Mayors, Council Reps to Work Together to Improve Residents' Conditions, Support Political Process
Representatives of municipal and local councils from a number of towns and cities from across Libya concluded two days of UN-facilitated talks in Geneva on Thursday 29 January 2015 confident that their cooperation on the grass-roots level will contribute to bringing peace to their country.
There were frank discussions in which municipal and local council representatives outlined the difficulties their constituencies are facing due to the conflict, including shortages in services, food and fuel, as well as insecurity.
But with the same forceful demonstration of the suffering of the population they displayed there was an equal determination to overcome the differences as the discussions moved from the emotional narratives to the presentation of concrete ideas to s
Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya and head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Bernardino Leon, addressed the participants, saying: “We all agree that the wounds of the Libyan people run deep. There is not a corner or community in Libya that has been spared.”
He added: “Your fears are for the future and what it has in store for you and future generations. But for us to work on the future, we have to look forward, and focus on how you can work together to help bring peace and security to Libya.”
