By: Whitney Roper, Contributing Writer

“The people of Libya deserve more than bombs.”

Former PA Republican U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon expressed his feelings about the current situation in Libya as well as his past experience with the Libyan government in an Op-Ed piece for The New York Times yesterday.

Weldon had traveled to Libya back in 2004 when he headed a Congressional delegation to support Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s decision to give up Libya’s nuclear powered weapons program. Now, in 2011, Weldon finds himself back in Libya, but only this time Libya is in a worsened state of being.

“Neither the White House nor I wanted to lend support to Colonel Qaddafi himself [in 2004]; our goal was to open a new era of engagement between the United States government and American business with the Libyan people themselves.”

Weldon explained that Libyan reform will come from a combination of American Congressional leaders meeting with Colonel Qaddafi and persuading him to step down, obtaining a cease-fire, and establishing relations with emerging leaders in Libya, from Prime Minister Baghdadi Mahmudi to Qaddafi’s son Saif.

“The key to promoting reform in a foreign country is to identify and engage with emerging leaders…But plans for a coordinated effort between Congress and Libyan legislators to nurture a new generation of Libyan leaders never developed.”

He explained how the current problems in Libya stemmed from possible solutions that never took shape during the Bush and Obama administration. Although it may seem that past efforts to establish relationships with emerging Libyan leaders did not happen, it is still a cornerstone on the path to a new Libya.

“We must identify and engage with those leaders who, if not perfect, are pragmatic and reform-minded and thus best positioned to lead the country.”

It is still unclear exactly what lies ahead in Libya’s future but humanitarian efforts need to be established to move forward.