Statesman Gaddafi Still Rules a Police State

In the Post, Mohamed Eljahmi, brother of jailed Libyan dissident Fathi Eljahmi, reminds us of the Libyan government’s miserable human rights record. As Libyan tyrant Moammar Gaddafi rejoins polite society, receives congratulatory phone calls from the U.S. president, and son Saif gets an audience with Secretary Rice, Libya remains a police state and democracy advocates like Eljahmi languish in Gaddafi’s dungeons.

The writer laments U.S. inaction and hypocrisy: “[U]nder the Bush administration, the State Department continues to engage Arab dictators at the expense of dissidents who support transitions to peaceful, modern societies.”