Amid the immediate triumphalism that followed Muammar Qaddafi's demise in October, many harboured fears that tribal and factional interests in Libya would trump any unity engendered during the revolution.
It was not difficult to see the reason for the concern. As Libya's new flag was being hoisted in Tripoli, truckloads of anti-government rebels, many still in their teens, bore down on the Libyan capital to celebrate liberation from four decades of tyranny. As the euphoria ebbed, it became clear that rival militias of AK47-armed teenagers were not a recipe for a stable state.
Exactly a year after taking up arms against Qaddafi, as the nation celebrates its new "Revolution Day" today, getting the militias to lay down their weapons is proving as difficult as defeating the old regime.
On Wednesday, an Amnesty International report documented dozens of cases of militias in post-war Libya, torturing prisoners and forcefully evacuating whole neighbourhoods. By refusing to disband and continuing to operate outside the law, these gangs are seriously undermining the government's efforts to form a democratic society based on justice, Amnesty concluded.
It is clear the National Transitional Council did not have the first loyalty of most Qaddafi opponents, who were often organised on regional and tribal affiliations. Worse still, the opposition movement, led by the NTC, had no unifying mechanism for peacetime - tribes associated with the former regime, such as the Warfalla and the Qaddafa, have been dangerously sidelined. The nearly complete absence of civil institutions, a legacy of the Qaddafi's rule, certainly has not helped.
As the new government struggles to extend its influence, the militias - former "freedom fighters" - continue to roam the streets, guns in hand, unopposed. It is a lesson that, for example, Syria's developing opposition movement should be watching.
The likelihood of a reconciliation with President Bashar Al Assad is almost non-existent. However, the Syrian opposition must endeavour to open lines of communications with many tribes and groups that remain neutral, or even those that side with the regime because of political expediency. Syria has seen too much violence already. A climate of "with us or against us" can only lead to the kind of unrest, factional fighting and settling of scores that continues to haunt Libya.
Libya can make its way past these dark days of torture and uncertainty. But that will be the day when the Libyan government is in control of the streets, not partisan militias. That will also be the real anniversary to celebrate.
