By Dr. Mohamed Karbal. Re-published with permission by Libya Business News.
After decades of oppression and injustice, the Libyans, after many attempts, were finally successful in their eradication of the Gaddafi regime. Peaceful demonstrations initiated by the Libyan people morphed into armed conflict due to the irresponsible and brutal acts of the regime. As a result of the destruction that was launched by the Gaddafi regime against its own people, normal life during this period ended.
Business establishments closed and expatriate workers fled. After eight months of bloody battles and the loss of tens of thousands of lives, the Libyan Transnational Council declared the liberation of Libya from the Gaddafi regime on 23rd of October 2011.
At a time when Libyans are eagerly gearing up towards the task of rebuilding their country, previous international contractors are gathering their records to calculate their losses during the Libyan revolution.
Although, these claims have a legitimate place in commerce, it is unfortunate at time of rebirth; Libyans are left to deal with the uneven commercial legacy of the old regime. Yet, this is the insistent nature of commerce.
Further, as a Libyan, I would say that everything sacrificed by the Libyan people, whether in lives or money was worth the result of uprooting Gaddafi and his henchmen to create a more representative nature in the commercial sector. Therefore, we Libyans look forward to build a more responsible relationship with the previous or new contractors in our New Libya.
It is important at this stage that we shed some light on the possibilities of settling claims between international contractors and Libya.