The people of Libya had been dismayed for decades during the 42-year rule of Muamma Gaddafi. Now, Gaddafi is dead following a revolt that ousted him from power. He had joined other dictators like Ceausescu, Mobutu and Caligula. But now, what? Libya is ushering a new era with the people nurturing high expectation that the death of Gaddafi would bring them freedom and, hopefully, prosperity. The new rulers have the daunting tasks to meet these expectations. With the fresh air of freedom, the people should have their basic rights restored. Respect for human rights, therefore, should be among the top agenda of the new rulers even before an election is held. Respect for human rights should be one of the main pillars of the transitional government's policy that should be put into practice. This will help the people chart their own destiny. Freed from the fear of repression that characterized the old regime, they must be allowed to vote on their own free will and choose the people who they want to lead them in their journey to a new horizon. While there is a need to bring to the bar of justice those who had collaborated with the previous regime in abusing its own people, prosecution should be tempered with the sense of fairness. It should never be done out of vengeance. Without the respect for people's rights and sense of fairness in dispensing justice, the new rulers will be akin to just replacing a tyrant with another diabolical master. The transitional rulers and the new government that would be put place after an election should struggle to be guided by more lofty ideals that would take them far beyond the era of Gaddafi which had violated the basic rights of its own citizenry. The Libya people deserve to live their lives in peace and prosperity which had been denied them during Gaddafi's 42 years of iron
