Tunisia Opposition: Extradition Was 'Secret Deal' with Libyans
The Tunisian government’s decision to extradite the former Libyan prime minister without first consulting Tunisia's president has devolved into a full-blown scandal. Tunisian human rights activist Radhia Nasraoui writes that many of the government’s arguments for extradition fall flat.
The interim Tunisian government recently extradited the former Libyan prime minister under Moammar Gadhafi, Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, to the current Libyan authorities. This happened in the early hours of Sunday, June 24, when the world was following the Egyptian elections.
Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali’s government ignored the positions of local and international human rights organizations, which have been opposed to handing Mahmoudi to Libya because the conditions for a fair trial are not present. There are no guarantees that he will not be physically mistreated and the death penalty is still in use.
No one can forget the horrible way that Gadhafi was treated by opposition fighters after his arrest. He was tortured and his dead body was put on display. No one can deny that the situation in Libya is still unstable and that there are continued acts of violence, murder and revenge in the absence of an elected authority that controls the entire country.
The government also ignored the position of temporary president Moncef Marzouki. Although he agreed to the idea of extradition, he did not agree on the timing, especially since the upcoming Libyan elections, which are expected to take place in a few days, will establish a legitimate government.
