Initial Deal in Parliament to Speed up Approval of Electoral Law as Opposition's Christians Forward Own Proposal

The joint parliamentary committees discussed for the second time on Thursday the government's electoral draft-law amid deep divisions between different parliamentary blocs on the districts and the type of electoral system despite an initial agreement on resolving the issue within a certain timeframe.

The government's draft-law divides Lebanon into 13 medium-sized districts based on proportional representation. But huge differences between the March 8 majority coalition and the opposition March 14 alliance are likely to spiral out of control.

Despite the dispute, several rival MPs called for setting a deadline for the approval of the draft-law or the introduction of amendments to it after lengthy discussions and different demands by several parliamentary blocs threatened the possibility to reaching a solution.

Lawmakers Sami Gemayel, Ibrahim Kanaan, George Adwan, Butros Harb and Nawaf Moussawi were among those who called for a timeframe to resolve the issue around eight months before the 2013 parliamentary elections.

"The parliament should find a solution by the year's end so that we begin preparations for the legislative elections," Interior Minister Marwan Charbel, who attended the meeting, told reporters.

Deputy Speaker Farid Makari said following the talks that the lawmakers agreed to hold meetings each Tuesday and Thursday to speed up the process.

Thursday's meeting was held one week after a previous session hardly tackled the draft-law.

It also came a day after the March 14 opposition Christians reached an agreement with their allies in al-Mustaqbal movement on a plan to divide Lebanon into small districts based on proportional representation.

Lebanese Forces MP Adwan, Phalange party lawmaker Gemayel, and Harb, another March 14 MP, referred the new proposal of the opposition to parliament's secretariat on Thursday.

The draft-law divides Lebanon into 50 small-sized districts based on a winner-takes-all system and would have 2-3 elected lawmakers in each district.

Several March 8 MPs criticized the proposal during the parliamentary committees meeting.

“The small-sized districts contradict the Taef accord and allow those who have large capitals to become MPs,” Hizbullah lawmaker Ali Fayyad told reporters later.

The opposition's proposal of the draft-law came following a decision to revive the meetings of a committee formed under Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Bkirki tasked with drafting a law that would guarantee the best representation for Christians.

The talks reached a standstill over differences between the opposition and Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun's Change and Reform bloc, whose ministers approved the cabinet's draft-law in what the March 14 forces said was an attempt to renege on the agreement reached by the Bkirki committee on adopting small-sized districts.

Opposition forces told An Nahar the draft-law that was referred to parliament on Thursday will embarrass the FPM “because it had previously agreed to the 50 small districts during the Bkirki committee meetings.”

But Change and Reform MP Simon Abi Ramia denied that any such agreement was reached.

Al-Rahi discussed developments related to the draft-law in separate meetings with Gemayel and Change and Reform bloc MP Alain Aoun Wednesday.

Phalange MPs and officials also discussed the draft during a meeting they held in Bikfaya on Wednesday night.

Phalange lawmaker Elie Marouni told An Nahar that the opposition's proposal would guarantee the election of 59 Christian MPs by the votes of Christian electorates.