Opposition Figures Say Authorities Pressed Hotel to Cancel Conference

Opposition figures on Friday accused authorities of pressing a hotel in Beirut to cancel a conference for the National Initiative Movement opposition grouping.

“We had agreed with the administration of the Monroe Hotel in Beirut on holding the general conference of the National Initiative Movement on February 24, 2018 with the participation of around 1,000 invitees from all Lebanese regions,” the movement said in a statement.

“We were informed today by the hotel's administration, in a surprising manner, that it is refusing to allow the conference to be held. We clearly understood that this rejection, despite the prior acceptance, is the result of political pressures on security authorities that eventually asked the hotel's administration to cancel the event,” the movement added.

“Dr. Fares Soaid and Dr. Radwan al-Sayyed will hold a press conference tomorrow at 12:00 pm to comment on this,” it said.

In a tweet, Soaid warned that “the security regime has returned.”

Former justice minister Maj. Gen. Ashraf Rifi meanwhile said the cancellation of the conference “confirms that attacking freedoms has become an ordinary policy for the ruling class, which is using all its tools and clientelism to impact the will of the Lebanese and manipulate the elections.”

“We stand by Fares Soaid, Radwan al-Sayyed and all the participants in the initiative. We hope the side or political sides who pressed to block the conference will be honestly identified,” Rifi tweeted.

In remarks to MTV, Soaid said the hotel's manager, Roy Gharios, has told him that the conference cannot be held for “security reasons.”

“We had announced that the conference would be against both the ruling class and the government,” Soaid said.

“I believe that this is a message from the Lebanese ruling class, who used security agencies to cancel this conference and to tell all Lebanese that any dissent in Lebanon against the ruling class, the government or Hizbullah's arms will be subject to cancellation and persecution,” the ex-MP added.

Noting that the conference will be held at another venue to be announced next week, Soaid said “the prime minister, the entire government, the interior minister, the defense minister and the president of the republic are all responsible” for what happened.

“It is our constitutional right to engage in political action,” the former lawmaker stressed.

“If the Lebanese state cannot guarantee the security of a peaceful conference in Lebanon, where should we go? To Hizbullah?” Soaid wondered.