LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
January 31/2010
Bible Of the
Day
John 12/39-40: "For this cause they couldn’t believe, for Isaiah said again,
12:40 “He has blinded their eyes and he hardened their heart, lest they should
see with their eyes, and perceive with their heart, and would turn, and I would
heal them.”*
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for January 30/10
35
Square Kilometers of Sea Surveyed in Search of Flight 409 Black Boxes/Naharnet
Crashed Plane Head Likely
Detached from Body/Naharnet
Qabalan
Calls for Boycotting Libya's Arab Summit/Naharnet
Army
Defuses Bomb in Tripoli's Jabal Mohsen/Naharnet
Washington: Iran May Step Up Violence in the Region through Hizbullah, Hamas/Naharnet
Crashed
Plane Head Likely Detached from Body/Naharnet
Report: Dubai has lead in
assassination of top Hamas man/Haaretz
Cabinet: 20 Percent Quota for Women
in Municipal Elections, Submarine 'Odyssey Explorer' Heading to Lebanon/Naharnet
Report:
French Ship to Replace 'Ocean Alert'/Naharnet
Suleiman Meets Palestinian
Labor Minister, Says Lebanon Defends the Palestinian Cause in International
Forums/Naharnet
More Parts of Ethiopian
Plane Wreckage Found/Naharnet
Report: Mitchell names new US envoy to Syria/Ha'aretz
Dubai: Hamas leader killed by 'gang'/UPI.com
One of Al Qaida's most wanted killed in northern
Iraq/World Tribune
Ministers hold heated debate on proposed reforms to electoral law/Daily
Star
Majdel Anjar imam faked abduction to dodge debts/AFP
Israel urged to widen any future Lebanon conflict to Syria/Daily
Star
Bank
of Beirut reports 15 percent net-profit increase in 2009/Daily
Star
Byblos Bank's net profits rise by 19.8 percent in 2009/Daily
Star
Lebanon can drill for oil once legislation is in place/Daily
Star
Black
box eludes hunt as search for crash victims' bodies continues/Daily
Star
Foreign domestic workers fight back at employers' abuse/AFP
Washington Post veteran urges Arabs to take to journalism/Daily
Star
Sassine tunnel to be closed for repairs Sunday/Daily
Star
Officials kick off Iranian-Lebanese friendship week/Daily
Star
Hand
grenade lobbed at Bab al-Tabbaneh market/Daily
Star
Two
French tourists robbed in Oyoun al-Siman/Daily
Star
Opposition MPs rap Bahia Hariri's 'interference/Daily
Star
Geagea testifies in lawsuit against LBC TV/Daily
Star
ISF
officer killed in traffic accident north of Beirut/Daily
Star
UNESCO releases 28 audio books for visually impaired/Daily
Star
Arab
journalists convene in Beirut to discuss censorship/Daily
Star
Qabalan “completely rejects”
Lebanon’s participation in Arab summit in Libya/Now Lebanon
Washington: Iran May Step Up Violence in the Region through Hizbullah, Hamas
/Naharnet/U.S. National Security Adviser James Jones warned Friday that Iran may
step up violence in the region through its Islamist allies -- Hizbullah in
Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories. "History shows that when
regimes are feeling pressure as Iran is internally and will externally in the
near future, it often lashes out through its surrogates," he said.
He pointed to Iran's internal political tensions along with pressure on the
Islamic republic over its nuclear ambitions. On the other hand, the White House
pledged Friday to push "hard" to relaunch Middle East peace talks in 2010,
warning that Iran may try to exacerbate tensions between Israelis and
Palestinians. Jones acknowledged it was a "major disappointment" that U.S.
President Barack Obama's administration was unable to jumpstart negotiations in
its first year. "But that doesn't mean we're going to stop trying. We will
continue to work this issue very hard," Jones, a retired general, said at the
Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank. "Our goal remains as
stated -- both parties should return to negotiations without preconditions. The
United States will not waver in our commitments to Israel's security and we will
not waver in our support for Palestinian aspirations." He pointed to the latest
shuttle diplomacy to the Middle East this week by Obama's envoy, former senator
George Mitchell, who met with both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.(Naharnet-AFP) Beirut, 29 Jan 10, 21:15
Crashed Plane Head Likely Detached from Body
Naharnet/The eight identified victims from the Ethiopian doomed plane were
business class passengers, hence they were seated in the plane's front, knowing
that the business class seats count 16 out of 138 seats available on the plane,
An Nahar daily reported on Saturday. The Ethiopian
security guard whose body has been found with his wallet and gun was also
situated in the business class compartment, according to the sources.
An Nahar added that the victim Hasan Tajeddine, a businessman, occupied
the seat A1 located behind the cockpit, knowing that the plane's first door is
located between the cockpit and the seat A1, and that Tajeddine used to choose
this seat for its nearness to the door. His body was found with no major
deformations. The report suggested that the head of
the plane -- including the business class compartment and the toilet allocated
for this section -- had been detached from its body.
Civil defense rescuers had previously found the remains of one of the plane's
toilets near Ramlet al-Bayda shore.
The plane's seats recovered until today are mostly blue, indicating they belong
to the aforementioned compartment, according to the sources.Two bodies for
Ethiopian plane's hostesses exist at Rafik Hariri state hospital, according to
medical sources. The report deduced that the
passengers of the plane's economy class are still confined to their seats inside
of the remaining part of the crashed plane at the sea bottom. The probability
for their bodies to float on the surface is related to the gradual looseing of
their seatbelts, according to the report.
There were conflicting reports as to whether the jet exploded while airborne or
after it had hit the water, and officials have said there will be no answers
until the data from the black boxes is retrieved and analysed. Officials want to
know why the plane veered off course after takeoff, but have ruled out sabotage.
Beirut, 30 Jan 10, 12:52
35 Square Kilometers of Sea Surveyed in Search of Flight 409 Black Boxes
Naharnet/Day five search operations are concentrated in the area where the
signals of the black boxes had first been detected, in a seafloor trench 1,300
meters (4,265 feet) below the surface of the sea, a Lebanese military source
told As Safir daily.
The source said there was no specific timeframe for accomplishing the mission,
pointing at the existence of two stages; the first implies using the submarine
found on board of the privately-operated U.S. civilian vessel Ocean Alert which
is capable of lifting weights up to 100 kilograms. "But in case the black boxes
were still attached to the body of the plane – exceeding the 100 kilograms limit
-- then the search-and-rescue teams will have to use submarines with bigger
capabilities." A source close to the surveying operations told As Safir that
"since the moment the signals had first been detected until 8:00p.m. Friday, 35
square kilometers out of a total of 50 square kilometers – the compass of the
area in which the signals were detected -- have been surveyed." Beirut, 30 Jan
10, 14:14
Army Defuses Bomb in Tripoli's Jabal Mohsen
Naharnet/A Lebanese Army explosives expert defused Saturday afternoon a bomb
planted inside a gallon of fuel in Tripoli's Jabal Mohsen area.
The army cordoned the area after a local resident reported an identified
suspicious object. The bomb was reportedly set for detonation. On Thursday, two
grenades were found near the home of Arab Democratic Party leader Ali Eid in the
same district. The grenades were also found inside a
gallon filled with fuel. Beirut, 30 Jan 10, 16:14
Qabalan Calls for Boycotting Libya's Arab Summit
Naharnet/Deputy Head of the Higher Islamic Shiite Council Sheikh Abdul Amir
Qabalan stressed that Lebanon should boycott the forthcoming Arab Summit that
will be held in Libya.
In an interview with An Nahar daily, Qabalan described Libya as "a hostile and
tyrant state." Qabalan accused Libya of kidnapping
AMAL's founder Imam Moussa Sadr and his companions in 1978.
"Is that how we respect Imam Sadr and his Lebanese, Arab, and Islamic
position?" added Qabalan, admonishing Lebanon's decision to participate in
Libya's summit.
As Qabalan hailed the inter-Arab reconciliations, he voiced refusal for them to
happen "on expense of Imam Sadr's cause," adding that participation becomes
legitimate if the case was solved before the occurrence of the summit and if the
Lebanese officials put prior conditions on Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to
reveal the truth in Sadr's case.
"I call on everyone not to line up with our enemy and to respect the feelings of
our people … because we have suffered a series of failed experiences with
Gadhafi whom we have always called to send back the Imam and his companions to
their country in order to establish the best relations between the Lebanese and
Libyan peoples, and now he bears the responsibility." Beirut, 30 Jan 10, 16:04
Report: French Ship to Replace 'Ocean Alert'
Naharnet/The Ocean Alert, a privately-operated U.S. civilian vessel stationed in
Cyprus, will leave Lebanon tomorrow for logistic reasons related to refueling
its tanks and it will return later to continue its mission, LBC TV network
reported on Friday. Ocean Alert will be replaced by a French ship until it
returns from Cyprus, according to the report. The report of LBC TV network
added: "If the black boxes (from the crashed Ethiopian plane) are located
outside of what is left of the plane's body, then there is a possibility to send
a submarine -- that can pull weights ranging from 150 to 200 kilograms from the
sea bottom – in order to pull out the boxes. But if the boxes exist inside of
what is left of the plane's body, then the search-and-rescue teams will have to
use submarines with bigger capabilities – not available at the moment -- in case
the plane's debris weighs more than 200 kilograms." The Ocean Alert is equipped
to reach objects 2000 meters (6,561 feet) below sea level. Beirut, 29 Jan 10,
19:24
Crashed Plane Head Likely Detached
from Body
Naharnet/The eight identified victims from the Ethiopian doomed plane were
business class passengers, hence they were seated in the plane's front, knowing
that the business class seats count 16 out of 138 seats available on the plane,
An Nahar daily reported on Saturday.
The business class compartment had also additional three passengers, hence
totaling the passengers at 14 added to Ethiopian security guard whose body has
been found without being officially identified, knowing that his wallet and gun
were found with the body. According to aviation sources, the security guard is
usually situated in the front part of the plane.
An Nahar added that the victim Hasan Tajeddine, a businessman, occupied the seat
A1 located behind the cockpit, knowing that the plane's first door is located
between the cockpit and the seat A1, and that Tajeddine used to choose this seat
for its nearness to the door. His body was found with no major deformations.
The report suggested that the head of the plane -- including the business class
compartment and the toilet allocated for this section -- had been detached from
its body, knowing that the civil defense members had previously found the
remains of one of the plane's toilets near Ramlet al-Bayda shore, and that the
seats recovered until today are mostly blue, indicating they belong to the
aforementioned compartment. Two bodies for Ethiopian hostesses exist at Rafik
Hariri state hospital, according to medical sources.
Following the same analysis, the passengers of the economy class totaled 66,
situated in the second part of the plane – the seats starting from row 11 to row
33, knowing that each row had six seats. Hence, the passengers of economy class
are still confined to their seatbelts inside the biggest part of the plane at
the sea bottom. The probability for their bodies to float on the surface is
related to the unfastening of the seatbelt, according to the report. On the
other hand, Ethiopian Airlines operating from Beirut decided to substitute the
number of the Flight 409 to 407 after travelers expressed pessimism over the
number 9. Despite the major slump in the numbers of travelers using Ethiopian
Airlines in the day after the disaster, the bookings rate returned to normalcy
starting Wednesday. Beirut, 30 Jan 10, 12:52
Qabalan “completely rejects” Lebanon’s participation in Arab summit in Libya
January 30, 2010
Naharnet/In an interview with An-Nahar newspaper published on Saturday, Higher
Islamic Council Sheikh Abdel Amir Qabalan said he “completely rejects” Lebanon’s
participation in the upcoming Arab summit in Libya, which is scheduled to happen
in March. “We consider Libya an unjust and enemy state,” Qabalan said, adding,
“Its leadership is responsible for the disappearance of Imam Moussa al-Sader and
his two companions.”Sader was a prominent Shia leader in Lebanon. In August
1978, he and two others travelled to Libya to meet with government officials and
were never heard from again. Qabalan said that Lebanon should formally decline
to attend the summit as soon as possible. -NOW Lebanon
Cabinet: 20 Percent Quota for Women in Municipal Elections, Submarine 'Odyssey
Explorer' Heading to Lebanon
Naharnet/The extraordinary session of the Cabinet on Friday adopted a twenty
percent quota for women in the forthcoming municipal elections instead of the
previously mulled thirty percent, knowing that some ministers demanded a fifty
percent quota.
As to the issue of the obligatory university degree for heads of municipalities,
the suggestion was dropped for being "non-democratic" according to the vast
majority of the ministers.
The Cabinet also adopted the suggestion on allowing public schools' teachers and
public servants to participate in the elections.
The issue of electing the heads of municipalities and their deputies directly by
the voters raised the issue of municipal elections in Beirut. Some ministers
debated that Beirut Governor who has major jurisdiction is not elected to
office, but rather appointed. The Cabinet will discuss the issue in its next
session on Monday in light of adopting the suggestion of proportional
representation or dropping it. Interior Minister Ziad Baroud described the
atmosphere of Friday's session as relaxed and diverse, adding he was satisfied
by what happened in the session despite the outcome of the discussions.
In remarks published by An Nahar daily on Saturday, Baroud stressed that
"holding the municipal elections on time does not require a resolution from the
Cabinet since it is related to implementing the law, and the Interior Ministry
has respected the legal grace period despite the delay in forming the (current)
government."
State Minister Adnan al-Sayyed Hussein stressed the importance of administrative
decentralization, pointing it is stated as an article of the ministerial Policy
Statement as well as an article of the Taef Accord which should not be
abandoned.
In an interview with An Nahar, al-Sayyed Hussein said the issue requires
boosting the budget of the municipalities in general, and the unions of
municipalities in specific.
On the other hand, Energy and Water Minister Jebran Bassil suggested restituting
the draft law on lowering the voting age from the Parliament in order to provide
the necessary agreement on its timing. However, Bassil was asked to register his
request at Cabinet's general-secretariat so that it can be listed on next
session's agenda given that it was not listed on Friday's agenda.
Bassil told An Nahar he will submit a written request to the Cabinet so that the
item gets listed on the agenda according to rules of procedure.
As to the doomed Ethiopian plane, PM Saad Hariri stressed "government's
commitment to respecting the right of the people to know the complete truth,"
adding that the government will provide them with information once concrete
evidences are reached. For his part, President Michel Suleiman called on
everyone to wait for the investigations' results and the outcome of the ongoing
search missions to recover the plane's body and the missing victims. Information
Minister Tarek Mitri revealed that the Cabinet decided to officially hire the
company operating the U.S. civilian search-and-rescue vessel Ocean Alert. The
Cabinet also decided to set a deal with the owner company of the submarine
Odyssey Explorer, which has the means of pulling the plane's debris from the sea
bottom and which will be heading to Lebanon soon. The Cabinet assigned the
Higher Relief Commission to cover the required expenses.
On the other hand, the Cabinet decided to extend the contracts of the two
companies operating mobile phone communications in Lebanon after extensive
discussions and criticism from some ministers. Beirut, 30 Jan 10, 11:40
Israel urged to widen any future Lebanon conflict to Syria
Invading Bekaa Valley would strike ‘Real blow’ to Hizbullah
By Dalila Mahdawi //Daily Star staff
Saturday, January 30, 2010
BEIRUT: The Israeli state must take into account Syria’s role in supporting
Hizbullah in any future war with the Lebanese group, an Israeli security analyst
said on Friday. Renewed hostilities could also see Israel launch a ground
invasion of the Bekaa to cut Syrian supply routes to the Shiite group, Jonathan
Spyer, senior research fellow at the Global Research in International Affairs
Center, wrote in the Jerusalem Post. Hizbullah officials contacted by The Daily
Star declined to comment on the story.
“Any future strike at Hizbullah that does not take into account its status as a
client of Syria is unlikely to land a decisive blow,” he said, citing a recent
report in the British magazine Jane’s Defence Weekly which claimed that Syria
had supplied the Shiite group with missiles capable of hitting central Israel.
“The logic of confrontation in Lebanon suggests that Syria may find it hard to
avoid direct engagement in a future Israel-Hizbullah clash,” Spyer said. The
“point of no return” would be if Damascus provided anti-aircraft devices to
Hizbullah to use during Israeli violations of Lebanese airspace. The analyst
also said that “if Israel wants … to strike a real blow against Hizbullah, this
implies an Israeli ground incursion into the Bekaa” and areas close to the
Syrian border, which allegedly now host most of the group’s military
infrastructure.
Tensions between Israel and Lebanon have mounted in recent months, with Beirut
accusing Israel of running espionage rings across the country. Earlier this
month Tel Aviv blamed Hizbullah for planting 300 kilograms of explosives near
the Blue Line border. Last week Israeli minister without portfolio Yossi Peled
said he believed another conflict with Lebanon was “only a matter of time,”
prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to deny his government was seeking a
war. In a meeting Wednesday with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Israel’s
Defense Minister Ehud Barak was quoted by Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot as saying
Israel had no “intentions to attack Syria or Lebanon.” Barak has in the past,
however, said Israel would not only target Hizbullah but also Lebanon’s
government and infrastructure in a future conflict. During his own meeting with
Mubarak on Thursday, Lebanese Prime Minister nevertheless said Beirut took all
Israeli threats “seriously.” “Any threat against Lebanese territory, whether in
the south, Bekaa, [the Beirut suburbs of] Dahiyeh or any other region in Lebanon
is a threat against all of Lebanon and the Lebanese government,” Hariri told
reporters, calling for Arab solidarity to “counter these threats.” Spyer said
that the “ominous statements” by Israeli officials were not intended to announce
the arrival of a war but rather to warn Syrian officials “that they should not
think their alliance with Hizbullah is cost free.” A report published by Al-Liwaa
newspaper last week claimed Lebanon could be dragged into a possible war with
Israel as early as March. The Israeli state launched a devastating 34-day war on
Lebanon in July 2006 after Hizbullah members captured two Israeli soldiers in a
cross-border raid. – With additional reporting by Wassim Mroueh
Ministers hold heated debate on proposed reforms to electoral law
No agreement reached after ‘long argument’ in Cabinet
By Elias Sakr and Nafez Qawas /Daily Star staff
Saturday, January 30, 2010
BEIRUT: A heated debate emerged between Cabinet members Friday concerning
proposed reforms to the municipal electoral law, with late-night discussions
seemingly hitting a dead end by the time The Daily Star went to press.
Well-informed sources said the Cabinet agreed to extend the contracts of both
operators of the state-owned mobile phone networks, MTC Touch and Alfa, for an
additional year.
The source added that the agreement was reached following a “long argument”
between Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Telecommunications Minister Charbel
Nahhas. Alfa and MTC Touch have managed both networks since 2004.
Prior to the Cabinet meeting, Hariri held closed-door talks with President
Michel Sleiman at Baabda Presidential palace.
Tackling the municipal elections, media reports said Friday that the polls would
most likely be held within the legal deadline but without any major amendments
to the current law.
The reports added that the Cabinet would probably ask to refer the controversial
draft law to Parliament so it could debate a constitutional amendment to lower
the voting age to 18.
Other controversial amendments to the election law include the direct election
of mayors and the adoption of proportional representation.
Christian parties have tied lowering the voting age to passing a law allowing
people from Lebanese origin to retrieve their nationality The Future Movement
sided with its allies in the majority, insisting that the issue required a
national consensus.
Lebanese Forces MP Antoine Zahra said on Friday parties of the March 14 alliance
had proven their solidarity beyond religious considerations when they took a
united stance on the formation of a committee to abolish political sectarianism
and lower the voting age.
Earlier Friday, the Interior Ministry said in a statement that Interior Minister
Ziyad Baroud and Foreign Minister Ali Shami had agreed to hold a meeting
Thursday to discuss an executive procedure allowing Lebanese expatriates to vote
abroad. The statement added that both ministers were committed to implementing
the procedure within the six-month legal deadline.
Meanwhile, Free Patriotic Movement MP Alain Aoun said Friday that his party’s
demand to divide Beirut into three districts was not aimed against the Future
Movement but rather to guarantee just representation. The Future Movement
opposes the division of the capital. “The division of Beirut is not aimed
against the Future Movement since no one can predict the result of the
elections,” Aoun said, pointing to the outcome of polls in the Beirut III
district after the division of the capital in accordance with the Doha Accord.
The FPM demanded during negotiations in Doha the division of Beirut into three
districts to guarantee a Christian majority of voters in the third district. The
previous electoral law guaranteed a Sunni majority of voters in the capital.
Aoun also stressed the need to hold the elections within the legal deadline
while tying the issue of lowering the voting age to passing a law granting
people from Lebanese origins the right to retrieve their nationality.
Officials kick off Iranian-Lebanese friendship week
Daily Star staff/Saturday, January 30, 2010
BEIRUT: To mark Iranian-Lebanese friendship week Iranian Vice President for
Youth Affairs Mehr Dad Bazrpash held a press conference Friday at the Coral
Beach in presence of Youth and Sports Minister Ali Abdullah and Iranian MPs Ali
Mousawi and Ali Reza, as well as the Iranian Chargé d’Affaires in Lebanon Masoud
Mir-Hosseinian. Bazrpash expressed, on behalf of the Iranian people his
condolences for the Ethiopian Airlines crash victims. He saluted the forming of
a unity government in Lebanon and hoped that bilateral relations would be
promoted. Bazrpash conveyed Iran’s support for Lebanon in facing the country’s
enemies, adding that Israeli dominion should not last long. – The Daily Star
Arab journalists convene in Beirut to discuss censorship
Laurent: ‘media has right to freely express every opinion’
By Patrick Galey /Daily Star staff
Saturday, January 30, 2010
BEIRUT: Journalists and authors from across the Arab world convened in Beirut on
Friday for a European Union-funded media censorship conference. The SKeyes
Center for Media and Cultural Freedom’s “Censorship on the Media in Arab and
Mediterranean” will discuss and construct ways to counter “censorship in all its
forms; religious, economic or political,” according to SKeyes President Giselle
Khouri.
The European Union has donated more than 1 million euros to SKeyes since its
inception two years ago and the head of the EU delegation to Lebanon told
assembled ambassadors and international delegates that press freedom was a basic
requirement of civilized society. “The media has the right to freely express
every opinion, whatever it is,” Patrick Laurent. “The freedom of the press and
the freedom of expression are intricately linked, forming the absolute
requirements of a democratic society.”
The two-day conference will see speakers from Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine,
Egypt and Tunisia, as well as academics from Italy and France, discuss issues
such as cultural censorship, financial monitoring and internet freedom of
speech. Information Minister Tarek Mitri, himself a former journalist, said that
Lebanon, while leading the Middle East region in terms of freedom of press
expression, still practiced some degree of censorship.
“Freedom of the media and press is safeguarded yet there is a contradiction
between what Lebanese see themselves and the facts of media freedom,” he said.
“I am looking forward to the day when we can disregard censorship in Lebanon.”
According to the censorship monitor Freedom House, Lebanon ranked 118th in the
world in terms of press freedom – 3rd in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
region – being labeled as “partly free.” Laurent said that Lebanon’s press
freedom was ahead of many other countries. “Today, Lebanon is clearly
distinguished by a total freedom of expression in nearly all subjects, and being
the most appropriate climate for debate,” he said. Although only Israel and
Kuwait officially have greater media freedom, Mitri said that much work was
needed in order to ensure Lebanese journalistic integrity was upheld.
“In Lebanon we have certain kinds of censorship,” he said. “We are in a country
where the freedom of information is consecrated yet what restricts the freedom
of media is the absence of autonomy which would allow those involved to practice
his job” without interference.
Lebanon officially pre-censors very little media output but, according to Mitri,
pressure is exerted through politically orientated media outlets.
Self-censorship, he added, was “putting pressure [on journalists] from political
entities.” Mitri said politicization could be seen in all walks of Lebanese
media, particularly exemplified by coverage of the ET409 plane crash. He said
individuals striving to uphold certain principals of openness and honesty would
lead to greater press freedom.
“I try to call for a voluntary commitment to professional ethics,” he said.
“What we lack in Lebanon, as seen with the coverage of the Ethiopian air
disaster, is the commitment of media professionals and corporations. These
ethics should be a safety valve which insures against defamation of character.”
Laurent reiterated Mitri’s stance that more effort was needed from both
governments and journalists to raise the respectability of regional media
organizations. “In the [MENA] region, a lot of progress is still to be made,
particularly on the freedom of the press – it is that which we have failed to
systematically and forcibly tell governments,” he added. Khouri said that SKeyes
would continue its attempts to reduce media censorship throughout the region.
“We remain motivated to help journalists in the interest of Lebanon and we
believe that the Arab world will be better with better freedoms,” she said.
Laurent praised the role civil society can play on pressuring regimes to allow
greater press freedom, adding that all countries had the right to free media.
“The freedom of the press is not a luxury of rich countries … it is a way of
monitoring the condition of a country’s development, the flourishing of its
society, the success of its economy [and] the radiation of its culture,” he
said. “The press plays a social role which is almost always positive. A society
without a free press is an ill society.”
Lebanon can drill for oil once legislation is in place
Actual Exploration could start within the next three to five years
By Dana Halawi /Daily Star staff
Friday, January 29, 2010
BEIRUT: Energy and Water Minister Jibran Bassil said Thursday oil exploration
legislation in Lebanon will be ready in 2011 while real exploration will start
in three to five years. “We will be getting foreign companies to do the job and
it will not cost the government a penny,” he told The Daily Star. He added that
after adopting this law, “we will be entering a new phase of legislative efforts
to issue the executive decrees and deal with the concerned companies and
corporations.”
“We will be adopting the revenue-sharing agreement that will ensure good
governance and transparency so the Lebanese treasury will not have an additional
burden,” the minister said.
Bassil also pledged to work hard on amending laws and legislation that would
allow Lebanon to start with its oil-resources exploration process in the near
future.
“I am ready to work with the private sector so that we can amend our laws and
legislation. But first we need to enforce the existing ones within the same
framework,” he added.
Bassil expressed some of his concerns about the laws that are to be amended in
this field.
“The existing oil resources in Lebanon,” which he referred to as “black gold,”
are a “national wealth and they should not be wasted to service the public debt
or cover the deficit,” he said.
“We should transform the black gold into real gold which is an important
resource for Lebanon and which can provide our state with the necessary revenues
and which guarantees for our economy and its prosperity,” he added.
“Therefore our laws should be very clear on this issue to protect this
resource,” Bassil said.
His remarks came during a conference held at Gefinor Rotana Hotel in Beirut. It
was organized by First Protocol in collaboration with the Association of
Petroleum Importing Companies (APIC) and Audi Saradar Group in the aim of
discussing the challenges facing Lebanon in the exploration of its oil
resources.
Among the speakers at the conference were Ambassador of Norway in Lebanon Mrs.
Audlise Norheim; Fabrizizio D’Adda, an Italian energy expert; Elie Daher,
director of Technical Consulting Schlumberger consulting; Walid Abou Sleiman,
chairman of Aksys Capital; and Bernard Ammoun, of the Green Alliance, Lebanon.
Ambassadors of other nations also attended the conference.
The speakers focused on the experience of their countries and companies in
oil-and-gas exploration. They all underlined the need to issue new oil
legislation in Lebanon before exploring for oil. In his speech, Bassil
emphasized the importance of ensuring the minimum criteria of transparency and
good governance to be provided by the Lebanese administration and government as
a guarantee. He underlined the importance of increasing the oil-storage capacity
in Lebanon but said the country had the necessary infrastructure for that.
“All international firms have a vested interest in working in Lebanon. We have
the necessary infrastructure to do that. We have the land, the coast, the
storage facilities. But of course we need to increase our storage capacity.
Otherwise we will be facing a true disaster whenever we have political crises
and military attacks or even when we have oil crises,” he said.
Bassil said Lebanon should also take care of its refineries. “Lebanon should be
ready for the next cycle because in the future there will be a high demand on
oil refineries. And we need to benefit from our geographic location to take
advantage of the situation,” he added. He said Lebanon’s national budget has
also taken into consideration the building of an internal gas pipeline from
Tripoli to Zahrani.
“This will allow us to cater to the industrial needs and to distribute gas to
the different households in Lebanon through the new pipelines,” he said.
“Most importantly we will also be able to supply the electricity power plants
from the north to the south. These power plants will be able to obtain the gas
and this of course will save billions of dollars for our treasury,” Bassil said.
APIC President Maroun Chammas said the import operations today are conducted by
14 companies and the market enjoys uninterrupted stable supply and fierce
competition to the benefit of the consumer who is witnessing enhanced services.
“More than $1 billion has been invested by the private sector in thermal
infrastructure alone and these companies today collect close to $1 billion a
year for the state taxes,” he said. “There are more than 2,000 trucks to
transport refined products in Lebanon and more than 2,500 service stations
operating, many of them without a license,” he added.
He said that the government created a price formula in the 1990s that it issues
on a weekly basis; it sets the price for the consumer based on the average of
the preceding four weeks by adding cost elements to render the product in
Lebanon. He added that the values of the elements of the pricing formula had not
changed since 2003 and the companies have on several occasions asked an
activation of the numbers to reflect the changes that occurred over the past
seven years.
“The previous governments were always focused on political and social
priorities. We are hoping this government will address this matter,” he said.
“The 14 private terminals have been keen on self regulating and upgrading their
facilities to abide by international health and safety standards – a
prerequisite in order to be able to receive vessels.” Ziad Hayek, secretary
general of the higher council for privatization in Lebanon, and one of the
participating speakers at the conference, underlined the importance of
partnership between the private and the public sector for investments in
building energy production and distribution stations. “The private sector is
able to partly or totally fund this project in addition to making sure that the
implementation takes place at the right time,” he said.
He added that the importance of granting such projects to the private sector
stems from the fact that this would enhance the quality of services offered due
to the availability of more skilled people working in the private sector. On the
other hand, energy and privatization consultant Roudi Baroudi said that the key
factor for minimizing cost and risk of supply in energy sourcing was
diversifying the nature and origin of the fuel mix necessary to fulfill domestic
energy needs.
“That would lower and offset the price volatility of the different commodities
as well as the political risk of relying on a single producing and supplying
country,” he said.
Aiming at a deeper diversification, he added that new legislation should be
adopted simultaneously to promote and enhance domestic and foreign investments
in exploration and production of fossil fuels (gas and oil), particularly by
offering guarantees to the operators of a sound and reliable environment for the
required exploration and production investments and subsequent management of
production-sharing agreements.
Canada Deeply Concerned By Executions In Iran
(No. 49 - January 29, 2010 - 12:35 p.m. ET) The Honourable Lawrence Cannon,
Minister of Foreign Affairs, today issued the following statement on the
execution of two Iranians and the deterioration of the human rights situation in
Iran:
“Canada is deeply concerned by reports that the Government of Iran executed
Mohammad Reza Ali-Zammani and Aresh Rahmanipour on January 28, 2010. The Iranian
government’s ongoing persecution of Iranians for their political or religious
beliefs or their ethnic affiliation is unacceptable.
“The increase in the number of arbitrary detentions, death sentences and
executions in Iran since its presidential election in June 2009 is a disturbing
trend that Iran must reverse. Canada notes that the Government of Iran continues
to deny political prisoners fair and transparent trials, and furthermore that
more trials are scheduled.
“Canada once again calls on Iran to meet its domestic and international legal
obligations, and further urges Iran to ensure that due process is respected for
those detained.”
- 30 -
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Natalie Sarafian
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
613-995-1851
Foreign Affairs Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-995-1874
: "Question: "Why does God allow good things to
happen to bad people?"
Answer: This question is similar to its opposite: "Why does God allow bad things
to happen to good people?". Both questions refer to what seems to be the
perplexing injustice we witness every day. The 73rd Psalm is our answer to the
very same questions that also tormented the Psalmist. Finding himself in
terrible distress and agony of soul he writes: “But as for me, my feet had
almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I
saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psalms 73:2-3).
The writer of this Psalm was a man named Asaph, a leader of one of the temple
choirs. Obviously, he not a wealthy man, but rather one who had dedicated his
life to serving God (see 1 Chronicles 25). But, like us, he had experienced some
difficulties and questioned the injustice of it all. He watched the evil people
around him living by their own rules, enjoying all the wealth and pleasures of
the world and piling riches upon riches. He complains: "They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to
man; they are not plagued by human ills" (Psalms 73:4-5).
Asaph was looking at these people who didn't have problems. They could pay their
bills. They had plenty to eat and plenty of luxuries. But poor Asaph was stuck
with directing the choir and trying to live godly. And to add insult to injury,
it didn't seem to be getting him anywhere. He began not only to envy these
people, but even to question God as to why He would allow such a thing to
happen!
How often do we find ourselves relating to Asaph? We dedicate our lives to
serving God. Then we witness the wicked, the ungodly people around us get new
cars, luxurious homes, promotions, beautiful clothes, and take fabulous trips,
while we struggle to pay the electric bill. The answer lies in the rest of the
psalm. Asaph envied these evil people until he realized one very important
thing. When he entered the sanctuary of God, he fully understood their final
destiny: “When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I
entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you
place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they
destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! As a dream when one awakes, so when
you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies” (Psalms 73:16-20). Those
who have temporary riches on earth are in reality spiritual beggars because they
do not have true riches—eternal life.
There are many times when we do not understand what is happening to us, nor do
we understand how providence works. When Asaph entered the sanctuary of God, he
began to see that there was no need for him to be envious of the prosperity of
the wicked because their prosperity is in reality an illusion. He began to
comprehend that the ancient deceiver, Satan, had played tricks with his vision
and used lies to distract him from the reality of God. Upon entering the
sanctuary, he realized that prosperity is a fleeting fulfillment, a fashion show
of what is to pass away, like a pleasant dream that pleases us only for a little
while but when we awaken, we realize it was not real. Asaph rebukes himself for
his own stupidity. He admits to being “senseless and ignorant” to envy the
wicked or to be jealous of the perishing. His thoughts then returned to his own
happiness in God when he realized how much more joy, fulfillment and true
spiritual prosperity he had in the Creator.
We may not have everything we want here on earth, but we will one day prosper
for all eternity through Jesus Christ our Lord. Whenever we are tempted to try
the other road, we should remember that the other road is a dead end (Matthew
7:13). But in all truth, the narrow road before us through Jesus is awesome and
is the only road that leads to eternal life. That should be our joy and our
comfort. “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides
you. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful
to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord
my refuge . . .” (Psalm 73: 25, 27-28)
We need not concern ourselves when good things seem to happen to bad people. We
only need to keep our focus on our Creator and enter into His presence every day
through the portal of His holy Word. There we will find truth, contentment,
spiritual riches and eternal joy.
Recommended Resource: Disappointment with God by Philip Yancey.