Photo/Illutration People search for survivors in Derna, Libya, on Sept. 13 after the collapse of two dams unleashed a massive flash flood that killed thousands of people. (AP Photo)

When Hillary Clinton was the U.S. secretary of state in 2011, Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi’s 42-year regime was ousted by the so-called Arab Spring--a series of anti-government uprisings that swept through much of the Arab world.

Immediately after Gaddafi’s exit, Clinton arrived in Tripoli on a military plane. Her memoir contains a sensitive account of that visit.

She was most deeply impressed by the thoughtfulness and determination of Libya’s young pro-democracy activists. And many students asked her, in all seriousness, questions such as what sort of steps they should take to help free speech take root.

But whatever answers she may have given are not mentioned in her account.

She probably knew all too well that democratization would not be easy. Instead, Clinton only mused on what would shape the future of the nation, wondering if the answer would be the weapons borne by the militia or the aspirations of the people.

What ended up awaiting Libya was the bloodshed and chaos of a multilateral civil war. As tribal and regional conflicts continued, reactions from the international community became divided.

Today, Libya is in danger of falling apart. It is as if the spring of democratic aspirations passed in a flash, smothered by a brutal summer.

And this nation has just been visited by an epic disaster. A deadly cyclone hit Libya’s Mediterranean port town, causing dams to burst. Reports of 10,000 people going missing took my breath away.

This faraway nation in North Africa is very much in my thoughts.

A saying in the Arab world goes to the effect, “The world is on the side of one who perseveres to the end,” according to a book of Arab proverbs by Ayako Sono.

But we cannot force the Libyan people, who are suffering and grieving, to persevere. I want them to receive aid as soon as possible.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Sept. 15

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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