Alla Kalush was born in Misrata, Libya. At age four, he and his family left Libya for England. They arrived in Carmichael in 1980, where he grew up.
Kalush graduated from El Camino High School and earned
a bachelor’s degree in economics at California State University, Sacramento. Today, he manages Sacramento Auto Center and is active in raising funds for the Children of Libya Aid Foundation, a charitable group.
A U.S. Senate panel voted June 28 to approve U.S. participation in the military campaign against Libya and Moammar Gadhafi's forces. Since NATO took command of the Libya operation in early April, the U.S. role has largely been limited to support efforts such as intelligence, surveillance and electronic warfare.
The U.S. has launched airstrikes and drone attacks, flying more than 3,400 sorties. The effort has included some 42 drone attacks and 80 strikes with jet fighters.
Kalush recently spoke about the Libyan uprising.
Carmichael Patch: What is your understanding of events before the 2011 uprising in Libya?
Alla Kalush: Basically, what we have in Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi is a typical dictator in a Third World country who has been in power for over four decades after an anti-colonial wave of Arab nationalism throughout North Africa and the Middle East. At first, the Libyan people embraced him. Then he began to make the country his own, targeting political opponents and abusing his power. Gadhafi redistributed wealth, and nationalized businesses and industries. That’s why my parents left Libya. But many Libyans tolerated Gadhafi and stayed.
CP: What sparked the Libyan uprising this spring?
AK: A massacre in a prison in eastern Libya spurred the protests against Gadhafi that began on Feb. 17. The government said that there was a prison riot, with an unknown number of deaths. Later, the government arrested a lawyer attempting to uncover the facts of this prison incident. That kicked off non-violent street protests against the government. We did not see Libya following the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt until Gadhafi’s forces used anti-aircraft fire against peaceful protesters. That response launched the rebels’ armed resistance. It spread to Misrata, a close-knit port city of 500,000 people (out of a Libyan population of 6.6 million, according to a July 2011 estimate from the World Factbook of the Central Intelligence Agency)
CP: Do you have family in Libya currently?
AK: Yes. From grandparents down in Misrata and Tripoli, I have over 500 members in our extended family.
CP: If you have spoken with them, what do they say?
AK: Their morale in battling Gadhafi’s forces is high. The young men, organized by neighborhoods, always felt that they would free Misrata from pro-Gaddafi forces, despite the government’s random artillery attacks. My parents speak with our family in Misrata and Tripoli by Skype, cell and satellite phone every day.
CP: What is your view of the NATO/U.S. aerial bombardment of
the Gaddafi regime in Libya since the rebels’ insurrection began?
AK: I am 100 percent for it and hope NATO and the U.S. do more,
though I’m one of the last people in favor of foreign intervention. I always think that there are other motives besides humanitarian reasons. An example is Libyan oil, which mostly goes to Europe (Italy,
France and Britain).
CP: Who are the rebels in Libya?
AK: I’d say that 95 to 98 percent of the rebels are average Joes, just regular people. They are bakers, doctors, engineers and lawyers defending themselves, their families and neighborhoods
from government forces. There are also defectors from the army who have joined the rebellion.
CP: What are living and working conditions during the revolt against
Gadhafi?
AK: Everything’s at a standstill. The circulation of money is
not operating normally, due to the disruption of Libyan oil (expected to remain off the world market for the rest of 2011, according to the International Energy Agency). Oil money is at the center of the economy. So people barter to get by. Donations from abroad also help Libyans.
CP: How has the Internet and social media affected the Libyan
rebellion?
AK: Since Gadhafi controls TV stations and the propaganda system, it would have been difficult to have a continued Libyan rebellion without Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. They make it easier for people to communicate and coordinate and show what’s happening between government forces and the rebels in and out of Libya.
CP: Like Gadhafi, Syrian leader Bashar Assad is attacking protesters. Yet NATO/U.S. forces are not bombing the Assad government, only the Qaddafi government. What do you make of that?
AK: Number one, Syria has no oil. However, Syria has allies in Hezbollah-run Lebanon and Iran. So when it comes to strategy and politics, there are more things at play in the region, such as Syria’s potential to disrupt American Western interests in Israel, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Military intervention in Syria is a harder call for the West. I and other Libyans support the revolution in Syria. We are suffering our own tragedies and are horrified at the suffering of the Syrian people at the hands of their government.
CP: How many Libyan-Americans live in Carmichael?
AK: There are less than a handful of families, excluding the Libyan students attending colleges and universities.
CP: Where can people go for up-to-date information on the
conflict in Libya?
AK: I recommend http://feb17.info/ , a news aggregator website. It translates news from Arabic to English 24/7.
---
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
