Gemayel Defends Orthodox Proposal, Says Not in Confrontation with Suleiman

Gemayel Defends Orthodox Plan for Guaranteeing Partnership, Says Not in Confrontation with Suleiman

Phalange leader Amin Gemayel reiterated on Sunday his support for the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal but said his party was willing to approve several electoral draft-laws on condition they guarantee the best representation for Christians.

Gemayel defended the decision to back the proposal, saying the draft-law “gives each person his right based on a free voting that allows each faction to vote for its representatives in parliament.”

“We believe that it guarantees the right representation (for all) and achieves a fair partnership” in the country despite the criticism it is facing, he told An Nahar newspaper in an interview.

“We currently believe that true partnership, which is the condition for stability, is guaranteed by the Orthodox proposal which allows Christian voters to choose 64 Christian MPs,” he said.

The plan divides Lebanon into a single district and allows each sect to vote for its own lawmakers under a proportional representation system.

Gemayel challenged the plan's critics, saying they should propose a serious draft-law that guarantees true partnership and garners the majority in parliament.

Asked about President Michel Suleiman's rejection of the proposal for allegedly harming the social fabric, the Phalange leader said: “Our stance should not be interpreted as a confrontation with the president.”

Suleiman has repeatedly announced his support for a government draft-law that divides Lebanon into 13 districts under a proportional representation system and warned that he would challenge the Orthodox proposal before the Constitutional Council if parliament adopted it.

But Gemayel accused the cabinet of failing to defend its own proposal, saying the different parties that make up the government proposed draft-laws that contradict it.

“We respect the president on his initiative if he resorts to the Constitutional Council which has the authority to have the last say,” he said without elaborating.

The Orthodox proposal was approved last week by the joint parliamentary committees despite the rejection of the opposition al-Mustaqbal bloc, the centrist National Struggle Front of MP Walid Jumblat, and March 14 opposition’s Christian independent MPs.

But Speaker Nabih Berri hasn't called for a parliamentary session yet, to give rival MPs more time to reach consensus on another draft-law.

Gemayel said that his Phalange party, which has several representatives in parliament, was coordinating will all sides to agree on a plan for this year's parliamentary polls.

He announced readiness to discuss several draft-laws, including a 50 small-size districts proposal made by his party in addition to another hybrid draft-law on condition that 40 percent of lawmakers are chosen under the proportional representation system and 60 percent under the winner-takes-all system.