أزف لك التحية والسلاما

من الأعماق حبا واحتراما

I bring you greetings and peace,

from the depths, with love and respect.

تحية أمة وسلام شعب

يرى فيك الكريم أتى الكراما

A nation's greeting and a people's peace,

who see in you a noble man come to noble people,

يرى فيك المعين وليس خصما

يريد لنفسه منا انتقاما

who see in you a helper, not an adversary

seeking vengeance on us for himself.

يراك رسول جمع عالمي

أتى ينشي الحكومة والنظاما

They see you as the envoy of a world assembly,

come to establish government and order.

فعجل في القلوب الحب تغنم

به الذكرى الحبيبة والمقاما

So quickly foster love in hearts, and gain

through it fond remembrance and an honored place.

وإن قرار هيئتكم نجاح

بروح العدل والقسطاس قاما

Your assembly's resolution is indeed a triumph,

founded on the spirit of justice and fairness.

وما تنفيذه إلا اختبار

لحزمك فلتكن بطلا هماما

Its implementation is nothing but a test

of your resolve; be a valiant hero.

إلى المندوب وهو أجل قدرا

من التذكير وجهت الكلام

To the delegate—too exalted in standing

for reminders—I have addressed these words:

مقالة ناصح حر صريح

يقول الحق لو لقى الحماما

the words of a free, forthright counselor,

who speaks the truth even if he meets his death.

فهذا الشعب كافح ثلث قرن

فلم يذعن ولا ألقى الحساما

This people struggled for a third of a century,

neither submitting nor laying down the sword,

إلى أن غادر المحتل قسرا

أراضيه وقد ولى انهزاما

until the occupier was forced to leave

their lands, turning away in defeat.

تصبر بعد ذا سبعا عجافا

يراقب كشفها عاما فعاما

They patiently endured seven lean years thereafter,

awaiting their passing, year after year.

وجاء الحق يدحض كل ظلم

ويرسل نوره يطوي الظلاما

Then right came, refuting every injustice,

sending forth its light to roll away the darkness.

فحيا الله هيئتكم فليست

سوى الحصن الذي يحمي اليتامى

May God bless your assembly, for it is

nothing but the fortress that protects the orphans.

إذا تسمح فمطلبنا جدير

بأن يعطي انتباها واهتماما

If you permit, our request deserves

to be given attention and care.

يريد الشعب وحدته ففيها

كرامته ولا يرضى انقساما

The people want their unity, for in it lies

their dignity; they will not accept division.

يريد الشعب دستورا كريما

يصون حقوقه من أن تضاما

The people want an honorable constitution

that safeguards their rights against violation.

يريد مليكه الإدريس رمزا

كريما يحكم القوم الكراما

They want their king, Idris, as a symbol,

a noble one who governs noble people.

يريد الشعب تمثيلا صحيحا

ليحكم نفسه حكما قواما

The people want genuine representation,

to govern themselves with upright rule.

يريد علاقة لا غش فيها

مع الأمم التي ترعى السلاما

They want a relationship free of deceit

with nations that uphold peace.

وبالإيجاز يرغب كل خير

لمن في رقعة الوطن استقاما

In short, they desire every good

for whoever lives uprightly within the homeland's bounds.

فذي بعض الرغائب وهي تعني

بأنا أمة قصدت مراما

These are some of our wishes, and they mean

that we are a nation intent upon a goal.

فإن نالته بالحسنى فنعمت

وإن منعت ستبعثها ضراما

If it attains it peaceably, all is well;

but if denied, it will unleash a blaze.

فإما أن يكون حياة عز

وإما الموت نقبله زؤاما

Then either there shall be a life of honor,

or death—we shall accept it, swift and grim.

ستسمع أننا في الرأي شتى

وفي الغايات نختلف انقساما

You will hear that we are divided in opinion,

and split apart in our differing aims;

وأن لكل منطقة كيانا

برغبة أهلها الأحرار قاما

that each region has an entity of its own,

established by the wish of its free inhabitants;

وهذه برقة اليوم استقلت

بلا تعب وحققت المناما

that Cyrenaica has now become independent,

without toil, and has fulfilled the dream.

سيأتي دور طرابلس فورا

فتنتظم الأمور بها انتظاما

Tripoli's turn will come at once,

and its affairs will fall into order.

كذا الفزان يصبح مستقلا

وقدما كان منطقة حراما

Fezzan likewise will become independent,

though formerly it was a forbidden region.

فلا تسمع لأهل السين قولا

ولا عن تيمز تروى كلاما

So heed no word from the people of the Seine,

nor repeat any words from the Thames.

لكل غاية يرمي إليها

ولا تخفى وإن أبدى اكتتاما

Each has a goal it aims to reach,

not hidden, though it makes a show of secrecy.

أتذكر والقضية في اقتراع

مواقفهم فهل بدوا انسجاما

Do you remember, when the issue was put to a vote,

their positions? Did they show harmony?

وكيف يعارضون لكل رأي

وكيف يسددون لنا السهاما

And how they opposed every view,

and how they aimed their arrows at us?

وما كنيل الذي أبدى امتناعا

عن التصويت هل بلغ المراما

And McNeil, who chose to abstain

from voting—did he achieve his aim?

وماتصريح شنول في أويا

سوى تهديد من بنوى الصداما

And what was Shanul's statement in Oea

but a threat from one intent on confrontation?

ستسمع بعضنا يدعو إلى ما

دعى المحتل لا تبد اهتماما

You will hear some among us calling for what

the occupier called for; pay it no heed.

فللمستعمرين دعاة سوء

يعدون السموم لنا طعاما

For the colonizers have evil advocates

who prepare poisons for us as food.

لقد باعوا الضمائر واستعاضوا

بها الألقاب والرتب الفخاما

They have sold their consciences and taken in exchange

for them titles and splendid ranks.

فلا تسمع مقالتهم ودعهم

لما خلقوا فقد خلقوا لئاما

So do not heed their words; leave them

to what they were created for, for they were created base.

دع الأقوال خلفك ثم راقب

بعينك كي ترى المحن الجساما

Leave words behind you, then observe

with your own eyes, to see the grievous trials.

فذي برقا يقولون استقلت

تأمل هل ترى إلا كلاما

Here is Cyrenaica: they say it is independent;

look closely—do you see anything but words?

فوالى الأمس معتمد مقيم

ينفذ ما يريد ولن يلاما

Yesterday's governor is now a resident commissioner,

who does what he pleases and will not be blamed.

وما منحوه بالدستور شكلا

أتي المنشور يأخذه التهاما

And what they granted in form through the constitution,

the proclamation came and swallowed whole.

وكل وزارة بل كل قسم

به منهم مشير قد أقاما

And every ministry—indeed, every department—

has an adviser from among them installed within it,

كمثل الفاطمي بأرض مصر

تأله فاستحل بها الحراما

like the Fatimid in the land of Egypt,

who claimed divinity and deemed the forbidden lawful there.

يسوسون الأمور بغير عقل

تعمد من تجاهل أو تعامي

They manage affairs without reason,

deliberately feigning ignorance or blindness.

بهذا صار أمر الشعب فوضى

منظمة تثير الابتساما

Thus the people's affairs became chaos—

organized, and provoking a smile.

فظنوا أنهم بلغوا مناهم

بهذا الفعل أو خدعوا الأناما

They thought they had attained their desires

by this deed, or had deceived mankind.

ولكن الحقيقة إذ تبدت

أماطت عن خداعهم اللثاما

But truth, when it appeared,

lifted the veil from their deceit.

ألا يأيها المندوب حاذر

من التقسيم إن شئت احتراما

Take heed, O delegate, beware

of partition, if you wish for respect.

فوحدة ليبيا لا بد منها

لتنفيذ القرار بها دواما

For Libya's unity is indispensable

to lasting implementation of the resolution there.

ووحدة شعبنا بمقومات

أتت كالشمس بددت القتاما

And our people's unity, with its foundations,

has come like the sun, dispelling the gloom.

فنطق الضاد منطقنا جميعا

ودين الشعب إسلام ترامي

For the speech of ḍād is the tongue of us all,

and the people's faith is Islam, spread far and wide.

وذا التاريخ والعادات فينا

وذي الأنساب تجمعنا تماما

And this history and these customs are ours,

and these lineages bind us fully together.

ورقعة أرضنا أبدا جميعا

فلم نعرف لوحدتها انفصاما

And our land's expanse has always been one;

we have known no rupture in its unity.

وأما اقتضته ظروف حرب

من التقسيم لا يبقى لزاما

As for what the circumstances of war required

in the way of partition, it need not remain binding.

فهذا من حديث الشعب حقا

أقدمه لحضرتكم نظاما

This is truly some of what the people have to say,

which I present to Your Excellency in verse.

وعذرا إن أطلت القول إني

أردت الاختصار فما استقاما

And pardon me if I have spoken at length; I

wanted brevity, but it would not come.

إليك تحيتي ثم احترامي

وتقديري ومعذرتي ختاما

To you my greetings, then my respect,

and my esteem and my apology, in closing.