Impose sanctions against Libya NOW! Investigate crimes against humanity!

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) has charged the European Union with dismal failure in the Libyan crisis. "Europe is behaving like a paper tiger: Clamoring for action, but taking none," criticized the head of the Africa section at the STP, Ulrich Delius, on Thursday in Göttingen. "If the EU wants to demonstrate political will and be taken seriously, it will have to do more that just evacuate its citizens out of Libya. With every day that passes without the imposition of sanctions to increase the pressure on the Qaddafi regime, the likelihood of an exodus of refugees from Libya grows greater." EU foreign ministers were unable to reach agreement on a course of action yesterday; the topic was delegated to working groups for further study.

The STP emphatically calls for the immediate establishment of an international fact-finding committee to determine whether and by whom war crimes and massive violations of international human rights are being committed in Libya. "The EU must insist on another special session of the UN Security Council to vote on the establishment of this fact-finding committee," said Delius. This committee could take meaningful steps preparatory to initiating investigations by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Since the emergency UN Security Council session last Tuesday concerning the crisis in Libya, more eyewitness have supplied convincing reports of new massive human rights abuses by Libyan security forces and their thugs. Random shootings of ambulance drivers and doctors, sniper attacks on civilians from aircraft, mass murder of soldiers who refuse to fire on protesters, and systematic rape of regime opponents all make it clear that international humanitarian laws are being intentionally violated and crimes against humanity are being committed.

The STP sharply criticized the resistance of Italy, Malta and Cyprus against the rapid imposition of sanctions. "It is an outrage that the EU allows itself to be thwarted by Berlusconi, controversial Prime Minister of Italy, a businessman who maintains a personal connection to Libyan dictator Qaddafi," stated Delius. Berlusconi's firm Fininvest, through a subsidiary in Luxembourg, holds 22 percent of the Parisian film production company Quinta Communications, in which Qaddafi's family business Lafitrade Holdings BV, registered in the Netherlands, also has a 10 percent share. Furthermore, the Qaddafi clan controls shares in Unicredit, Italy's largest bank, as well as in the Fiat automotive company, the Juventus Torino football club, and in numerous other companies.