Part of the country series of articles.
TRAVEL ADVISORY: EXERCISE HEIGHTENED CAUTIONPARSTATE advises travellers to exercise heightened caution in Libya. The political situation is opaque to outside observers and the treatment of foreign nationals has been inconsistent. Commonwealth consular services have limited capacity in Tripoli and travellers should register prior to arrival.
| Great Socialist People's Libyan Jamahiriya | |
|---|---|
| Jamahiriya | |
 |
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| Capital | Tripoli |
| Languages | Arabic, Tamazight, Italian |
| Population | 6,800,000 |
The Great Socialist People’s Libyan Jamahiriya is a North African state governed according to a theory of direct popular authority called the Jamahiriya – a state of the masses, in which conventional government has been abolished in favour of people’s congresses and committees at every level. This has worked out unevenly in practice, and the leadership which devised it remains the basic interpreter, guardian and animating spirit. These contradictions are part of the Libyan cultural fabric, in which ideological conviction and open self-interest can coexist simultaneously and are difficult to tell apart from the outside.
Libya split from the Maghreb Federation half a century ago and has gone its own way since. It is part of the Non-Aligned Movement and so maintains some relations with Vekllei, the Balkan Federation and India but otherwise has little in the way of foreign relations. It is an enthusiastic sponsor of liberation movements across Africa and the Arab world with oil revenue, which also funds ambitious infrastructure and social programmes that have raised living standards. Libyan leadership has considerable popular support, especially outside Tripoli, but it is also not a place where disagreement is expressed openly.