BEIRUT: After years of wrangling, Lebanese lawmakers passed a new vote law in June that will govern the parliamentary elections slated for Spring 2018. The move marks a major step forward for the country, as political work had ground to a halt while lawmakers focused solely on agreeing the final text. Unlike the former winner takes all system, the new law will see proportional representation implemented for the first time in Lebanon. Candidates will be able to vote from anywhere in the country – through so-called magnetic voting cards – rather than having to travel to their district.
While no single bloc claimed dominance and the final agreement left out several major points called for by certain parties, it was praised as the first fully home-grown electoral law. It remains hard to predict how the new system of voting – with its new proportional representation, redrawn districts and preferential votes – will affect the outcome. However, analysts and experts who looked at the text soon after it was published said they expect to see the share of seats decrease somewhat for many of the major parties. With the reduction expected to be largely uniform across the spectrum, it hasn’t been treated as a significant loss by the major blocs. That said, several experts believe Hezbollah, through affiliated parties and candidates, could significantly increase their share of seats in parliament.
While it won’t be included in the next elections, Foreign Minister and head of the Free Patriotic Movement Gebran Bassil’s call for six MPs to be assigned for the diaspora has been heeded and the framework has been written into the new vote law. However, it will require a further Cabinet decree at some point after the next election to see it activated in future cycles, which could also come with significant wrangling and opposition. The 11-month so-called “technical extension” of Parliament’s term is to educate voters and overseers on the new law to facilitate a smooth process. In an effort to assist in this endeavor, The Daily Star has translated the full text of the new vote as closely to the original Arabic wording as possible. – The Daily Star
Lebanese electoral law 2017:
By Youssef Diab – english.aawsat.com Beirut – Lebanon’s cabinet session held on Wednesday at the Baabda Palace saw disagreements between ministers over the return of the displaced Syrians to their country. While ministers, who support Bashar Assad, called for cooperation with the Syrian regime to achieve the quick return of refugees, other ministers from the […]
By Newsweek MiddleEast – The traditional Levantine folk dance, known as ‘dabke,’ has been doing its rounds on the internet thanks to the #WallDanceChallenge that has been dominating social media trends lately. The challenge spread to U.S., France, UAE, Mexico and even Argentina after a video went viral of a group of Lebanese-Australian men […]
Asharq Al-Awsat Beirut – Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri met on Tuesday with Minister for Displaced Talal Arslan to address the means to finalize the issue of the internally displaced people in Mount Lebanon and the formation of a working group to study the pending cases. In remarks following the meeting, Arslan said: “We discussed […]
by associates press – BEIRUT — Beirut’s landmark Hamra Street is bustling again and hotel occupancy rates are on the rise as Lebanon’s tourism industry rebounds amid misfortunes in the Middle East. It was just four years ago when Lebanon seemed to be losing its grip on its internal security. The specter of war spilling […]
Senior Christian and Muslim leaders and Lebanese government representatives agreed that Lebanon should be highlighted as an example of peaceful coexistence, noting that “the deepening of democracy in Lebanon sends a message of hope to the Arabs and to the world.” They also reiterated calls for peace and various churches’ support for “the Palestinian people and their national rights” and for Christians to remain in the Holy Land.
The leaders met at Notre Dame University Louaize in Zouk Mosbeh, north of Beirut, 1 July, for a follow-up to two events at Egypt’s al-Azhar University, Sunni Islam’s highest institute of learning. Addressing a peace conference at al-Azhar in April, Pope Francis emphasised that religion “is not a problem, but a part of the solution” because it helps people lift their hearts toward God “to learn how to build the city of man.” Lebanese Cardinal Bechara Rai, patriarch of Maronite Catholics, spearheaded the July meeting, which included the Vatican ambassador to Lebanon, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia; Sheik Abbas Shouman, deputy of the grand imam of Al Azhar; leaders of the Sunni, Shiite and Druze communities in Lebanon as well as Christian and Muslim experts and Lebanese government representatives.
In their final statement, conference participants declared their willingness to go to the Vatican and other Christian and Islamic world religious institutions “to cooperate and coordinate with them.” They also expressed “their desire to clarify the importance and challenges of a common living (Muslims and Christians) in Lebanon, which is the true guarantee of freedom, sovereignty and national independence.” “Amid the tragedies of partition, displacement, forced population screening, ethnic cleansing, targeting of Christians by terrorist gangs – as happened in Egypt recently – and targeting others in Iraq and Syria, the dangers of sectarian strife and the escalating conflicts and wars in a number of Arab neighbours, the solidity of coexistence, and the deepening of democracy in Lebanon sends a message of hope to the Arabs and to the world,” they stated. “We should do everything we can for Lebanon to remain aware of the seriousness and importance of the Lebanese experience and its relevance to the Arabs and to the international community in a strong and clear manner,” they added. They cited St John Paul II’s statement that “Lebanon is more than a country, it is a message of freedom and an example of pluralism for East and West.”
by Living – There’s something very incredible about the ‘cult-classic’ winery of Chateau Musar in Lebanon. Wine production in this tiny Middle Eastern country dates back over 6,000 years. However, for the most part, only simple table wine was produced. Then, around 1930, Gaston Hochar set his sights on the fine wine industry and created the legendary ‘Musar’. If Chateau Musar were a cult-classic film, Gaston Hochar would certainly be the director. His son Serge, however, was to be the leading star of the Musar show from the late 1950s until the 2000s. An incredible tale of romance, terror, passion and love, Musar has it all. When the first shots of the Lebanese Civil War were fired in 1972, Serge started to lose 90 percent of the domestic market. To survive, he would have to sell the wine abroad, something that was out of the ordinary for Lebanese winemakers in those days.
In 1979, Hochar exhibited his 1967 vintage wine at the Bristol Wine Fair, and it turned out to be the pick of the day among journalists and connoisseurs. The rest is history for this iconic winery, which has accumulated countless awards and secured resting places in some of the most famous cellars in the world – including our own in Ashford Castle. The best-known wine of Musar is its flagship red wine. Produced in the Beqaa Valley, east of Beirut, it is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan, which spend around 12 to 15 months in French oak barrels before they are blended and aged for three years together. After bottling the wine, it spends another three to four years at Musar before being released. So, we won’t be seeing the Chateau Musar 2014 or 2015, for example, for many years from now.
The wine itself has beautiful ruby hue, and cherry, blackcurrant and cranberries on the nose, with a hint of licorice. The palate has an explosion of brambly and hedgerow fruits with blueberries and cherries, complemented by excellent acidity and fine tannins, a perfect pairing with lamb. Made for aging and breaking out on a very special occasion, expect to pay between €27 and €35 for this wine in Ireland, depending on what vintage you find.
On Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it has lifted the large electronics ban on US-bound non-stop flights from Abu Dhabi International Airport in the United Arab Emirates. The removal of restrictions placed upon the airport in March is effective immediately. This move comes days after Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly announced a series of sweeping new airport security measures. According to DHS spokesman David Lapan, Abu Dhabi International Airport, home to Etihad Airways, was able to quickly comply with the new security requirements. “Etihad Airways & Abu Dhabi International Airport have implemented the required initial enhanced security measures. (Personal electronic device) restriction lifted,” Lapan announced on Twitter. “Kudos to Etihad Airways for swift security changes. Passengers will now be able to bring PEDs into the cabin of their US-bound flights.”
According to Etihad, the only airline with non-stop flights to the US from Abu Dhabi, the ban was lifted after DHS officials were able to validate the new security measures at the airline’s terminal. Abu Dhabi along with Shannon and Dublin in Ireland are the only airports outside of North America and the Caribbean to have a DHS preclearance facility. That means passengers on Etihad flights to the US are screened by DHS officials prior to boarding in Abu Dhabi. So when they arrive at their destination in the US, the passengers are treated the same as if they had been on a domestic flight. The establishment of additional preclearance locations is one of the key points in Secretary Kelly’s plan. In a statement to Business Insider, Etihad wrote: “We welcome the decision by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to lift the electronic devices ban on flights between Abu Dhabi and the United States, following the successful validation of security measures at the U.S. Preclearance facility at Abu Dhabi airport earlier today (July 2, 2017).
Riyadh (AFP) – Saudi Arabia and its allies said early Monday they had decided to extend by 48 hours the deadline for Qatar to accept their list of demands to lift a de facto blockade. With the deadline expiring at midnight Sunday, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt agreed to give Doha […]
