185352221505381

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=103799509699530

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=178395958872261 (embassy protests)

Manchester, UK – Libya (daily protests)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=194916707193449

Freeze Mubarak’s Assets

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=178077995570504

Human Rights for Libya

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=111867918891103

Bahrain Petition

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5904/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=5615

Notes

——–

Please be sure to post videos of any protests you attend.

Archive

———————-

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=178220665555569

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=185352221505381

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=186889371343992

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=152559051466719

http://twitter.com/#!/Palaestina/status/38354404482482176

http://twitter.com/#!/sara055/status/38766411249614848

http://twitter.com/#!/LamiaMoussa/status/38721362717720576

http://twitter.com/#!/Sandmonkey/status/38932651502993408

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=110998615645366

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=107198712691545

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=187343441305362

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=193043330720427

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=155547864499863

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195945897101494

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=154050244653491

It’s intriguing how often we, as consumers, are willing to believe (without evidence) that something originates in our own country. Somehow, in the back of my head, I had the idea of Father Ted coming from England. I mean — a more Irish setup would be hard to imagine. Yet somehow I choose to belive in the home-origin.

ETA

: I’m doubly an idiot. Father Ted was, in fact, made for Channel 4

The Efficient Markets Hypothesis may be looking a bit shabby after the financial crisis. But it’s still looking pretty damn good compared to any other area of public life. Where’s the Efficient Media Hypothesis? The Efficient Academia Hypotheis? The Efficient Politics Hypothesis? The Efficient Courts Hypothesis? Anybody eve proposing them would be laughed out of the room.

The articles Mubarak is proposing to amend:

Article.76***:(Amended, Not present in the Constitution any longer) The People’s Assembly shall nominate the President of the Republic . The nomination shall be referred to the people for a plebiscite. The nomination for the President of the Republic shall be made in the People’ Assembly upon the proposal of at least one third of its members. The candidate who obtains two thirds of the votes of the members of the People’s Assembly shall be referred to the people for a plebiscite . If he does not obtain the said majority the nomination process shall be repeated two days after the first vote. The candidate obtaining an absolute majority of the votes of the Assembly members shall be referred to the citizens for a plebiscite. The candidate shall be considered President of the Republic when he obtains an absolute majority of votes cast in the plebiscite. If the candidate does not obtain this majority, the Assembly shall propose the nomination of another candidate and the same procedure shall follow concerning his candidature and election.

Article.77**: The term of the presidency shall be six Gregorian years starting from the date of the announcement of result of the plebiscite. The President of the Republic may be re-elected for other successive terms.

Article.88: The Law shall determine the conditions which members of the Assembly must fulfil as well as the rules of election and referendum, while the ballot shall be conducted under the supervision of the members of a judiciary organ.

Article.93: The People’s Assembly shall be competent to decide upon the validity of the membership of its members. The Court of Cassation shall be competent to investigate the validity of contestations on membership presented to the Assembly after referring them to the Court by the Speaker of the Assembly. The contestation shall be referred to the Court of Cassation within fifteen days as from the date on which the Assembly has been informed thereof while the investigation shall be completed within ninety days from the date on which the contestation is referred to the Court of Cassation. The result of the investigation and the decision reached by the Court shall be submitted to the Assembly to decide upon the validity of the contestation within sixty days from the date of submission of the result of the investigation to the Assembly. Memberships shall not be deemed invalid expect by a decision taken by a majority of two-thirds of the Assembly members

Article.178: The judgments issued by the Supreme Constitutional Court in constitutional cases, and its decisions concerning the interpretation of legislative texts shall be published in the Official Gazette. The law shall organize the effects subsequent to a decision concerning the unconstitutionality of a legislative text.

Article.189: The President of the Republic as well as the People’s Assembly may request the amendment of one or more of the articles of the Constitution. The articles to be amended and the reasons justifying such amendments shall be mentioned in the request for amendment . If the request emanates from the People’s Assembly, it should be signed by at least one third of the Assembly members . In all cases, the Assembly shall discuss the amendment in principle, and the decision in this respect shall be taken by the majority of its members. If the request is rejected, the amendment of the same particular articles may not be requested again before the expiration of one year from the date of such rejection. If the People’s Assembly approves an amendment, in principle, the articles requested to be amended shall be discussed two months after the date of the said approval. If the amendment is approved by two thirds of the members of the Assembly, it shall be referred to the people for a plebiscite. If it is approved by the people it shall be considered in force from the date of the announcement of the result of the plebiscite.

Source: Wikisource