The European Union on Thursday lauded the Libyan authorities for conducting the recent parliamentary elections in a transparent as well as orderly manner, and congratulated the Libyan people on their "peaceful and dignified" march towards democracy.
In a statement released after the announcement of the preliminary results for the election of the Libyan National Congress, EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton hailed Libya's election commission for conducting the electoral process in a professional manner.
She said the EU Electoral Assessment Team (EU EAT) had assessed that processing of results at the tally center in Tripoli had been transparent and fully open to observation.
"The EU looks forward to working with the future Libyan government to be appointed following the establishment of the General National Congress, and hopes that the appointment process will retain the momentum of transition and enable the consolidation of a stable and prosperous society based on respect for fundamental freedoms, human rights and the rule of law," she added.
Provisional election results declared on Tuesday indicated that the National Forces Alliance of former interim Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril has secured 39 of the 80 seats set aside for political parties in the 200-member Constitutional Assembly, pushing Muslim Brotherhood's Justice and Construction Party to a distant second place.
The Assembly will now oversee the drafting of a new Constitution and formation of a government that would replace the present governing National Transitional Council (NTC), which came to power last year after the previous regime was overthrown in an armed rebellion.
It was the first democratic election since the autocratic regime of Col. Moammar Qadhafi was overthrown in a NATO-backed armed rebellion in August 2011. Qadhafi, who ruled Libya for 42 years with an iron fist, was captured and subsequently shot dead on October 20, 2011 by revolutionary fighters on the outskirts of his hometown Sirte.
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