Berri Sets Dialogue Session for September 9
Naharnet/September 01/15/Speaker Nabih Berri has set September 9 as the date for the first dialogue session that will bring together Prime Minister Tammam Salam and the heads of parliamentary blocs.Earlier, al-Mustaqbal daily reported on Tuesday that Salam has urged Berri to bring the date of the national dialogue forward over fears of a prolonged cabinet paralysis. The newspaper quoted government sources as saying that Salam made the request because he does not intend to keep cabinet sessions suspended pending the end of the dialogue. Meanwhile, Berri’s visitors told al-Mustaqbal that contacts were launched with the leaders of parliamentary blocs to agree on the date for the dialogue. Hizbullah, ex-PM Saad Hariri’s al-Mustaqbal Movement and the Progressive Socialist Party of MP Walid Jumblat have welcomed Berri’s initiative which is aimed at ending the presidential deadlock and allowing the parliament and the government to function. The Kataeb Party has also praised the speaker’s initiative. Labor Minister Sejaan Qazzi, who is a Kataeb official, told An Nahar daily that the party hoped Berri’s efforts would lead to the election of a new president and for the dialogue to have a specific agenda so that it does not get adjourned from one session to the other. The Lebanese Forces is still studying its stance and the Change and Reform bloc of MP Michel Aoun is expected to announce its position following its weekly meeting on Tuesday.
Aoun Voices Fear of Arab Spring’s Effect on Lebanon, Questions ‘Sides that are Mobilizing Youth Protests’
Naharnet/September 01/15/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stressed on Tuesday the “rightful” demands being made by civil society protesters over the political reality in Lebanon, adding that he had objected to corruption in the country years ago. He added however: “We have questions over those who are mobilizing the demonstrators.” He also expressed his fear over the effect the Arab Spring may have on Lebanon, citing the bloody conflicts in Syria and Iraq and other countries. “Would the protesters prefer the garbage piling up on the streets or the chaos in those countries?” Aoun asked after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting. He instead advised the youth to demand the adoption of a new electoral law, the staging of parliamentary elections, and election of a new head of state. Addressing the youth, the MP said: “If you want power to be restored to the people, then you should demand that the president be elected through a popular vote.” The lawmaker had on numerous occasions demanded that a new president be elected through the people. “Only elections can help cleanse institutions,” Aoun stressed. He therefore called on the youth to join the FPM protest scheduled for 5:30 pm on Friday. The “You Stink” civil society campaign has staged a number of demonstrations against the country’s ongoing waste management crisis, which erupted in July following the closure of the Naameh landfill. The crisis has resulted in the piling up of trash on the streets as the government failed to find a new landfill. On Tuesday, the activists stormed the Environment Ministry to demand the resignation of Minister Mohammed al-Mashnouq. The FPM will stage a protest on Friday to demand “the restoration of Christian rights”, which it says has been usurped by the prime minister in the absence of a president.
Mustaqbal Rejects ‘Coup-like Pressure’ for Any Minister’s Resignation
Naharnet/September 01/15?Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday slammed the storming of the Environment Ministry building by “You Stink” activists as a “dangerous coup-like method,” warning that such tactics serve the interests of “those who are seeking chaos in Lebanon.”“In principle, peaceful protest highlights the vigor of the Lebanese people, who had revolted in March 2005 against tyranny and hegemony … Therefore, the return of the Lebanese to peaceful protest underscores their patriotism and adherence to the peaceful, democratic and civil heritage,” said the bloc in a statement issued after its weekly meeting, in reference to Saturday’s mass rally in downtown Beirut.“Real peaceful and democratic change is a legitimate right related to freedom of expression … and it should not descend to violence in the streets or stirring chaos through groups of infiltrators whose only objectives are destruction and sabotage,” Mustaqbal warned. It cautioned that “storming the Environment Ministry or any other state institution serves the interests of those seeking chaos in Lebanon, not those of the peaceful protest movement.”Mustaqbal also stressed the need for the current government to “continue performing its missions,” warning against “its fall or resignation amid the presidential vacuum.”“In this regard, the bloc also rejects pressure for the resignation of any minister or official in this dangerous coup-like method which was tried today,” it added. Proposing solutions, Mustaqbal reiterated its call for “the immediate election of a president and consequently the formation of a new government that addresses all the national, political, economic and social issues, including the drafting of a new electoral law.” Earlier in the day, protesters from the You Stink movement and other groups occupied part of the environment ministry in downtown Beirut, in an escalation of a campaign against the country’s trash crisis and a stagnant political class.In the evening, riot police forcibly removed the protesters from the building after a several-hour standoff, which left several activists injured. The activists said they stormed the ministry building to push for the resignation of Environment Minister Mohammed al-Mashnouq, who is close to Mustaqbal, over his failure to resolve the country’s waste crisis. But al-Mashnouq refused to resign, telling TV stations: “I am carrying out my duties.” During its last protest in downtown Beirut on Saturday, “You Stink” issued a 72-hour ultimatum for the authorities to meet their demands, including the resignation of the environment minister, holding Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq accountable for police violence in previous demonstrations, and releasing funds for municipalities to begin their own garbage management programs. In longer term goals, the activist group called for new parliamentary elections and the election of a president to fill a post that has been vacant since May last year due to political squabbling. The waste crisis erupted after the closure of the Naameh landfill that lies south of Beirut on July 17.
