Qassem Attributes 'Stability in Lebanon' to 'Hizbullah Fighters', Urges Proportional Representation
Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Sunday attributed the current “stability in Lebanon” to “Hizbullah's jihadi fighters, the stance of the army and the security forces, and everyone who endorsed this honorable stance to protect our country and future.”
“Had it not been for the resistance's achievements, those in Lebanon betting on foreign developments would not have despaired and we would not have been able to carry out the presidential elections,” Qassem added.
He was referring to Hizbullah's military intervention in neighboring Syria, where hundreds of Hizbullah fighters are supporting the regime's forces against an Islamist-led uprising.
Around 1,000 Hizbullah members have been killed in Syria since the start of the conflict. The party argues that its intervention was necessary to protect Lebanon from extremist groups and to prevent the fall of Syria into the hands of hostile forces.
Separately, Qassem called on Lebanese officials to “show courage and sacrifice” by approving “a fair electoral law based on proportional representation.”
President Michel Aoun was elected Lebanon's 13th president on Monday, ending around two and a half years of presidential vacuum.
A key endorsement from al-Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri and crucial support from Hizbullah and the Lebanese Forces contributed to Aoun's election.
Hizbullah has repeatedly called for an electoral law based on proportional representation but other political parties, especially Mustaqbal, have rejected the proposal and argued that the party's controversial arsenal of arms would prevent serious competition in regions where the Iran-backed party is influential.
Mustaqbal, the LF and the Progressive Socialist Party have meanwhile proposed a hybrid electoral law that mixes the proportional representation and the winner-takes-all systems. Speaker Nabih Berri has also proposed a hybrid law.
The country has not voted for a parliament since 2009, with the legislature instead twice extending its own mandate.
The 2009 polls were held under an amended version of the 1960 electoral law.
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