美國經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家變身利比亞石油財(cái)政部長
????今年2月,利比亞革命爆發(fā),局勢一片混亂。如今塔胡尼已經(jīng)60歲了,他坐在電視機(jī)前收看相關(guān)報(bào)道,一刻也不肯離身,直到意識到自己無法再置身事外。他發(fā)郵件給好友們解釋道:“我必須趕回祖國,盡我所能,出一份力。” ????那時(shí)他還無法想象“出一份力”到底意味著什么:利比亞戰(zhàn)士們沿著海岸線發(fā)起一場場致命的戰(zhàn)斗,北約戰(zhàn)機(jī)則在上空強(qiáng)力打擊卡扎菲武裝,這是一場漫長而代價(jià)沉重的戰(zhàn)爭。在反對派領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層中,塔胡尼升遷很快。他活力充沛,笑容可親,很快就贏得了許多朋友。與許多其他在海外度過一生多數(shù)時(shí)光的利比亞人一樣,他回到祖國時(shí),滿腔都是活力和主意。愛爾蘭、西班牙、英國、加拿大等國,到處都有流亡海外的利比亞人趕回祖國,投身革命。與他們一樣,經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家塔胡尼發(fā)現(xiàn)自己突然置身于宏大的全球歷史之中——用他的話說,這是一段“使人精疲力竭而又振奮不已的時(shí)光。” ????然而,這種興奮之中也潛藏著眾多不詳?shù)奈kU(xiǎn)。塔胡尼稱,目前這些危險(xiǎn)已經(jīng)成為利比亞最值得擔(dān)憂的問題。坐擁武裝的不同派別彼此對立,全都聲稱自己為推翻卡扎菲立下首功,埋下了引發(fā)新一輪沖突的可能性??ㄔ瀑徺I的大量武器裝備保管不善,給利比亞留下了許多毫無戒備的武器庫。不過,至少在眼下,塔胡尼還可以品嘗勝利的美好滋味?!皫缀趺恳粋€(gè)小時(shí),我胸中洋溢的激情都可以回味一輩子,”他說。 ????卡扎菲后來被反對派武裝從下水道拖出,隨后遭射殺。他身亡的消息傳來時(shí),塔胡尼迎來了生命中最激動的一刻。幾個(gè)小時(shí)后,他隨車隊(duì)奔赴飽受戰(zhàn)火蹂躪的米蘇拉塔,代表反對派領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層正式確認(rèn)卡扎菲那血跡斑斑、傷痕累累的尸體。一切發(fā)展得太快,人們甚至沒有多少時(shí)間來仔細(xì)品味這一刻的感受。 ????“40年來,我每天早上醒來,每天晚上睡下時(shí)都會想到他?,F(xiàn)在他已成往事,”塔胡尼告訴我,“這是什么感覺呢?我也不知道,我需要平靜一會兒?!?/p> ????祝他好運(yùn)吧??ㄔ茊拭髢商欤峄氐搅税嗉游?。我跟他同車趕赴解放慶典。在典禮上,反對派國家過渡委員會(the rebel's National Transitional Council)主席正式宣布戰(zhàn)爭已經(jīng)結(jié)束。對于自己在新政府中將扮演何種角色,塔胡尼還不是很確定。直到10月底,利比亞臨時(shí)政府總理阿卜杜勒-拉希姆?凱卜仍未選定內(nèi)閣成員。后卡扎菲時(shí)代的第一場大選可能于明年夏季舉行。屆時(shí),塔胡尼本人的職位也可能會更上一層樓。不過,有些利比亞人認(rèn)為他更像是個(gè)外國人,太美國化了。不經(jīng)意間,他談及利比亞人時(shí)會說“他們”,而且據(jù)他本人的說法,他那美國式迅速同時(shí)處理多項(xiàng)任務(wù)的風(fēng)格,與利比亞式的冗長討論格格不入,形成鮮明對比。“我的做事風(fēng)格使人們感到震驚,”他說。 |
????Then came the moment in February when the tumultuous Libyan revolution erupted. Tarhouni, now 60, sat glued to the television until he could no longer stand staying away. He emailed friends, explaining, "I need to go back to help as much as I can." ????Little did he imagine what that "help" would entail: a long, grinding war in which Libyan fighters waged lethal battles along the coast while NATO bombers pummeled the country from above. Tarhouni rose fast in the rebel leadership; he had kinetic energy and a broad smile, and he quickly won friends. Like many other Libyans who'd spent much of their lives abroad, he arrived back brimming with energy and ideas. Like those other émigrés from Ireland, Spain, Britain, Canada, and elsewhere who flew home for the revolution, the economist found himself suddenly thrust into outsize global history -- an "exhausting, exhilarating time," he says. ????Amid the excitement are also ominous perils, which Tarhouni says are now his country's most pressing worries. Well-armed rival brigades each claim primacy in toppling Qaddafi, raising the potential for fresh conflicts. And Qaddafi's profligate weapons purchases have left Libya with mountains of unsecured armaments. But for now Tarhouni is relishing an extraordinary taste of victory. "Almost every hour you pack enough emotions for a lifetime," he says. ????The most intense emotion came when Tarhouni got word that Qaddafi was dead, captured in a sewage ditch and shot by rebels. A few hours later Tarhouni sped by convoy to the war-ravaged town of Misurata to formally identify the bloodied and beaten corpse of his tormenter on behalf of the rebel leaders. In the breakneck speed of their work, there was little time for the experience to hit home. ????"For 40 years I'd wake up and go to sleep with him in my mind. And now he's not here anymore," Tarhouni tells me. "How does it feel? I have no idea. I need some quiet time." ????Good luck with that. Two days after Qaddafi's death, Tarhouni is in Benghazi. I hitch a ride with him to the liberation ceremony, where the rebel's National Transitional Council president formally declares the war over. Tarhouni remains uncertain about what role he'll play in the new government. The new interim Prime Minister, Abdurrahim El Keeb, had yet to pick his cabinet by the end of October. It's possible too that Tarhouni's bigger role could come when Libya's first post-Qaddafi elections are held, probably next summer. But some Libyans believe he is too much of an outsider, too American. He unwittingly refers to Libyans as "they" and says his American-style rapid multitasking is a sharp contrast to Libyans' languorous discussions. "People are shocked at the way I do things," he says. |