ASIA/LEBANON - Maronite Bishops: the enactment of a new election law that guarantees fair representation of all citizens is urgently needed

Thursday, 6 April 2017 oriental churches   politics   international politics   corruption   sectaniarism  

Patriarcato maronita

Bkerké (Agenzia Fides) - The enactment of a new electoral law that "guarantees fair representation of all citizens on the basis of coexistence and democracy which characterize our political system" is becoming more and more urgent in Lebanon. This is the pressing demand that the Bishops of the Maronite Church addressed the Lebanese political authorities, on the occasion of their monthly meeting held yesterday, Wednesday, April 5, at the patriarchal headquarters at Bkerké.
During the meeting, presided over by Patriarch Bechara Boutros Rai, and referring to the worrying economic situation of the country, the Maronite Bishops reiterated that Lebanon needs a long-term planning based on the collaboration between the public and private sector, and to promote the dissemination of a culture of the common good. In this regard, the Bishops also addressed the need to combat the endemic scourges of corruption, plunder of public funds and tax evasion.
The electoral system currently in force, resulting from the Taif Accords which in 1989 sanctioned the end of the civil war, states that half of the 128 Members of Parliament are Christians (mostly Maronites), and the other half is made up of Muslim and Druze parliamentarians. The Lebanese press today claims President Michel Aoun's intention to support a pure proportional system, while according to politicians of Christian political parties, the Shiite Party of Hezbollah is aiming to reconsider the current distribution of seats to ensure adequate representation of the Shiite of the Lebanese population. (GV) (Agenzia Fides 06/04/2017)


Share: