LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
November 14/09
Bible Reading of the day
Mark 2/18-22: "John’s disciples and
the Pharisees were fasting, and they came and asked him, “Why do John’s
disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples don’t
fast?” Jesus said to them, “Can the groomsmen fast while the bridegroom is with
them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they can’t fast. But the
days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then will
they fast in that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment,
or else the patch shrinks and the new tears away from the old, and a worse hole
is made. No one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will
burst the skins, and the wine pours out, and the skins will be destroyed; but
they put new wine into fresh wineskins.”
Free Opinions, Releases, letters & Special
Reports
UN Resolution 1701 to protect
Lebanon/bY: Hanin Ghaddar/November 13, 09
Syria-Lebanon ties need driven leaders/The
Daily Star/November 13/09
Interview with MP. Michel Aoun/FPM
site/November 13/09
Mideast radicals fill space left by peace
impasse/By MARJORIE OLSTER (AP)/November 13/09
A Government that doesn’t
Fool Anyone/By:
Hassan Haidar/November 13/09
Latest
News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for November 13/09
Hariri's Damascus Visit Not Before
Cabinet Policy Statement/Naharnet
Gemayel says reports of Kataeb’s
split from March 14 “illogical”; Sleiman’s visit to Syria was “surprising”/Now
Lebanon
Hizbullah Disciplinary Members Step Back to Allow Police Take Charge/Naharnet
Syria urges firm us plan on Middle East peace/Reuters
Assad: Peace talks with Israel hindered by Obama
inaction/Ha'aretz
Israel open to peace talks
with Syria/ABC Online
Syria's Assad hails 'climate of trust' ahead of
French visit/AFP
Assad:
Unity Government Makes us Comfortable with Lebanon/Naharnet
Yemen's Shiite rebels -- like Hezbollah or a world
apart?/France24
Climate satirists send serious message
/Daily Star
Parliament concludes consensus-based committee polls/Daily
Star
Sleiman, Assad vow
coordination during Damascus talks/Daily
Star
UN to
vote on 2006 war compensation draft/Daily
Star
Tehran and Moscow welcome formation of Cabinet/Daily
Star
US
projects helps Akkar youth come together/Daily
Star
MP
Arslan wishes Hariri success in new post/Daily
Star
Judge
calls for death penalty for Israeli spies/Daily
Star
Baroud: Security forces have
unrestricted access throughout Lebanon/Daily
Star
Aridi
tours Tripoli ahead of Chinese port deal/Daily
Star
Dutch
drug smuggler arrested at airport/Daily
Star
Security forces arrest suspect in Jarjoura murder/Daily
Star
World-famous Lebanese mountaineer shares experiences with AUB students/Daily
Star
Honored civilian reveals motivations behind preventing crime/Daily
Star
Ex-Tele Liban chief Boulos releases autobiographical collections/Daily
Star
New
projects aim to benefit Hermel/Daily
Star
School for Palestinians opens in Mieh Mieh/Daily
Star
Refugee boss urges better deal for Palestinians/Daily
Star
Executive at Central Bank Flee to Brazil with LL2 Billion/Naharnet
Nahhas Suggests Changing
Economic System in Policy Statement Meeting/Naharnet
Damascus Summit Ends with
Agreement on Reactivating Anti-Terrorism, Border Cooperation/Naharnet
Berri: Opposition
Determined to Facilitate Cabinet Mission/Naharnet
Al-Sayegh: Phalange Party
is Still a Part of Parliamentary Majority/Naharnet
Qassem: Conflict Time is
Over, Time to Work/Naharnet
Murr: Hariri Will Visit
Damascus after Assad Returns from Paris/Naharnet
Shaaban: Still Early to
Talk About Practical Steps Regarding Hariri's Visit to Syria/Naharnet
March 14 Urges Speedy
Conclusion to Defensive Strategy Topic/Naharnet
Abu Zeinab: Cabinet lineup reflects
March 14’s favoring LF over Kataeb/Now Lebanon
Hajjar: Hariri would visit Syria
when time is right/Now Lebanon
Al-Akhbar: ISF foils
escape attempt by Fatah al-Islam inmates from Roumieh Prison/Now Lebanon
Hariri's Damascus Visit Not Before Cabinet Policy Statement
Naharnet/A sudden trip on Thursday by President Michel Suleiman to Damascus has
injected more positivity into relations between Beirut and Damascus which was
likely to be completed in an upcoming visit of Prime Minister Saad Hariri to the
Syrian capital. Arab diplomatic sources, cited by pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat
on Friday, said Suleiman's visit was also likely as a "prelude" to another visit
by Hariri to Damascus after winning the confidence of the government. The
sources said Suleiman sought to soften the atmosphere between Syrian officials
and Hariri and discussed an "appropriate" way of this situation. Press reports
said Hariri's Damascus trip would most likely take place two or three days after
the government gets a vote of confidence in Parliament. Government sources,
meanwhile, told daily As-Safir that a visit by Hariri to Damascus is
"inevitable," but that it was unlikely to happen before Cabinet gets a
confidence vote. Meanwhile, An-Nahar newspaper said Hariri, who left on a
private visit for Saudi Arabia late Thursday, would start --after winning a
confidence vote -- a tour of Arab countries and another global tour aimed at
reactivating Paris-3 and garnering regional and international support for
Lebanon to support its economy. Syrian President Bashar Assad's political and
media advisor, Buthaina Shaaban, had said it was "too early to talk about
practical steps regarding Hariri's visit to Syria." Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 08:16
Hizbullah Disciplinary Members Step Back to Allow Police Take Charge
Naharnet/Lebanese police began deploying additional members in Beirut's southern
suburbs as part of a new plan put forward at the request of Dahiyeh Union of
Municipalities as well as Hizbullah and AMAL movement. Al-Akhbar newspaper,
which carried the report, said Friday that Hizbullah disciplinary members, who
were responsible for organizing traffic at main road intersections, began
stepping back to allow traffic police take charge. It said a 30-strong force had
been dispatched to Dahiyeh, and more policemen are expected to be sent later.
Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 10:47
Assad: Unity Government Makes us Comfortable with Lebanon
Naharnet/Syrian President Bashar Assad said that he "before the formation of the
Lebanese government, I publicly confirmed and on numerous occasions my support
for any government of national unity in Lebanon." "Formation of the government
is a good thing for Lebanon, so as to ensure stability," Assad said in an
interview with the French daily Le Figaro.
"When there are no divisions in Lebanon, it would be easier for a country like
Syria to establish normal relations with it," Assad believed. Assad's remarks
came ahead of talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy scheduled for Friday.
Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 10:28
Executive at Central Bank Flee to Brazil with LL2 Billion
Naharnet/The Central Bank clamors over a scandal of nearly LL 2 billion by the
key managers, who said he fled to Brazil An executive at Lebanon's Central Bank
has fled to Brazil with LL 2 billion, the daily Al-Akbar said on Friday. It
identified the executive only by his initials, M.D. Al-Akhbar said the executive
used to exploit his position at the central bank to embezzle people the same way
Salah Ezzidine did, telling them he has the ability to invest their money in
high interest. Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 11:37
Nahhas Suggests Changing Economic System in Policy
Statement Meeting
Naharnet/Telecoms Minister Sherbel Nahhas called for a review of the Lebanese
economic system, saying that "it is old and the Taef Agreement did not meet the
requirements needed."
Pan-Arab daily al-Hayat said Nahhas made his suggestion during the first meeting
of the ministerial committee tasked with drafting the Cabinet policy statement.
It said Nahhas was faced with inquiries from Finance Minister Ria Hasan Haffar
and a number of other ministers over what he meant by "adopting a barter policy"
and how can it be applied in Lebanon. Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 11:04
Damascus Summit Ends with Agreement on Reactivating Anti-Terrorism, Border
Cooperation
Naharnet/A summit held Thursday in Damascus between Lebanese President Michel
Suleiman and his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad was a follow-up to a previous
summit between the two neighboring leaders. Press reports on Friday said
Suleiman and Assad reviewed the clauses contained in the previous agreement
during the first summit and what has not been implemented yet. The two leaders
have also reportedly discussed the mechanism necessary for the successful of
implementation. Suleiman and Assad were also said to have agreed to activate the
work of the Border Demarcation Committee after having completed the
establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries at the
ambassadorial level.
Security and military cooperation between the two countries were also positively
assessed and the two leaders have agreed to take further steps, particularly
reactivate cooperation in combating terrorism and preventing smuggling. Suleiman
has briefed Speaker Nabih Berri and PM Saad Hariri on his Damascus trip.
The two leaders reviewed "the positive developments which have recently taken
place in Lebanon," especially the new cabinet, Syria's state news agency SANA
reported.
Assad called for the rival parties in Lebanon "to take advantage of this
positive atmosphere and to continue dialogue so as to strengthen Lebanese
understanding and unity as a basis for stability." Suleiman, on a second visit
to Damascus since his May 2008 election, hailed "the privileged relations with
Syria, which are in the interests of Lebanon," SANA said.
The presidents agreed to "continue consultations, coordination and cooperation."
Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 09:12
Al-Sayegh: Phalange Party is Still a Part of Parliamentary
Majority
Naharnet/Social Affairs Minister Salim al-Sayegh stressed that "Phalange is
still at the core of parliamentary majority combination, and is not seeking an
alibi to divorce it", adding that "the majority, in the government, will be more
consolidated". "Phalange is the nerve of March 14 forces, hence it cannot shoot
any bullet at the essence of March 14," said the Phalange minister to MTV TV
network. Al-Sayegh said that the stance of Phalange Party should not be
understood as related to the shares division approach. He added that "Phalange
won't participate in March 14 general-secretariat meetings as long as the
framework of its agenda was not presented." "The (Phalange) party does not see
that the current policy of March 14 represents the higher policy it (Phalange
Party) aims for," added al-Sayegh. "We are giving March 14 an important rescue
chance and if they don't understand it, then they would be losing a new chance
like they have lost other chances," warned al-Sayegh, stressing that the recent
stance of Phalange Party "is to awake March 14 from its sleep". Beirut, 12 Nov
09, 20:44
Berri: Opposition Determined to Facilitate Cabinet Mission
Naharnet/Speaker Nabih Berri described as "more than optimistic" the atmosphere
in Lebanon, stressing that the various political parties wish and seek to work
toward the best interest of the citizens. In remarks published Friday, Berri
said the Opposition has "every intention to facilitate the tasks required of
this government in order to address the many issues that eluded us in recent
years."He ruled out that problems would surface during the drafting of the
Cabinet policy statement that he hoped would be accomplished soon.
Berri believed that the ministerial statement would be announced "a few days
before Independence Day or a few days after." Beirut, 13 Nov 09, 09:42
Qassem: Conflict Time is Over, Time to Work
Naharnet/Hizbullah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem said that
Hizbullah wanted a national unity government by headline and content. "We will
work through this government to make it efficient and interactive by cooperating
with all the parties," he added. Qassem addressed all political parties saying
that "the time of political, media and acrobatic harassments are over. It is
time to work". "If we take advantage of the positive ambience, the ministerial
statement will be ready and issued in a matter of days," he said. Qassem assured
that Hizbullah will be one of the "major contributors to make this government
work." Beirut, 12 Nov 09, 20:54
Murr: Hariri Will Visit Damascus after Assad Returns from Paris
Naharnet/MP Michel Murr said that "France played an important role in ending the
governmental crisis in Lebanon and the Syrian role was also effective", adding
that "the summit held on Thursday in Damascus between the Lebanese and Syrian
presidents was an important step on the road to support Lebanon and its
stability, and will be followed by a summit between PM Saad Hariri and President
Bashar al-Assad in the next period -- after Assad returns from France."
Murr stressed, after meeting with the new French Ambassador to Lebanon Denis
Pietton, that cabinet's Policy Statement "won't be a problem and won't be
demanding, and all hot topics will be tackled at the (national) dialogue table,"
ruling out the idea saying that dialogue at the Baabda Palace could be delayed,
"since President Suleiman is determined to call for it after the government wins
trust vote in Parliament." Beirut, 12 Nov 09, 18:35
Shaaban: Still Early to Talk About Practical Steps
Regarding Hariri's Visit to Syria
Naharnet/Syrian presidential adviser Buthaina Shaaban said it is "still early to
talk about practical steps regarding the visit of PM Saad Hariri to Syria", but
she hinted that "the general direction is to welcome the fortifying of relations
between the Lebanese and Syrian governments, and that stems from a conviction in
the necessity of best relations between the two brotherly countries."Shaaban was
being interviewed by the Lebanese Al Manar TV network, she expressed "Syria's
relief for the formation of a national unity government in Lebanon", and said
that "Syria was among the first countries to hail the decision that is in the
Lebanese people's interest and the stability in Lebanon interest, knowing that
there is a role to be played by Lebanon in all Arab issues."Earlier, Hariri
received a congratulation letter from his Syrian counterpart. In the letter,
Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otari extended congratulations and offered "best
wishes of success" to Hariri. Sources close to Hariri did not rule out a visit
to Damascus by the Lebanese premier. They told AFP, however, that the visit "was
not imminent."
Beirut, 12 Nov 09, 17:49
March 14 Urges Speedy Conclusion to Defensive Strategy
Topic
Naharnet/March 14 forces general-secretariat stressed that "a main topic imposes
itself in the frame of national dialogue, and President Michel Suleiman keeps
calling for it, which is the safeguarding of domestic peace and coexistence," it
also called for a speedy conclusion to the defensive national strategy. After an
exceptional meeting held on Thursday, March 14 forces congratulated, in a
statement, the Lebanese people on forming the government at last, and stressed
that the rise of the main institution responsible for constitutional resolutions
would unleash the wheel of the parliamentary democratic republican system
institutions. The general-secretariat pointed at the "major national meaning for
the existence of PM Saad Hariri at the head of the government -- which is itself
a victory for the Lebanese independence movement and a translation for the
results of June 7 parliamentary elections", and expressed its determination to
support Hariri in the next political stage. March 14 forces promised the
Lebanese that they will stay committed to the principles of the Cedar Revolution
topped by the Islamic-Christian partnership. On the other hand, March 14 forces
general-secretariat coordinator Fares Souaid said after the meeting: "We were
expecting from Phalange Party the reform paper they were calling for, but they
didn't submit it, and that party has 'white hands' in March 14 and is a founder
party for Cedar Revolution." "The subject is not problematic with March 14, and
we must discuss the organizational hierarchy of March 14 inside the walls. If
any party has remarks then that should not be treated through debates but rather
through participating together in enforcing this movement (March 14)," concluded
Souaid. Beirut, 12 Nov 09, 17:06
Syria-Lebanon ties need driven
leaders
By The /Daily Star /Friday, November 13, 2009
Editorial/Naharnet
On Thursday, the presidents of Lebanon and Syria sat down for a quick
mini-summit to evaluate bilateral relations in the recent past and coordinate
for the future. With all due respect to the importance of this meeting, many are
closely monitoring the likelihood of another such Lebanese-Syrian high-level
political event, namely a visit by Prime Minister Saad Hariri to Damascus.
President Michel Sleiman can certainly be credited with moving the relationship
with Lebanon’s neighbor to a place where such a visit is even conceivable. But
all eyes are now on Hariri, who in the past has expressed his belief that the
Syrian regime was involved in the assassination of his father. All eyes are also
on Syrian President Bashar Assad, who has heard repeated accusations to this
effect. Despite all of this, it’s now inevitable for such a visit to take place.
Hariri is someone who follows the guidelines that his father set down: Lebanon
is bigger than any one of its citizens, who include the person who said this, as
well as his son. We shouldn’t forget the context of Saad Hariri as prime
minister in November 2009: he spent the last four-plus months in purgatory,
inviting the ridicule of many people as he struggled to cobble together a
workable government. He remained steadfast in his quest to become prime
minister, and must recognize that it falls to him to fix Lebanon’s relationship
with Syria. On the other side of the equation, will Hariri meet with
responsiveness if he makes the journey? All eyes will also be on the Syrians, to
evaluate their reaction. After all, the Syrian regime looks condescendingly at
the Lebanese political class, seeing it as unruly and lacking in patriotism. It
will undoubtedly be an uphill struggle for Lebanon to forge a satisfactory
relationship of equality with Damascus, but Hariri could ensure that many of the
potential bumps are removed ahead of time. A visit by Hariri to Damascus is a
huge responsibility, requiring Hariri to show the kind of patience that he has
in recent months. The visit, if it takes place, will be heavy on atmospherics;
we could debate the actual agenda of the visit, but there’s not much point in
doing this before both sides drop their suspicion of, and animosity toward the
other. While Hariri must have the right attitude to succeed, Assad should also
review the past, in order to get in the right mindset. He should remember what
his country’s ties with Turkey were like before the coming of Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who gradually warmed to Damascus and its young president.
Syrian-Turkish relations used to be a minefield; now they’re about cooperation.
Perhaps Lebanese-Syrian relations can take this path, if the statesmen step up
to the plate and deliver.
Sleiman, Assad vow
coordination during Damascus talks
Leaders ‘share stance on regional issues’
Compiled by Daily Star staff /Friday, November 13, 2009
The Lebanese and Syrian presidents vowed during talks in Damascus on Thursday to
keep up coordination between the two countries amid signs of improved ties.
Syrian President Bashar Assad and his counterpart Michel Sleiman met just three
days after the formation of a unity government in Beirut following almost five
months of tough negotiations.
“The two leaders reviewed “the positive developments which have recently taken
place in Lebanon,” especially the new Cabinet, Syria’s state news agency SANA
reported.
Assad called for the rival parties in Lebanon “to take advantage of this
positive atmosphere and to continue dialogue so as to strengthen Lebanese
understanding and unity as a basis for stability.” Sleiman, on a second visit to
Damascus since his May 2008 election, hailed “the privileged relations with
Syria, which are in the interests of Lebanon,” SANA reported.
The presidents agreed to “continue consultations, coordination and cooperation.”
For his part, Assad voiced support for the Lebanese president’s efforts to
promote consensus and preserve political and security stability in Lebanon.
Assad also voiced hoped for the prompt formulation of the cabinet’s ministerial
policy in order to instigate developmental projects. In Beirut, the presidency
said the two leaders “stressed that they share the same point of view concerning
regional and international issues” and would “work together at all levels and in
all domains.” “Cooperation and the strengthening of bilateral ties is one of the
principles of Lebanese politics,” Sleiman said, adding that “Lebanon would do
its best as a result of its election as a member of the UN Security Council to
defend Arab causes.” On Monday, Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri formed a
national unity government with the opposition.
Syria was the key powerbroker in its smaller neighbor for nearly 30 years before
the 2005 murder of Hariri’s father, ex-Premier Rafik Hariri. On Thursday, Hariri
received a congratulations telegram from his Syrian counterpart Mohammad Naji
Otri, in what was the first official contact by Damascus. Assad already
congratulated Sleiman on the new cabinet earlier this week, but Otri’s telegram
marked the first official message from Damascus to Hariri, who has had tense
relations with Syria ever since his father’s assassination.
The killing prompted a Syrian troop withdrawal from Lebanon after a 29-year
presence, amid charges that Damascus was involved in the assassination despite
its persistent denials.
Hariri is also expected to visit Damascus anytime soon following the Cabinet
formation in Lebanon as a result of warming ties between the two regional
powerbrokers Syria and Saudi Arabia. According to political analysts and
Lebanese politicians, the Syrian-Saudi Summit at Damascus between Assad and King
Abdullah bin Abdel Aziz facilitated a domestic Lebanese agreement on the cabinet
make-up. On Friday, Assad is to visit France, whose ties with Syria have also
improved since 2008 due to the perception in Paris that Damascus has changed its
attitude toward Beirut. – With AFP
UN to vote on 2006 war compensation draft
By Patrick Galey
Daily Star staff
Friday, November 13, 2009
BEIRUT: The UN General Assembly is poised to pass a resolution forcing Israel to
compensate Lebanon for the environmental damage it incurred during the bombing
of a power plant in 2006, according to reports on Thursday. Lebanese media
quoted diplomatic sources, who suggested that the draft resolution – prepared by
China and Sudan – is set to receive the backing of 168 out of 192 member states,
enough to force Israel to provide financial assistance under international law.
The General Assembly will adopt the draft law to press for “immediate and
sufficient compensation for the government of Lebanon for the environmental
damage caused by the oil spill by [Israel],” the sources were quoted as saying.
The draft law expresses the General Assembly’s “extreme worry” about the
side-effects of the Israeli bombing of fuel containers on sustainable
development in Lebanon. An Israeli air strike in 2006 targeted the Jiyyeh power
plant, just south of Beirut, in an attempt to cut the electrical capacity of the
capital during the July-August war. It resulted in an estimated 15,000 tons of
fuel oil spilling into the Mediterranean Sea and contaminated more than 150
kilometers of Lebanese and Syrian coastline.
In a report directed at the General Assembly in September, UN Secretary General
Ban Ki-Moon urged Israel to accept “its responsibility for prompt and adequate
compensation.”
Israel has previously resisted compensating Lebanon for the damage wreaked on
its beaches, given the continuing animosity between the two states. The United
States, Canada, and Australia are expected to vote against the resolution,
having opposed the draft law since its inception in 2006. “[Jiyyeh] overwhelmed
national response capacity because of the ongoing conflict … and a land, sea and
air blockade by Israel. Those factors impeded initial efforts for international
assistance,” Ban’s report added. Environmental activists told The Daily Star
that they would welcome the General Assembly’s ruling. “The polluter should
always be obligated to bear the responsibility of its actions,” said Garabed
Kazanjian, Greenpeace Mediterranean Oceans campaigner in Lebanon. “‘The polluter
pays’ notion has long been advocated by the organization. We also believe this
concept must be applied invariably both internationally and nationally.”Wael
Hmaydan, executive director of environmental NGO IndyAct, said the spill could
eventually end up costing Lebanon $1 billion.
“We witnessed firsthand the horrors of this catastrophe. The impact [of the
spill] will stay with us for decades,” he said. “It was clear that this attack
by the Israelis could have been avoided and such environmental attacks are not
acceptable by any side. Such an attack harms everyone and the people responsible
for this need to pay compensation as a way of preventing such attempts in the
future and to pay for the remaining damage.”
The General Assembly sees the oil spill as having caused extreme pollution on
the Lebanese coast as well as having adverse repercussions on the Lebanese
economy. Parts of Syria’s coastline were also contaminated from the resulting
slick. The resolution is set to encourage the swift formation of a contingency
fund to treat the damages caused by the oil spill in the east of the
Mediterranean basin, to be provided by international donors, including NGOs,
governmental agencies and private institutions. It will also call on various
environmental organizations to assist the Lebanese government in finishing the
clean up operation “with a goal of preserving the ecological system in Lebanon
and the Mediterranean basin,” reports said.
Kazanjian said that the money would prove vital to rescuing the Lebanese
coastline.
Tehran and Moscow welcome formation of Cabinet
Compiled by Daily Star staff /Friday, November 13, 2009
Russia and Iran welcomed the new Lebanese national unity government, saying the
formation would usher the country into a new era of stability and progress.
Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced the new Cabinet line-up on Monday after
nearly five months of tough negotiations with his rivals in the Hizbullah-led
alliance.
The formation of the government “confirms that overcoming internal obstacles and
solving lingering problems on the national agenda is only possible through
dialogue,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said. “This
alone guarantees continuous consolidation of Lebanon’s independence, unity and
sovereignty,” he said.
“We are certain that the successful formation of the Cabinet through the
appropriate constitutional procedures and consensual and active work, later on
would be for the benefit of Lebanon and the Lebanese,” Nesterenko added.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said he hopes stability
will flourish in Lebanon with the formation of a new national unity government,
Fars news agency reported on Wednesday. Mottaki “expressed the hope that Lebanon
will follow the path of stability, calm and reconstruction under the guidance of
Prime Minister Saad Hariri, with cooperation from all Lebanese people and
political movements,” it said. The agency said that Mottaki expressed his good
wishes in a telephone call to Hariri late on Tuesday. Deputy spokesperson of the
United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Andrea Tenenti said on Thursday
that the peacekeeping mission welcomed the formation of the new government. “We
entrust the implementation of Resolution 1701 to the government led by Premier
Saad Hariri,” he said. Tenenti expressed hoped that this government will be as
cooperative as its predecessor. “There’s no information concerning any
withdrawal or reduction in the number of [UNIFIL] units,” said Tenenti. UN
Security Council Resolution 1701 put an end to the summer 2006 war with Israel.
– The Daily Star, with agencies
Judge calls for death penalty for Israeli spies
Daily Star staff/Friday, November 13, 2009
BEIRUT: Military Judge Fadi Sawwan issued an indictment on Thursday requesting
the death penalty for four Lebanese, one detained, one residing in England, and
two residing in Israel, who are charged with cooperating and communicating with
Israel and its spies. Sawwan issued arrest warrants to transfer the convicts to
the Military Court, adding that the security forces found weapons and explosives
in the house of one of the suspcts who had been detained in Lebanon. Sawwan also
issued an indictment requesting the death penalty of five Palestinians. Four of
them are detained and charged for crimes, “terrorist acts,” and attempts to
target the Lebanese state by monitoring the Lebanese Army’s activities near the
Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in the coastal city of Sidon. – The Daily
Star
A Government that doesn’t Fool Anyone
Thu, 12 November 2009
By: Hassan Haidar/
http://www.daralhayat.com/portalarticlendah/75775
Despite the gift of patience which he has proved to be endowed with, the new
master of the Serail, Saad Hariri, knows that what he has endured during the
five month of cabinet-formation that resulted in this miraculous government
selection may well be a mere “walk in the park” compared to what awaits him
inside the government cabinet, in terms of dealing with an opposition which
holds the obstructing one-third and represents the opposite of everything he
strives for in politics and economy, as well as at the social level.
His late father had a different experience, one which could be considered
“easier” if taken in terms of dealing with the issues put forth and with
recurrent crises on a daily basis. Rafic Hariri was dealing directly with the
leadership of the Syrian tutelage and its security apparatus deployed across
Lebanon’s territory, which held the final decision on any problem that might
occur or be provoked. Thus he would balance what was possible with what was
imposed, sometimes using Damascus for leverage against his opponents if they
went too far, within the framework of a regional consensus that included
everyone and placed them all in the same “basket”. Saad Hariri, on the other
hand, has to deal with the “representatives” of Syrian tutelage from among the
Lebanese and with their further regional extensions, Syria having left the
circle of direct communication, and simply seeking its opinion now requiring
regional and international mediators as well as shuttle visits between capitals.
How can he then do this when the quarrels of forming the cabinet have tangibly
proven that its role remains fundamental in making any formulation or decision?
So-called “national unity” governments are usually based on mutual voluntary
concessions made between two parties or more, competitors and opposites both in
ends and means, because, as they have felt the presence of an imminent external
danger threatening the country, the system and all of the political parties,
sacrificing principles and conceding gains becomes a duty to save the country.
In Lebanon, on the other hand, the threat to stability, the system and its
institutions comes from the interior itself, and there are parties who consider
that they have the right to impose their opinion on others, neither by the force
of conviction and political stances nor through the ballot boxes, but rather by
threatening with weapons, obstruction and making use of their foreign relations
for leverage, to then demand to be partners in the rule which they threaten.
Coalition governments usually mean consensus over a minimal program and an
understanding over how to implement it, which is what did not take place during
Hariri’s negotiations with the opposition, where the give-and-take was based on
shares, portfolios and individuals, without reaching up to notions, roles and
goals. That is the significance of Patriarch Sfeir’s warning of the danger of
bringing together the majority and the minority in a single government to the
process of making decisions, defining the policies of the state and managing its
affairs. This is also what Hariri meant during his cabinet’s first meeting when
he considered that it was “exceptional” in its structure but that it did “not
set the foundations for a constitutional rule or norm”, expressing his hope that
he would one day stand in the ranks of the opposition within the framework of a
democratic system, not imposing his views on the other side by force or under
the pretext of “not abiding by the National Pact”.
Indeed, the deep-seated disagreements between the ruling majority and the
opposition, starting from appointing any public servant, through defining
foreign policy, reaching up to reviving the role of constitutional institutions,
will always reflect a test of strength between the two and an arm-wrestle that
does not facilitate the task of any government.
It is true that all “revolutions”, including the “Cedar Revolution”, must one
day come to an end, so that the process of internal rebuilding can begin with
the broadest participation possible of different political and social forces.
Yet this presumes that these forces agree on considering themselves, in words
and in practice, part of this entity they seek to establish, not on them
demanding to participate in shaping it while continuing to reside outside of it.
As for what has taken place in Lebanon, it fails to convince anyone.