General People's Congress

Gaddafi speaking during a General People's Congress meeting

The General People’s Congress was the sole legislative authority of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya since to the country's establishment in 1977 until it's dissolution in 2011 after the Libyan Civil War. It exercised the duties stipulated in Article 24 of Law No. (1) of 1369 FDP. Though similar to a traditional parliament, the General People's Congress wasn't a parliament and wasn't made up of permanent representatives, rather it comprised of the annual meeting of secretaries of all Basic People's Congresses in the Jamahiriya. These secretaries were administrators of the Basic People's Congresses, Basic People's Committees, as well as worker federations, syndicates and professional associations. Consisting of 2,700 delegates, the General People's Congress was the second largest legislature on Earth, second to China by only a few hundred. Before the end of each year, an annual general session of the General People's Congress was convened. Emergency or extraordinary sessions were also called to deal with specific issues of public policy.

The General People's Congress elected a Secretariat to manage, coordinate, and prepare agendas for meetings. The Secretary of the General People's Congress was considered head of state of Libya and was chief of the Secretariat. Issues surrounding the review of treaties, agreements, cooperation between the people's congresses and strengthening ties with foreign bodies, issuing of pardons, revoking Libyan citizenship and approving grants of political asylum were dealt with by the Secretariat as well.

Composition

1 - Secretaries of the Basic People's Congresses.

2 - Secretaries of the People's Committees of the Basic People's Congresses.

3 - Secretaries of the People's Congresses of Shaabiyat.

4 - Secretaries of social affairs in the popular congresses of Shaabiyat.

5 - Secretaries of the People's Committees for Shaabiyat.

6 - The general secretaries of federations, trade unions and professional associations.

7 - Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

8 - Secretariat of the General People's Committee.

9 - Secretary of the General Planning Council.

10 - Secretary of the General People's Committee of the People's Control Authority.

11 - Assistant Secretary of the General People's Committee of the People's Oversight Agency.

12 - President of the Supreme Court.

13 - President of the People's Court.

14 - Head of the People's Prosecution Office.

15 - The Attorney General.

16 - Governor of the Central Bank of Libya.

17 - Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Libya.

18 - Assistant Secretaries of the General People's Committees for the sectors.

19 - Those chosen from the General People's Congress.

General Secretariat

Secretary of the General People's Congress

• Manages the meetings of the General People's Congress, with the assistance of the members of the secretariat.

• Calls for meetings of the Secretariat of the People's Congresses of the Shaabiyat and the Secretariat of the General People's Congress, manages them, approves their minutes, and signs the decisions issued by them.

• Invites the secretary and members of the General People's Committee and its affiliated bodies to joint and reciprocal meetings, manages them, and approves their minutes.

• Signs the regulations, decisions and minutes of meetings of the Secretariat of the People's Congresses of Shaabiyat and the Secretariat of the General People's Congress, and approving the personnel affairs minutes.

• Supervises the workflow of the Secretariat of the General People's Congress, and presents what needs to be presented to the Secretariat.

• Takes charge of the links of the Secretariat of the General People's Congress before the judiciary and others.

Assistant Secretary of the General People's Congress

• Assumes the powers of the Secretary of the General People's Congress in his/her absence.

• Assists the Secretary of the General People's Congress in exercising his/her powers.

• Follows up on cultural and media activities, implements political awareness and mass mobilization programs, submit reports on them, and provides them to the Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

Secretary of People's Congresses Affairs

• Holds meetings with any of the secretaries of the people's congresses affairs in the secretariats of the people's congresses for the Shaabiyat, receives and summarizes their reports, and presents what needs to be presented to the secretariat of the General People's Congress.

• Proposes the establishment, merging or dissolution of people's congresses, supervises the popular selection process in the people's congresses, and follows them up, in accordance with the controls determined by the General People's Congress secretariat.

• Prepares and keeps data on the members of the popular and popularly elected congresses, prepares and keeps records and organizes membership.

• Proposes the issuance of circulars, work manuals, records, forms and controls that assist the secretariats of the people's congresses in making their decisions, in coordination with Legal Affairs and Human Rights.

• Follows up on the sessions of the people's congresses in their regular and extraordinary sessions, follows up on attendance, prepare reports on them, and take the necessary measures in their regard.

Secretary of the People's Committees Affairs

• Invites any of the secretaries of the General People's Committees for the sectors to meet to follow up the measures taken to implement the decisions of the Basic People's Congresses, and present what needs to be presented to the Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

• Holds meetings with any of the secretaries of the affairs of the people's committees in the secretariats of the people's congresses for Shaabiyat, and presents what needs to be presented to the secretariat of the General People's Congress.

• Prepares the necessary reports on the implementation of the decisions of the Basic People's Congresses formulated in the General People's Congress, prepares for joint and face-to-face meetings with the General People's Committees, following up on their work, and submitting reports on them.

• Addresses issues that come to the affairs of the People's Committees, and proposes controls that help the People's Committees to raise their level of performance and follow up.

Secretary of Federations, Trade Unions and Professional Associations Affairs

• Holds meetings with any of the secretaries of affairs of unions, syndicates, and professional associations in the popular congresses of Shaabiyat, and follows up their meetings and professional activities.

• Receives and summarizes the reports of the secretaries of affairs of unions, trade unions and professional associations in the secretariats of the People's Congresses, and presents what needs to be presented to the Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

• Follows up and organizes meetings and joint meetings with federations, trade unions and professional associations, and meetings between secretariats of federations, trade unions, professional associations and other relevant public bodies.

• Proposes a system for following up the decisions of the Basic People's Congresses formulated in the General People's Congress in the field of organizing federations, syndicates, and professional associations, and proposes the adoption of the basic systems for federations, syndicates, and professional associations.

• Receives and summarizes the reports of the general secretariats of federations, trade unions and professional associations, and presenting them to the General People's Congress secretariat.

Secretary of Women's Affairs

• Holds meetings with any of the secretaries of women's affairs at the People's Congresses for the Shaabiyat periodically, summarizes their minutes, presents what needs to be presented to the Secretariat of the General People's Congress, and submits periodic reports on them to the Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

• Receives, summarizes the reports of women's affairs secretaries at the People's Congresses, and presents them to the General People's Congress Secretariat.

• Urges women to actively participate in the work of the Basic People's Congresses, in order to enable them to exercise their role, express their opinion on memorandums, draft laws and regulations related to women, present the follow-up results to the General People's Congress Secretariat, and submit periodic reports on them to the General People's Congress Secretariat.

• Participates in women's activities and activities related to women in various sectors.

• Follows up and supervises the work of the secretaries of women's affairs in the secretariats of the people's congresses.

Secretary of Foreign Affairs

• Follows up the relations of the General People's Congress with parliaments and national assemblies.

• Follows up the results of conferences and forums between the General People's Congress, parliaments and national assemblies, and evaluates the results through reports, statements and recommendations issued by them in the Great Jamahiriya and abroad, and presents them to the General People's Congress secretariat.

• Follows up on the delegations' visits to the Great Jamahiriya, evaluates the results of the visits, and follows them up in the light of what the General People's Congress Secretariat recommends.

• Investigates the visits of the delegations of the General People's Congress abroad, evaluates the results of the visits, and follows them up in light of what is recommended by the Secretariat of the General People's Congress.

Secretary of Legal Affairs and Human Rights

• Prepares draft laws and regulations proposed by the Secretariat of the General People's Congress and reviewing draft laws to be presented to the Basic People's Congresses.

• Publishes laws and decisions formulated in the General People's Congress and supervises the issuance of the Code of Legislation.

• Considers the complaints and grievances of individuals and organizations against procedures affecting their basic rights and freedoms, and coordinates with the relevant authorities to develop appropriate solutions and follow up on them.

• Supervises the preparation of periodic reports related to human rights in the Great Jamahiriya to be presented to the concerned committees of regional and international organizations.

• Prepares for seminars, forums and conferences dealing with legal affairs and human rights inside the Great Jamahiriya and participating in those held abroad in coordination with the relevant authorities.

• Supervises the legal committees formed by the General People's Congress or its secretariat, seek the assistance of technical committees, and express consultations on the secretariat of the General People's Congress.