Mediaboss Marketing

Caution has been urged over Government plans to send an Irish Naval patrol vessel to Libya as part of Operation Irini.

Tnaiste Michel Martin told the Dil he is seeking approval to deploy a single Naval Service patrol vessel to Operation Irini for a period of 46 days during June and July this year.

During the mission, the Irish vessel will help enforce a UN arms embargo on Libya, which was introduced in 2020 to preserve peace in the country after the end of the second Libyan civil war. Operation Irini is also responsible for training the Libyan Coast Guard to carry out these tasks.

The ship will be positioned in the area of operations for 34 days and the remaining days will be spent travelling to and from the mission area, Mr Martin said. If approved at a vote in the Dil on Wednesday evening, it will be the first operational overseas deployment of an Irish Naval ship since 2018, and only the third such mission in Naval Service history.

Mr Martin said the Naval Service has confirmed it will maintain a patrol plan that will have two ships on domestic patrols for 61 per cent of the deployment period and one ship for the remaining 39 per cent of the time.

While the department recognises the operational challenges of having only one or two vessels available for domestic duties during this period, the potential benefits of participation in this mission to the recruitment and retention crisis in the Naval Service are accepted, Mr Martin said.

Participation in this mission has been identified by the Naval Service as one of the immediate actions that will, potentially, assist in aiding their recruitment and retention efforts.

Sinn Fin TD Matt Carthy said while his party supported the deployment in principle they would continue to monitor the situation to ensure that the commitments given by Mr Martin were adhered to.

Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF), however, has raised serious concerns about the mission due to the involvement of the Libyan coast guard, which the humanitarian organisation claims is intertwined with militias and armed groups that mistreat migrants.

In a letter to the Tnaiste, MSF asked that the Government refuse Irish Naval training of the Libyan coast guard at any time in the future as part of Operation Irini and to make a statement on its decision.

In March 2022, the German government refused the participation of its armed forces in the training of the Libyan coast guard as part of Operation Irini due to what their foreign ministry described as repeated unacceptable behaviour by individual units of the Libyan coast guard toward refugees and migrants.

Since the start of 2023, almost 10 people a day have lost their lives or have gone missing on the sea migration route between Libya and Italy.

Niamh Burke, an Irish nurse with MSF, said survivors she came across during sea rescues, who had been in Libya, would show me their scars and tell me how they were beaten by guards and not fed enough food to eat and how they would drink toilet water.

They would speak about being beaten with heated plastic, wood, and iron bars. Some of the survivors had suffered sexual violence, Ms Burke claimed.

I was told stories of previous attempts to cross, with boats being shot at and forcible returns to Libya, as well as abuses they suffered in that country, she said.

On one occasion, Ms Burke said she witnessed a boat in distress being pushed back by the Libyan coast guard, which was one of the worst moments for me during my time on the Geo Barents.

Even though we were in our rescue gear, ready to go, we couldnt do anything to help, Ms Burke recalled.

Having to stand back and just watch survivors being brought back to Libya, which is not a place of safety, against humanitarian law, was hard to take. We knew that people would be taken back to prison, to warehouses.

See the original post here:
NGO urges caution over plan to deploy Irish Naval vessel to Libya - The Irish Times

The Sudanese government has called on Libya to condemn the "rogue" Rapid Support Forces, which is battling the Sudanese Armed Forces, considering the latter a legitimate official institution responsible for the stability and maintenance of peace and security in the country.

A statement by the Sudanese Embassy in Libya Tuesday said the ongoing events in Sudan are the result of the RSF's rebellion against the Sudanese national army.

RSF units attacked several diplomatic missions and international and regional organizations, violating the pertinent international laws and norms, the embassy stated.

It called on the Libyan authorities to condemn the "rogue" party and the continued fighting in the country, which it said is endangering the lives of civilians, including women and children.

"The ongoing developments in Sudan is an internal matter, and the Sudanese government can contain the matter without external interference."

On Monday, the Libyan Embassy in Khartoum announced the evacuation of 105 Libyan nationals by ship from a port city in Sudan to Jeddah in preparation for flying them back home.

Read the original post:
Sudanese authority calls on Libya to condemn "rogue" RSF - The Libya Observer

To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq.com.

Libya has imposed, by means of a directive, a restriction onforeigners registering trademarks in the country, with effect fromNovember 1, 2022. The European Commission's website states that"Libya's trademark office has suspended the acceptance oftrademark applications and registrations filed by foreignapplicants".

According to the administrative directive of Libya'sMinistry of Economy and Trade, the trademark office limited itsoperation of new trademark registrations arising from foreignapplicants, while the status of pending procedures concerningforeign-owned trademarks is still not clear.

The office has reported that its activities will be limitedto the following:

"The religious and politicalinfluences are quite evident within the trademark protection scopein Libya, which is why this temporary suspension for trademarkregistration by foreign applicants does not come as asurprise."

Libya has been going through a context of instability plagued bypolitical conflicts since the overthrow of former leader Muammaral-Gaddafi in 2011, who ruled the country for over 30 years. Thecountry has, since then, been divided between two main factions:the internationally recognised Government of NationalAccordwhich is based in the capital city ofTripoliand the Libyan National Army (led by General KhalifaHaftar) based in the eastern city of Tobruk.

Apart from this, there are also several armed militias operatingthroughout the country, each with its own alliances, creating avolatile and unpredictable situation favourable to politicalinstability.

In March, Libya's High Council of State voted for aconstitutional amendment intended to provide a basis for electionsand a diplomatic representative from the UN for Libya moved to takecharge of a stalled political process to enable elections that areseen as the path to resolving years of conflict.

This ongoing conflict has disrupted the country's legal andregulatory framework, including intellectual property laws.Furthermore, the country's economy is heavily reliant on oiland gas exports, which have been severely impacted by the conflict.Thus, Libya's economy has suffered greatly with the disruptionof production and exports, which led to high unemployment,inflation, and a shortage of basic goods and services.

Foreign investment plays an important role in the economicdevelopment of a country, providing wealth, expertise, andtechnology, amongst other factors. However, not allowing foreignersto register their trademarks creates legal uncertainty as it makesestablishing a strong and stable presence in the Libyan marketdifficult. This policy discourages foreign investment, which iscrucial for job creation and economic growth.

In addition, the Libyan government has a history ofnationalising foreign-owned assets, which has created a lack oftrust between foreign investors and the government.

Regarding trademark registration, it's worth noting thatLibya's legal system is based on Islamic law (Sharia). It hasbecome the country's official legal system after the overthrowof former leader Muammar al-Gaddafi. The impact on how religioninfluences trademark registration in Libya is noticeable.

Ins Sequeira approached this subject in an article describing the nuances of such influence: "Libyantrademark law prohibits the registration of certain categories oftrademarks, including those seen as 'violating public morals orpublic order' (...) or those that are 'identical or similarto symbols constituting a purely religious nature' (...). Inpractice, this means that trademarks referencing banned substancesare regularly refused (eg, pork products in Class 29 and alcoholicbeverages in Classes 32 and 33). In addition, trademarks thatincorporate non-Islamic religious symbols, such as the Christiancross or Christmas-related goods (eg, Christmas trees in Class 28)are also refused."

The religious and political influences are quite evident withinthe trademark protection scope in Libya, which is why thistemporary suspension for trademark registration by foreignapplicants does not come as a surprise.

Indeed, without a functioning central government, there is avery challenging environment for businesses operating in thecountry. As a result, obtaining trademark registration can be acomplex and difficult process, and there may be significantobstacles to overcoming the legal and regulatory landscape.

The Libyan government's policy of not allowing foreigntrademark registration in the country has significant economic andpolitical implications. The absence of a unified legal system, theleftovers of nationalising foreign assets, and the challengingbusiness climate in Libya have all contributed to making itdifficult for foreign investors to operate in the country.

The policy of not allowing foreign trademark registration maywell be contributing to the country's economic stagnation andfor this reason, it is imperative for the Libyan government toestablish a more favourable business environment for foreigninvestors.

Doing so is crucial for promoting economic growth and prosperityin Libya, by way of unlocking the full potential of foreigninvestment and long-term economic development in the country.

This is a co-published article, which was originally published in theWorld Intellectual Property Review (WIPR).

The content of this article is intended to provide a generalguide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be soughtabout your specific circumstances.

Excerpt from:
Libya's Temporary Suspension Of Trademark Registrations By ... - Mondaq News Alerts

Libyas Minister of Industry and Minerals, Ahmed Abuhisa, participated yesterday in the opening ceremony of the seventh session of Turkeys Technofest Festival for Aviation Sciences and Technology, in the presence of Prime Minister, Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba, and several industry ministers from several regional countries.

The Minister, and his accompanying delegation, held several meetings and business meetings with several officials in the industry and technology sector, which included a working session with the Undersecretary of the Turkish Ministry of Industry, in which they discussed prospects for cooperation and providing technical support for several sectors such as industrial technological parks, capacity building, industrial policies and industrial investment.

Cooperation with Malta tooOn the side-lines of the visit, a meeting took place with the Minister of Industry of Malta, who expressed his countrys readiness to cooperate, especially in the field of agricultural industries.

The Ministry reported that its participation at the Technofest came at the invitation of the Minister of Industry and Technology of Turkey. It included a high-level delegation that included the Minister, the Director General of the Industrial Information and Documentation Centre, the Executive Director of the Technology Park, and the Director of the Ministrys International and Technical Cooperation Office.

Go here to see the original:
Industry Minister participates in Turkey's Teknofest discusses ... - Libya Herald

Two Libyan high school robotic teams received the Judges Choice Award in recognition of their outstanding performance at the World Robotics Championship in Houston, USA, held on 19-23 April.

The Libyan delegation included two teams from Tripoli, (Al-Mukhtar) and (Lybotics Scout), besides (Lybotics Super) from Benghazi, all aged between 12-18, the general coordinator for Lybotics Mohammed Zaid told The Libya Observer Thursday.

The mentor of the Lybotics Super team, which won the award along with the Mukhtar team, said his team has been working hard since January, and the students were up to the challenge of building their robots.

The group competed with the top 160 robotics teams from all over the world.

"That means they are among the top teams, which accounts for only about 2% worldwide," Ziad noted.

In the competition, engineering students are challenged to build movement mechanisms, which focus on directions and speed.

"The robots have specific tasks to accomplish in the competition, including moving, lifting cones, and placing them in tubes of different heights," Ziad explains.

He confirmed that the teams faced several difficulties, including an unfortunate incident when they lost the main robot during air freight, which eliminated them from qualifying for the next stage.

Read the original here:
Two Libyan robotic teams recognized by "Judges Choice Award" in ... - The Libya Observer