Libya's constitution drafting nightmare

Libya's General National Congress voted to extend its mandate in December from its anticipate expiry on 7 February 2014 to December 2014. The vote sparked controversy and opposition from a number of quarters, including fellow GNC parties which argued that the extension was in contravention of the 2011 Constitutional Declaration.

The GNC decision to extend was born out of practicality rather than a desire to remain in office. Attempts to forge a constitution, the primary task of the GNC, has faced numerous obstacles in recent years. Militia-related violence, separatist agitation, tribal and ethnic conflict and a list of failed state-like developments have served to polarize the Libyan polity and delay a decision on the vote. Now, however, there are signs that the impasse may be coming to an end.

Libyans will go to the polls on 20 February to elect representatives to serve in the 60-member Constituent Assembly. This body, which includes 20 representatives from each of the country's three traditional regions (Cyrenaica, Tripolitania and Fezzan), will have a short period of time to finalise a draft constitution. This will then be used as a basis to hold fresh elections later in 2014, that's the theory at least.

The vote is a positive development but with increasing pressure on the GNC to dissolve, persistent pressure from minority groups to be included in the CA discussions and countless other threats to the state, the constitution creation process will be fraught with challenges. Pressure on specific members of the CA from local groups, specifically separatists, to ensure that local objectives, such as equal share of oil revenue, are enshrined in the new draft, will also complicate the process.