Shining Light on Libyan Oil
Editorial, Bloomberg | March 19, 2012
Despite other problems, the world should not forget about Libya's transition. ++ The economy is a disaster, and militias remain armed. ++ Eastern Libya's recent bid for autonomy calls national unity into question. ++ The eastern region contains most of Libya's oil. ++ The National Transitional Council must first adopt a policy of transparency with regards to oil. ++ At the moment, there is no way of knowing how much money is flowing in from oil exports. ++ The Council should make oil contracts and revenue numbers available on the Internet.
Tue, Mar 20th 2012, 20:03
Gökhan Tekir, Bilkent University, Gold Contributor (101)
The distribution of oil revenues equally among tribes might ameliorate the conflicting nature of tribal politics. All tribes would unite to protect their absolute gains during the transition of democracy instead of fighting with each other. On the other hand, the corruption and irregularity in distribution of revenues would escalate the situation. Considering that almost all groups are armed, the country can easily fall into a civil war.
International organizations also involve in both oil export process and in the distribution of the revenues for tribes to become more comfortable until a legitimate government is established. The elected government should hold a body, which is composed of all tribal groups, responsible for oil export business to provide equality.