Long-form name: Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

Type: Jamahiriya (a state of the masses); in theory, governed by the populace through local councils; in fact, a military dictatorship

Capital: Tripoli

Administrative divisions: 46 municipalities (baladiyat, singular--baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al Abyar, Al Aziziyah, Al Bayda, Al Jufrah, Al Jumayl, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, Al Marj, Al Qarabulli, Al Qubbah, Al Ujaylat, Ash Shati, Awbari, Az Zahra, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Bani Walid, Bin Jawwad, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Ghat, Jadu, Jalu, Janzur, Masallatah, Misratah, Mizdah, Murzuq, Nalut, Qaminis, Qasr Bin Ghashir, Sabha, Sabratah, Shahhat, Surman, Surt, Tajura, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Tukrah, Yafran, Zlitan, Zuwarah; note--the number of municipalities may have been reduced to 13 named Al Jabal al-Akhdar, Al Jabal al-Gharbi, Al Jabal al-Khums, Al Batnam, Al Kufrah, Al Marqab, Al Marzuq, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Khalij Surt, Sabha, Tripoli, Wadi al-Hayat

Independence: 24 December 1951 (from Italy)

Constitution: 11 December 1969, amended 2 March 1977

Legal system: based on Italian civil law system and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday: Revolution Day, 1 September (1969)

Branches: officially, paramount political power and authority rests with the General People's Congress, which theoretically functions as a parliament with a cabinet called the General People's Committee

Leaders: @m5Chief of State--Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); @m5Head of Government--Premier Umar Mustafa al-MUNTASIR (since 1 March 1987)

Suffrage: mandatory universal adult

Elections: representatives to the General People's Congress are drawn from popularly elected municipal committees

Political parties: none

Communists: no organized party, negligible membership

Other political or pressure groups: various Arab nationalist movements and the Arab Socialist Resurrection (Bath) party with almost negligible memberships may be functioning clandestinely, as well as some Islamic elements

Member of: AfDB, Arab League, CCC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OAU, OIC, OPEC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG

Diplomatic representation: none

Flag: plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion)

NOTE: The information regarding Libya on this page is re-published from the 1989 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Libya Government 1989 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Libya Government 1989 should be addressed to the CIA.