By Sami Zaptia.
The 17 February 2011 Revolution graffiti and murals used unifying themes such as this famous quote attributed to anti colonial fighter Omar Mukhtar ”We dont give up. We win or we die” (Photo: ‘‘Artistic imprints on the walls of Free Libya Facebook page’’)
London, 17 February 2021:
New freedom of expression
In publishing these 2011 17 February Revolution graffiti/murals, it is worth recalling that up to the Revolution, Libyan media output had been very tightly controlled by the authoritarian Qaddafi regime.
All media in Libya had been state owned/controlled. There was no free and open public debate, and certainly no criticism of Qaddafi, his family or his regime.