Rabat – The African Union’s (AU) Peace and Security Council (PSC) has renewed its support for the Skhirat and Bouznika process in finding a lasting and mutually acceptable political solution to the Libyan crisis.
The council reaffirmed the significance of the agreement in a press release following the 124th meeting that took place on November 12.
In the statement, the council stated that the Skhirat Agreement signed in December 2015 remains one of the credible frameworks for a lasting political solution to the Libyan crisis.
The Skhirat agreement was signed as a result of the reconciliation process between Libyan parties under the auspices of the United Nations.
As for the Bozunika process, this refers to consultation and dialogue between Libyan factions under Morocco’s initiative.
Morocco’s government has hosted Libyan factions in the city of Bouznika, near Rabat, to take part in several negotiations and roundtables seeking to facilitate talks between Libyan parties.
The meetings have brought together officials from the Eastern Libya-based Parliament and the Tripoli-based High State Council to discuss a potential consensus on how to end the conflict.
Last year in Bouznika, the council acknowledged the significant progress that was made in the preparations for the electoral process in Libya during the joint committee meetings between the House of Representatives and the High Council of State from May to June.
The meetings “resolved disagreements and formulated laws governing the upcoming presidential and legislative elections in Libya,” the council said.
During the most recent PSC meeting this month, Mohamed Arrouchi – Morocco’s representative to the AU and UNECA – reiterated Morocco’s position in the Libyan crisis, stating that dialogue and consultation among Libyan actors are the only sustainable way out of the crisis.
Arrouchi also recalled Morocco’s contribution in the effort to resolve the Libyan conflict, acknowledging the important results achieved during the roundtable talks held in Bouznika last year.
He said that the discussions forged a consensus around electoral laws and resolved essential points of divergence for organizing presidential and parliamentary elections in Libya, addingthat conditions are conducive in Libya for making progress in the political process.
Resolving the legitimacy issue can only be achieved through a transparent and inclusive electoral process, Arrouchi concluded, adding that Morocco’s efforts are as part of its “sincere efforts” to tackle the crisis peacefully and without foreign interference.
Morocco reiterated at the meeting the need to find an inter-Libyan solution and decried any foreign intervention in the Libyan reconciliation process.
The country believes that Libyans themselves should come together to discuss their country’s future and agree on a general election roadmap that lays the groundwork for a genuine, workable way out of the decade-long crisis.
The country’s efforts to make such an outcome possible have been applauded by both Libyan officials and UN diplomats familiar with the Libyan crisis.
