Gadhafi hardens stance against Switzerland over arrests

GENEVA: A year after the arrest of a son of Moammar Gadhafi in a luxury Geneva hotel, attempts by the Swiss government to patch things up with Tripoli have faltered as the Libyan lea­der has hardened his stance. Gadhafi even went so far as to call this month for breaking up multi-lingual Switzerland, describing the country as a “global mafia.”

For the director of the Study and Research Center for the Arab and Mediterranean World, Hasni Abidi, it was a signal that Swiss diplomatic efforts to smooth tensions were not working.

Abidi believes that if not appeased, Tripoli could take further action such as shutting down Libyan-related companies, including oil refinery Tamoil, in Switzerland and closing the embassy in Bern.

Ties between the two countries have been strained since July 15 last year when Hannibal Gadhafi and his wife were arrested by police in Geneva after two domestic staff claimed they had been abused.

The Gadhafis were eventually released and the complaint was dropped after a lawyer for their servants – a Moroccan and an Tunisian – said they had received compensation.

But that was just the start of repercussions. Libya briefly canceled deliveries of oil to Switzerland in October, withdrew an estimated $7 billion from Swiss banks, and halted all cooperation between the two countries.

Swiss companies have also faced restrictions on their business in Libya and two Swiss citizens working in Tripoli have been stopped from leaving the country for the past year.

Tripoli has demanded a Swiss apology for the treatment of Gadhafi’s son Hannibal and his wife. It has also demanded that those responsible for the arrest be punished, but local authorities have stood firm.

In April, Libya sued regional authorities in Geneva over the arrest and the case is due to be examined on September 24.

“The police did not hesitate to use physical force and to act with brutality, despite the absence of resistance,” according to documents submitted to the court.

The Swiss Foreign Ministry told AFP in that it has been trying for the past year to find “a solution to the problems that weigh on bilateral relations bet­ween Switzerland and Libya.”

“Bilateral discussions and contacts are continuing, despite their difficulties,” it added.

Abidi said Gadhafi had picked the episode to demonstrate that Tripoli is not to be trifled with. He also used the platform to highlight the significance of his family, according to the academic.

“The family is the future of the regime. If something were to happen to his son, the future regime is in a difficult situation,” said Abidi.

Source: The Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=104292.