“The South African government affirmed its support for UN Security Council Resolutions on Libya.”
|||International Relations and Co-operation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane has confirmed that South Africa is freezing some Libyan assets.
Replying to questions in the National Assembly, she said the government affirmed its support for UN Security Council Resolutions 1970 and 1973 of 2011 on Libya, which included sanctions and an arms embargo.
The resolution enforced a travel ban and assets freeze on Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, his inner circle and members of his family.
“The competent South African authorities, under the leadership of the National Treasury, are taking appropriate measures in compiling a list of items registered in the name of all individuals listed in the UN Security Council resolution number 1970 on the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya,” said Nkoana-Mashabane.
The result would be that none of those who were listed would have access to any funds or assets in the country, she said.
Earlier, on March 11, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said the government was working with financial institutions to identify funds and assets belonging to the individuals or entities listed.
The Financial Intelligence Centre was instructed to caution financial institutions not to become involved in any transactions or business relationships which might facilitate the provision of funds to people or entities listed.
“In addition, I have, in terms of the Currency and Exchange Act, agreed with the governor of the South African Reserve Bank that she will instruct the Financial Surveillance Department of the SARB to stop any such funds from leaving the country.”
Gordhan said the government was also looking at other ways to give effect to the resolution.
Meanwhile, South African political and military experts have warned that the international military campaign against Libya will not succeed unless ground troops are sent in to defeat Gaddafi’s forces.
At a seminar yesterday at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in Pretoria, they criticised Western countries conducting air strikes against Gaddafi’s military.
They said the countries lacked an exit strategy from the conflict.
South Africa’s vote in favour of Security Council Resolution 1973 on Thursday last week, authorising a no-fly zone over Libya and “all necessary measures” to enforce it and to protect civilians, has attracted considerable controversy.
Just days after the vote President Jacob Zuma expressed grave reservations about the mission.
He warned the allied forces against attempting “regime change” and against incurring civilian casualties.
One of South Africa’s main reasons for backing the resolution was because the Arab League had called for a no-fly zone to be imposed.
But at yesterday’s ISS seminar, one Africa expert suggested that Arab League secretary-general Amr Moussa had called for a no-fly zone because of personal ambition rather than principle. He said Moussa hoped to become president of his country, Egypt, and wanted to look sympathetic to the Libyans.
He also suggested Gaddafi was justified in striking back at his rebel enemies since they had taken up arms against him.
A military expert said it seemed many of those who had supported a no-fly zone over Libya had naively believed it could be enforced without civilian casualties.
They should have known that the allied air forces would not fly in Libyan air space without first destroying his large arsenal of ground-to-air missiles and other anti-aircraft weapons.
That inevitably meant some of the allied bombs and missiles would miss their military targets and hit civilians.
The only way to destroy Gaddafi’s forces would be to send in ground troops. - Pretoria News
Source: http://www.iol.co.za/sa-freezes-libyan-assets-1.1047044
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