Maronite Meeting: Electoral Law Will Revitalize Christian Role in Lebanon
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
A meeting for Maronite leaders stressed on Friday the importance of the electoral law in revitalizing the role of Christians in Lebanon.
The statement, read by the Patriarchate spokesman Walid Ghayyath, said: “The Christians believe in the Lebanese state and its institutions and they believe that an electoral law is the correct way to revitalize their role in the country.”
The electoral law is the foundation for building partnership in Lebanon based on equal representation, he added.
Rival Maronite leaders and lawmakers met in Bkirki on Friday in the second round of discussions between them on suggestions for a new electoral law that Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi hoped would receive consensus.
The top four Maronite leaders Phalange party chief Amin Gemayel, Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and the head of the Marada movement Suleiman Franjieh along with MPs from the March 8 and March 14 forces attended the meeting.
After the meeting, the conferees attended a lunch banquet thrown by al-Rahi in their honor.
On Thursday, a meeting was held between members of the committee that was tasked by the last meeting held in Bkirki on June 2 to study the best electoral law.
MPs George Adwan, Sami Gemayel and Alain Aoun and former Minister Youssef Saadeh held talks for more than three hours following the parliamentary session, An Nahar daily said.
The four-member committee reportedly made suggestions during Friday’s meeting and proposed several law, starting with the best law that guarantees the right representation.
The conferees are expected to reach an agreement on the best law that should be adopted by parliament.
Lawmakers Dori Chamoun, Farid Habib and Strida Geagea didn’t attend while Salim Salhab said health reasons prevented him from heading to Bkirki.
23 September 2011, 10:40
04
When will the maronites over come their differences and form one single untied presence... We are doing more damage to ourselves than any other external force...
They should all step down from their posts, and elect ONE NEW united front as a centrist presence.
Divided we fall...
23 September 2011, 13:57
03
Canaanite: hafez Assad split them way back when and they never manage to reunite..... Lots of things would change if they did
23 September 2011, 14:05
24
The maronites are ignoring the other christian sects in lebanon. there are the melkites the orthodox the assyrians the armenians and many others. As long as they are talking maronite its degrading and ignoring the other lebanese sects. why dont they unite all the christian sects and call it simply christians?
i would like to know the reason. That is a division and maronites will fall. I am beginning to feel left out as i am a Greek Catholic. What ever they are doing i do not think its gonna work without reuniting all christian sects. In my opinion rahi is being selfish and he is not gathering the christians he is dividing them . very disrespectful . I am proud to be a Lebanese Christian who loves all other lebanese no matter what relegion they are . shiites sunni druze are all my lebanese family too. uniting the lebanese people depending on their sects is a failure. It is a sign of partioning the country wich is the goal of Lebanons ennemies. shame on you maronites .
23 September 2011, 14:31
20
@Neutral... I don't think you read well or know how to interpret political activities. If that's your conclusion about this gathering then you missed the main points..and focused on a secondary issue.
23 September 2011, 15:11
20
i think that the marounites want lebanon and only lebanon for, they didn't refuse the other relogions in lebanon, but Let's say that 30% of the population of Lebanon's Christians, but they control 50% of the goverments jobs. Is this fair ?
23 September 2011, 15:14
10
It is a good thing to make them work together toward a common objective that will aid them all and Patriarch is providing a valuable service and forum for this coming together and working together toward this common objective.
The weakness of the Lebanese state is directly tied to the weakness of the Lebanese Christian community and the weakness of the Lebanese Christians is directly related to its division into several factions with different agendas.
Though it has been helpful that some Christian leaders are in the M14 camp and some in the M8 so that Christians have been immunized to a certain degree in the Sunni - Shia confrontation. It is far better that regardless of the camp that the leadership finds itself in, that all members of the leadership are working off of the same agenda and are pushing that agenda whether in M14 or M8. This way regardless of which is in the majority, the Lebanese State is made stronger for all of the Lebanese - Christian and Moslem
23 September 2011, 15:30
02
neutral; You are absolutely right. With all due respect to the maronites that call themselves "Christians" so, what are we??? Frigging Foreigners?? Remember we were here before you!!!!!!!!Read the history books
23 September 2011, 15:31
01
@elielebnan. did you read what you wrote? you stated that i focused on secondary issues. That is telling me that other christian sects are secondary issues. that is a typical maronite prejudism. spare me your comments bud. i am 61 years old and i was in the war of the 70s i paid a big price just being a christian. 2 of my brothers were massacred and i was kidnapped and tortured. if you are a maronite that does not make you a first class christian. all the christians paid big and not maronites. as for politics. trust me i can teach you about politics. No hard feelings Elie. I am a peaceful man and looking for peace not war. when the crusaders came to the middle east they came as christians not maronites. remember that.
23 September 2011, 17:17
10
Do you folks read what you write?
Maronites unite? Is that still the Lebanon we are looking for in the 21st century?
What about multiconfessional parties, a secular democracy?
Lebanese will never learn that's why we keep on hitting the same brick wall.
23 September 2011, 17:36
01
mtv aired news that the mufti of syria ahmad badredine hassoun is invited by rahi to visit the patriarch in bkirki.
i hope and hope for the sake of peace in lebanon that this information is not true.
b4 commenting more i hope this is not true.
23 September 2011, 19:53
02
New statistics shows that Lebanese christians are 80% including the ones who lives abroad of Lebanese origin. Lebanon is the only christian country in the region and should remain like that.
http://phoenicialebanese.blogspot.com/
23 September 2011, 21:44
02
If you want to be revitalized, let Aoun and Rai say something clear about getting Shia off church land in Lassa and everywhere else.
23 September 2011, 23:02
20
The American and Jews dont want a strong christian power player other than them, especially the Lebanese who are better masters in the regional politics.
They are very jealous of Lebanese and their CIA targets every Lebanese interest around the globe, like Paulo Maaloof in Brazil and other Lebanese leaders in Latin America. The even created anti-Lebanese policy with the help of their allies and went beyond that by deporting US born children from christian Lebanese parents in retaliation.
24 September 2011, 02:48
00
But the Christian Sunnis want the Harri Electoral Law, otherwise, who is going to fill their soul balloons with fart? They will deflate!!!
24 September 2011, 09:33
00
maybe we are looking at this subject the wrong way: why should Christians unite in one voice?
I believe we are doing the right thing by having different opinions, while the others do not have diversity.
however, the problems are:
- we follow others to have credibility: Aoun follows Hizbullah hoping he will be elected as president, while the others are part of the large diversity of March 13.
- the cancellation mentality of some is still there, based on the principle that no one else represents the Christians but him.
- and so on...
so in my point of vue, it is the mentality of some that need to be changed and accept there are others who do have other opinions.
we should keep pushing for diversity as this is real democracy so we need to push the others to be like us.
just an opinion.
24 September 2011, 09:44
00
by the way, look at this picture and tell me where you see them united? the way they are sitting shows how they are in real life.... which is a positive sign.
what is required is for these guys to reach consencus on main points.
