Despite recent progress, Libya continued to violate...

Despite recent progress, Libya continued to violate basic human rights and a "climate of fear" persisted in the country, Amnesty International said in a report, entitled "Libya: Time to make human rights a reality," issued in Brussels as Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi was due in the Belgian capital.
"Libya is at a crossroads. There is an urgent need to establish the truth over past events and for the Libyan authorities to commit to domestic reforms to address current abuses," Amnesty said.
"Today, a pattern of human rights violations, witnessed over the past three decades, repeats itself, often under the new rhetoric of the war against terror."
"Although abolition of the death penalty is promised, capital punishment remains prescribed and used for a large number of offences including the peaceful exercise of political activities," said Amnesty.
Amnesty's report is based on a February 2004 visit to Libya -- the first in 15 years -- in which the group was given unprecedented access to authorities and prisoners.