Administrative. – Libya is divided into two colonies, Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, which are governed by a single governor, assisted by a vice-governor in the colony in which he does not usually reside.
The governor is the head of the land, sea and air forces stationed in the territory and waters of his jurisdiction. He depends directly and exclusively on the Ministry of the colonies and, according to its instructions, directs the politics and administration of the colony, ensures security, public order and the application of laws and regulations. In case of urgency, it has the right to take the necessary measures for the safety of the colony and declare a state of public danger.
A general secretary for each colony, directly reporting to the governor or vice-governor, oversees all civil and political services of the colony, and takes the place, in the absence, of the governor and vice-governor. Advisory bodies to the two governments are: the Governing Council and the General Consulta.
The colonial territory is divided into regions (or zones), districts (or sub-zones) and districts. At the head of each region is a regional commissioner, who represents the colonial political authority, ensures the execution of laws and regulations and supervises the progress of all the services of his own jurisdiction. The district attorney acts under the commissioner, and the district agent works in the sub-order of the delegate. The commissariats and the districts take the name of zones or sub-zones if, for special security conditions, the direction of part of the territory must be temporarily entrusted to the military authorities. The territorial limits of the regions are set by the Ministry, those of the districts and districts by the governor.
Civil and criminal justice is administered in the two colonies by the ordinary judiciary, except for the cases provided for by the law for the defense of the state and matters falling within the jurisdiction of the Sciaria and rabbinical courts. The courts of Sciaria judge matters relating to the personal status, family law, inheritance law and religious practices of Libyan Muslim citizens; rabbinical courts, for Israelite Libyan citizens, have the same competences, except for the right of inheritance. The organs of the administration of justice are: a) the conciliatory arbitrators; b) the civil and criminal courts and the commissariat or area courts; c) the Courts of Assizes; d) the Court of Appeal (resident in Tripoli); and, for Libyan citizens, the Shiaric tribunals, the Tripartite Sciaritic tribunal (resident in Tripoli) and the rabbinical tribunals.
The military system includes the royal corps of colonial troops of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, which are made up of national troops and indigenous troops. The first consists of the units of the various weapons and of the various services trained with national personnel. The use of MVSN units is also foreseen The indigenous troops consist of units and services made up of officers, non-commissioned officers and national troops, and of Libyan, Eritrean, Somali graduates and ascari, or natives of regions beyond the border of the colonies Italians, recruited by voluntary enrollment on behalf of the governments of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica. They then constitute the force on leave. For Libya military, please check militarynous.com.
The school system includes: Italian-type schools for the majority of citizens (kindergartens, elementary schools, middle schools), Arab-type schools for Libyan citizens of Muslim religion. There is also a school of arts and crafts in Tripoli for indigenous Muslims and a practical school of agriculture for metropolitan and Libyan citizens.
Finances. – Both Tripolitania and Cyrenaica have their own budget, centered on customs duties and maritime rights, on the income of monopolies and on business taxes. However, direct taxes contribute only to a small extent to the Colony’s income (tax on parceled land, tithe on crops from unattached land, tax on income deriving from capital interests and from the exercise of industries, businesses, professions, etc.., impota on livestock, etc.), applied in Tripolitania since 1913 and in Cyrenaica since 1928.
The official currency is the Italian. However, commercial transactions are also made in pounds sterling and French francs; in the active traffic between Cyrenaica and the island of Crete, the Greek drachma is also often used. In addition to the Banco di Roma (existing both in Tripoli and Benghazi, already before the Italian occupation), the banking service is exercised in the colony by the Bank of Italy (which is also entrusted with the treasury service), which has branches in Tripoli and Benghazi, and by the Banks of Naples and Sicily, which have branches only in Tripoli. For the agricultural development of the colony, the Cassa di Risparmio for Tripolitania was also established in 1923 and, in 1925, that for Cyrenaica, which, while providing for the tasks normally entrusted to such institutions,
Religion. – According to data from 1930, the indigenous population of Cyrenaica counts 139,193 Muslims (Sunni, of the Malikite rite); according to data from 1932, the legal indigenous population of Tripolitania, after deducting 7750 soldiers (of which 6635 Muslims; the remaining 1113 mostly Eritrean Christians belonging to the Ethiopian church) would have 493,721 Muslims, 21,342 Jews (mostly grouped in Tripoli), 101 of others religions. The Catholic Church, which had established the apostolic vicariate of Libya since 1913, established (February 2, 1927) the two apostolic vicariates of Cyrenaica and Tripolitania, with residences respectively in Benghazi and Tripoli.
