5. In this context, I also recently met with representatives of the Amazigh, Tabu, and Tuareg communities, to discuss their demands that the government and the constitutional process address issues affecting their communities, including questions of Libyan identity, citizenship, political participation, and language rights.
6. While the security situation in Libya remains precarious, efforts to reform the security sector have begun to assume greater coherence. On December 11th, the Minister of Interior announced his plans to develop and restructure the Ministry. His priorities include increasing police presence and visibility, moving gradually towards the integration of members of the Supreme Security Committee into the police and establishing a vetting mechanism aimed at instilling public confidence in the force. Since then, more than 20,000 revolutionary fighters, that is quite a figure, attached to Supreme Security Committee have individually enlisted in the Ministry and the training process has been set in motion. The plans of the government and those of the Minister of Interior in particular, have been met with resistance from certain revolutionary brigades who are not ready to surrender their weapons and be absorbed into state institutions. UNSMIL continues to offer, in a more coordinated and efficient manner, its technical advice on issues of demobilization and reintegration, training, national security policies, legal frameworks, organizational structure and budget.
7. On December 9th, the Borders, Petroleum and Critical Infrastructure Guards entity was placed under the command of the Army’s Chief of the General Staff to ensure improved command and control of military operations. UNSMIL is supporting the government in developing a comprehensive defence policy, through the process called “Towards a Defence White Paper”, facilitated in close consultation with concerned Ministers, leaders of the various military and security institutions, regional military commanders, General National Congress committees, non-governmental organizations and even former revolutionary fighters. The draft of this paper is expected in February.
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