Tripoli, Libya - Libyan leader Moammar Kadhafi has said there is no reason whatsoever in Libya that can justify the current crisis in the country, saying that political power in Libya is in the hands of the people and they exercise them through people's congresses that groups together all citizens, men and women. This direct popular democracy, says Kadhafi, is only equalled by the Athenian era before Christ. In a message Monday night to the international community, the Libyan leader added that Libyan oil wealth was owned by the people and the weapons in the hands of the people. He said in Libya there was no class distinction of the ruler and the ruled, adding that Libya has been able to overcome hunger and thirst, through the establishment of the Great Man-Made River project, which drains water from the subsoil, while its nuclear programmes have been willingly abandoned.

'Libya has settled peacefully all outstanding issues related to the Cold War and has solved the problem of the continental shelf with neighboring countries, using international arbitration, then joined the international coalition against terrorism, while its services had contributed effectively with other international bodies to counter the dangers of terrorism and extremism,' Kadhafi recalled.

He said Libya had formed the World Islamic People's Command to combine international Islamic moderate forces to fill the vacuum exploited by terrorism.

The Libyan leader also reiterated his country's role in stopping the flow of illegal emigration towards Europe, the resolution of African problems, the establishment of peace on the African continent, therefore becoming the Top ambassador of Peace in Africa.

'Libya has opened its ports to world tourism, presented the 'White Paper for peacefully resolving the Middle East crisis' and provided a draft solution to piracy that occurred in Somalia and troubled the world.

Relating his own version of events in the country, the Libyan leader said that this openness and the role played by Libya against terrorism had pushed al-Qaeda to infiltrate the country and enlist men in its ranks, using events in Tunisia and Egypt to launch the surprise attacks on army barracks and police stations, to stock up weapons.

'These people released criminals from prison and gave them weapons to fight for Al Qaeda, a reason for their success in taking Benghazi,' Kadhafi's statement indicated.

The Libyan leader said that the crisis in Libya was deliberately created to chat a new colonialist plan, 'since neither East nor West nor ideological conflict nor any problem of any nature whatsoever existed before in Libya.

'Libya is a safe country that has secured North Africa, stopped illegal immigration, abandoned its programme of weapons of mass destruction, played an important role in establishing stability and peace and resolved their problems through the power of the people,' he said.

'The Libyan people are facing a savage attack, an unfair and blatant interference in its internal affairs. Hundreds of Libyans are killed because of these unjustified and unprecedented raids while the world watches a small and developing country being attacked by sea, air and ground by major nuclear powers acting outside the UN Charter,' Kadhafi complained.

He said that what happened Tunisia and Egypt before the revolutions there were quite different from the peaceful atmosphere in Libya.

He called on the Western coalition to 'Stop your unjust and barbaric aggression against  Libya and leave Libya to the Libyans. You're committing genocide against a peaceful people and you lead an operation to destroy a developing country.

Kadhafi said Libya was ready to accept whatever decision the AU will make through the high-level adhoc committee established to resolve the crisis.

Pana 30/03/2011