Article 15 of the Skhirat Agreement constitutes the main focus of the ongoing negotiations between the two Libyan negotiating delegations in the Moroccan city of Bouznika, which the two parties announced today that they have achieved "important understandings in the negotiations of the continuous dialogue between the delegations of the House of Representatives in Tobruk and the Supreme Council of the State", thus paving the way for the completion of a comprehensive political settlement process. in Lybia.
The meeting in Bouznika, south of the capital, Rabat, is the first of its kind in which the two parties to the crisis meet face to face since the attack of the retired Major General Khalifa Haftar's forces on the capital, Tripoli in April of last year, and it also comes after the visit of the President of the Supreme Council of State Khaled al-Mishri and the head of the Council Representatives of Tobruk Aqila Saleh to Morocco at the same time weeks ago.
Article 15 of the Skhirat Agreement stipulates that the House of Representatives shall consult with the State Council within 30 days in order to reach a consensus on the occupants of the sovereign positions.
Al-Jazeera Net learned that Article 15 of the Skhirat Agreement constitutes the main point of negotiations, as it includes all the contested sovereign positions between the Government of National Accord in Tripoli, western Libya, and the Tobruk Parliament in the east of the country, where the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar are also stationed.
Among the sovereign functions included in this article: Governor of the Central Bank of Libya, Head of the Audit Bureau, Head of the Administrative Control Authority, Head of the Anti-Corruption Authority, President and members of the High Electoral Commission, President of the Supreme Court, and Attorney General.
In the second paragraph, Article 15 states that the appointment and exemption of the occupants of the sovereign positions requires the approval of two-thirds of the members of Parliament.
The two parties said in a press briefing issued by them, "Important understandings have been achieved that include setting clear standards aimed at eliminating corruption, stopping waste of public money, and ending the state of institutional division."
The two delegations of the Libyan Dialogue extended the negotiations for an additional two days, with the aim of reaching a final mechanism for selecting the leaders of the sovereign positions in Libya.
Adding posts
A Moroccan official said that the negotiations are discussing amending Article 15 of the Skhirat Agreement by adding new leadership positions, and postponing the selection of some other positions until it is agreed to amend the new Presidency Council and the Libyan government.
The Moroccan official added to Al-Jazeera Net, "The Libyans may quickly agree at the conclusion of the ongoing negotiations on a mechanism for selecting leaders of the sovereign positions according to clear terms that satisfy all parties."
The Moroccan official affirmed that the Libyan negotiations in Boznika enjoy international and American support in order to reach a political solution to the crisis in Libya that spares the country from war and achieves peace and stability.
The solution is political
. Member of Parliament Essam Al-Jehani emphasized that there is great harmony between the two delegations of Parliament and the State Council to pave the way for the path of political dialogue in Morocco.
"After the positive meetings, we decided to extend the sessions for an additional two days, so that the consultations will end on Thursday in order to accomplish a clear initial agreement on the mechanism for appointing the leaders of the sovereign positions," the head of the Parliament delegation to the Boznika negotiations in Morocco added.
Al-Jehani explained that there are many proposals for appointing leaders of the sovereign positions, including what was mentioned in the Skhirat Agreement, and there are other proposals made by members of the two delegations.
Al-Jehani indicated that the mechanism for appointing leaders of the sovereign positions will take into account important criteria for achieving a complete agreement that satisfies both parties, and will be a key to any future political negotiations.
Amending the Skhirat Agreement
In turn, a member of the Supreme Council of State Belkacem Debre stressed that the goal of the political dialogue in Morocco is to amend the Skhirat Agreement and to change the leaders of the sovereign positions in line with the requirements to be achieved.
"The next task in the negotiations in Morocco is to reduce the Presidency Council, to make a change in its composition, and to form a mini-crisis government if it is successful."
Debars stated that the House of Representatives in Tobruk realized that a military solution had become impossible under the current circumstances, after Haftar's military defeat in Tripoli, and the increase in popular frustration over him because he had created a war and crises that increased the suffering of the Libyan people.