LIBYA: Valentine's Day gives fresh opportunity for Libyans to celebrate love and liberty

Record ID: 863261

  • Title: LIBYA: Valentine's Day gives fresh opportunity for Libyans to celebrate love and liberty
  • Date: 15th February 2012
  • Summary: SLATE INFORMATION
  • Embargoed: 1st March 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Libya, Libya
  • City:
  • Country: Libya
  • Topics: Quirky,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVACCP2X3WMLWH97APVFO8C0IRPW
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  • Story Text: Many Libyans on Tuesday (February 14) abandoned thoughts of elections, political parties and post-revolution hardships as they planned to celebrate Valentine's Day.
    Bouquets of red roses lined a street in Martyrs Square, formerly known as the Green Square, in the capital Tripoli, as resident perused potential tokens of love for their other halves.
    "We are celebrating Valentine's Day today and I'm here now at the florist to buy roses for my family and wife. We are happy to celebrate the revolution's first anniversary and also Valentine's Day today. Libya is free," said one local resident, Frag Mohamed al-Owan as he inspected single red roses displayed in buckets by the roadside.
    This is the first Valentine's Day for Libyans that is free of deposed leader Muammar Gaddafi's 42-year autocratic rule.
    Since the fall of the Gaddafi regime dozens of new parties have sprung up offering a vibrant mix of democratic, Islamist, free market and nationalist agendas and providing an alternative to established political movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, banned under Gaddafi.
    But the electoral picture has been clouded by widespread insecurity in the North African country, with the interim government appointed in November struggling to impose its authority on a myriad of armed groups.
    Many Libyans on Tuesday, however, chose to concentrate on the aspect of love and family ties, spending time to select plush selections of flowers for their loved ones.
    According to a new global poll released on Valentine's Day by Ipsos, a market research company, nearly two-thirds of married couples and people with a significant other say their partner is the most important source of happiness in their lives.
    And nearly half of all singles yearn above all else to find a sweetheart, with about 45 percent saying finding a partner would bring them the greatest happiness.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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