Feb 28 (Reuters) - Libya's Jamahiriyah or "state of the masses" system was proclaimed 30 years ago on Friday. Here are key facts about a system Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi says gives people power while avoiding what he calls the dictatorship of the 51 percent. - The system stems from Gaddafi's Green Book, which combines Islamic ideals with socialism and pan-Arabism and rejects political parties and representative democracy. It states: "The most tyrannical dictatorships the world has known have existed under the aegis of parliaments. ... The people (in Western democracies), are seduced into standing in long, apathetic, silent queues to cast their ballots in the same way that they throw waste paper into dustbins." - On March 2, 1977, Gaddafi proclaimed the establishment of people's power, with citizens ruling through Basic People's Congresses (BPC). All people have a right and duty to attend such congresses, which in theory hold ultimate power. - Hundreds of BPCs send up their decisions through a pyramid of committees and congresses, each layer of which is involved in the choice of the next highest level, ending with the General People's Congress (GPC). Revolutionary committees of experts on the Green Book encourage people to contribute to BPCs. - The GPC chooses the general people's committee, or cabinet, which manages the daily affairs of government. - Gaddafi holds no official post but is called Leader of the Revolution. (Source: The Green Book, U.S. Library of Congress, U.S. State Department)
