A VERY PARLIAMENTARY JUNTA
The new president has promised to help fight corruption and crack down on smuggling, end impunity for criminals, and work for an independent judiciary.
The New Arab Staff
09 January, 2025
Aoun took his oath in parliament after winning a majority of 99 out of 128 lawmaker votes [Houssam Shbaro/Anadolu/Getty]
Lebanon’s new President Joseph Aoun vowed to take control of all arms outside state authority and fully implement the ceasefire deal with Israel in his inaugural speech on Thursday.
The military commander-turned-president got 99 votes in a parliamentary session on Thursday, more than the 86 votes he needed to win. His election as Lebanon’s 14th president comes after more than a two-year stalemate, which has seen many state institutions in caretaker capacity or vacant.
After taking oath, Aoun, 61, made a speech many Lebanese have deemed as promising – and very ambitious – as he said he will work to end corruption, interference in the country’s judiciary, and impunity for criminals. He also said he would end the smuggling of arms and drugs and begin reconstructing what was destroyed by Israel in its last war on Lebanon.
"My pledge is to cooperate with the new government to approve the judicial independence bill, and to challenge any law that violates the constitution, and call for parliamentary consultations as soon as possible to choose a prime minister who will be a partner and not an adversary," Aoun said from parliament, interrupted by rounds of applause from the attendees.
The session was observed by diplomats, including the ambassadors of countries which have in recent days exerted enormous pressure on Lebanon’s political establishment to reach a consensus and end the deadlock.
"I will also work to confirm the state’s right to monopolise the carrying of weapons," he said. This part of his speech especially received a warm welcome from rivals of Hezbollah, which has come out battered from the war with Israel.
Hezbollah’s arsenal has long been a major point of contention in Lebanon, with the group’s rivals saying it was impossible to state-build as long as armed groups exist in the country. The group has long said it would give up its arms when the Lebanese army was capable of defending the country against Israeli threats.
Aoun did not name Hezbollah in his speech, but his vows to respect international resolutions and implement the ceasefire deal were enough to signal his intentions.
The US-brokered agreement came into effect on 27 November, and Israel, Lebanon, and Hezbollah all have 60 days – until late January – to implement the deal.
Related
Will Lebanon's army be able to uphold the ceasefire with Israel?
Analysis
Dario Sabaghi
Israel has carried out hundreds of violations, with fears that it may seek to remain in parts of southern Lebanon even after the 60-day deadline is over.
Beirut is responsible for making sure no weapons outside state control exist in southern Lebanon, particularly south of the Litani River where UN peacekeepers operate alongside the Lebanese army. Arms everywhere else across the country must also be confiscated, and borders must be strictly monitored.
Since the war ended, some of Lebanon’s main entry points such as its only civilian airport and the Port of Beirut have seen stringent measures with extraordinary security checks taking place.
Aoun said a "complete defence strategy on diplomatic, economic, and military levels" will be negotiated, one that "enables the Lebanese state to remove the Israeli occupation [from the south] and deter its aggression".
He promised to work on strengthening the Lebanese army, long underequipped.
"We will invest in the military to control and stabilise the borders in the south and demarcate them in the east and north" with Syria, he said, extending his hand out to the interim authorities in Damascus which ousted Bashar al-Assad’s regime a month ago.
The president called for the start of a "serious and friendly dialogue with the Syrian state to discuss relations and all outstanding issues between us," especially with regard to missing Lebanese citizens in Syria – many of whom are believed to have been kidnapped by Assad’s forces during the former Syrian military’s occupation of Lebanon – and Syrian refugees in Lebanon, which make up about a third of the country’s population.
Related
A new chapter in Lebanon-Syria relations takes shape
Analysis
Bilal Ghazeye
The new president spoke of restructuring Lebanon’s inflated public sector and rotating jobs, in a patronage system largely based on clientelism where corruption has become rampant.
Also on internal matters, Aoun stressed change in the way politics works in Lebanon, vowing to uphold the constitution and saying, "My pledge is to the Lebanese, wherever they are, and for the whole world, to hear that today a new phase in Lebanon’s history has begun."
"Interference in the judiciary is forbidden, and there will be no immunity for criminals or corrupt individuals. There is no place for mafias, drug trafficking, or money laundering in Lebanon," the president added.
Lebanon was placed on the grey list by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force in October after several warnings to the political class to carry out much-needed fiscal reforms. These calls have fallen on deaf ears.
A cash economy has flourished in Lebanon after its banking sector collapsed in 2019, with fears and accusations that this was allowing for widescale money laundering. Failing to carry out reforms could place Lebanon on the blacklist, alongside countries like Iran, Myanmar, and North Korea.
The financial crisis has seen Lebanese locked out of their lifelong savings, with many unable to afford even necessities amid a crumbling infrastructure.
Aoun said he would "adhere to the free economy, and we need banks where the governor is the rule of law," as he said he would work to protect the assets of depositors. He pledged to push the next government to work on laws that will enforce administrative decentralisation, something stipulated in Lebanon’s constitution but never implemented.
The president's prerogatives in Lebanon remain somewhat limited, as constitutional amendments in 1989 to end the Civil War gave more powers to the legislative and executive branches of government. This power structure shared between the country's rivals, has resulted in decades of dysfunctional governance.
Who is Joseph Aoun, Lebanon's new president?
Lebanon has been without a president for over two years due to infighting among the country's political class, but Joseph Aoun is likely to fill the vacuum.
Louay Faour
Rita El Jammal
Beirut
The New Arab
09 January, 2025
Aoun emerged as a frontrunner for the Lebanese presidency in recent weeks, especially after the end of the Israel-Hezbollah war [Anwar Amro/AFP/Getty]
After over two years without a head of state, Lebanese lawmakers on Thursday elected a new president for the country, reeling under a crushing economic crisis and the aftermath of a devastating war with Israel which ended in November.
Political turmoil has led to Baabda Palace being vacant since Michel Aoun's term ended in 2022. While Hezbollah and its ally the Amal Movement had clung onto Marada Movement leader Sleiman Frangieh – who withdrew from the race on Wednesday – their rivals had opted for other candidates.
Having a hung parliament with no clear majority for any political alliance, Lebanon's 128 MPs were unable to elect a president for the past two years.
Under the country's parliamentary system, the legislature is tasked with electing the president, who, by convention, must be a Maronite Christian and serve a six-year term.
But now, after clear external pressure to quickly end the political stalemate in Lebanon, parliamentarians finally elected a new head of state in a session on Thursday.
Lebanon's army commander General Joseph Aoun garnered 99 votes, surpassing the 86 votes required.
Who is Joseph Aoun?
The army chief has been widely celebrated in Lebanon for being able to steer the country's military through Lebanon’s unprecedented financial crisis which began in 2019, and the last Israeli offensive which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire deal two months ago.
Aoun – not related to former president Michel Aoun – succeeded in gathering international support for the army, keeping it going as Lebanon has undergone some of its worst catastrophes in recent years.
The army, despite being largely underequipped, has long been considered a symbol of national unity in the country, which suffers from deep sectarian and political divisions.
Born on 10 October 1964 in Sin el-Fil, an eastern suburb of Beirut, Aoun's family originally hails from the south Lebanese village of Aishiyeh in the Jezzine district.
He obtained a degree in political science specialising in international affairs, and a university degree in military studies. He joined the army as an officer cadet and was enrolled in the Military College in May 1983, during Lebanon’s Civil War.
Aoun received several promotions before being appointed as commander-in-chief of the army in March 2017.
One of his biggest challenges was leading the army in the fight against militants from the Nusra Front and Islamic State groups in the summer of that year. The militants had been holed up for years along the border with Syria with the conflict raging there.
They were expelled after a joint operation by the Lebanese army and Hezbollah.
Aoun's mandate as commander in chief was renewed for the second time on 28 November, a day after the Israel-Hezbollah war ended and when Berri called for Thursday's election session.
The decision to extend his mandate was opposed by the Free Patriotic Movement, which has had tense relations with the general for years. Hezbollah, the FPM’s former ally, agreed to extend Aoun’s term after refusing the first time.
Growing support
While Aoun’s name had been circulated as a potential presidential candidate since 2022, most political parties had lobbied for other candidates, among them Hezbollah-ally Suleiman Frangieh, former IMF official Jihad Azour, Independence Movement leader Michel Mouawad, General Security chief Elias Baysari, and others.
Following the last war with Israel, and with the Lebanese military’s crucial role in implementing the ceasefire deal, particularly in light of the weakening of Hezbollah, some politicians have argued that only a military man will be fit for the job in the coming transitional period.
Aoun now is the fourth army general to become president since the late 1990s, after Emile Lahoud, Michel Sleiman, and Michel Aoun.
Constitutional violation?
Electing the current army commander as president would require a constitutional amendment as the country's constitution prohibits public servants, including members of the military, from running for or assuming political office while still in service.
But constitutional expert Saeed Malek told The New Arab's Arabic sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that even without an amendment, General Aoun can still be elected president.
In order for the election to be stopped, 43 MPs would have to use their right to appeal the election to the Constitutional Council within 24 hours of the vote ending in parliament, and this was unlikely to happen.
In 2008, constitutional prohibitions were dropped to elect Michel Sleiman as president following a consensus reached in Doha among Lebanon's rival parties, which ended a week of deadly armed clashes in and around Beirut sparked by Hezbollah, Amal and some of their allies.
"It is true that electing Aoun without a constitutional amendment represents a constitutional violation, but in order for this measure [his election] to be declared, we would need a decision issued by the Constitutional Council," said Malek.
Amid these exceptional times in Lebanon, nobody is expected to appeal the vote.
Many Lebanese however have decried the constitutional violation, and some reform MPs have said they will not vote for Aoun.
Other reform MPs have said the country’s long-time ruling and corrupt political class have given them no choice, saying Aoun's election was needed for Lebanon to begin its recovery, with no clear agreement on any other candidate.
Rita El Jammal
Beirut
The New Arab
09 January, 2025
Aoun emerged as a frontrunner for the Lebanese presidency in recent weeks, especially after the end of the Israel-Hezbollah war [Anwar Amro/AFP/Getty]
After over two years without a head of state, Lebanese lawmakers on Thursday elected a new president for the country, reeling under a crushing economic crisis and the aftermath of a devastating war with Israel which ended in November.
Political turmoil has led to Baabda Palace being vacant since Michel Aoun's term ended in 2022. While Hezbollah and its ally the Amal Movement had clung onto Marada Movement leader Sleiman Frangieh – who withdrew from the race on Wednesday – their rivals had opted for other candidates.
Having a hung parliament with no clear majority for any political alliance, Lebanon's 128 MPs were unable to elect a president for the past two years.
Under the country's parliamentary system, the legislature is tasked with electing the president, who, by convention, must be a Maronite Christian and serve a six-year term.
But now, after clear external pressure to quickly end the political stalemate in Lebanon, parliamentarians finally elected a new head of state in a session on Thursday.
Lebanon's army commander General Joseph Aoun garnered 99 votes, surpassing the 86 votes required.
Who is Joseph Aoun?
The army chief has been widely celebrated in Lebanon for being able to steer the country's military through Lebanon’s unprecedented financial crisis which began in 2019, and the last Israeli offensive which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire deal two months ago.
Aoun – not related to former president Michel Aoun – succeeded in gathering international support for the army, keeping it going as Lebanon has undergone some of its worst catastrophes in recent years.
The army, despite being largely underequipped, has long been considered a symbol of national unity in the country, which suffers from deep sectarian and political divisions.
Born on 10 October 1964 in Sin el-Fil, an eastern suburb of Beirut, Aoun's family originally hails from the south Lebanese village of Aishiyeh in the Jezzine district.
He obtained a degree in political science specialising in international affairs, and a university degree in military studies. He joined the army as an officer cadet and was enrolled in the Military College in May 1983, during Lebanon’s Civil War.
Aoun received several promotions before being appointed as commander-in-chief of the army in March 2017.
One of his biggest challenges was leading the army in the fight against militants from the Nusra Front and Islamic State groups in the summer of that year. The militants had been holed up for years along the border with Syria with the conflict raging there.
They were expelled after a joint operation by the Lebanese army and Hezbollah.
Aoun's mandate as commander in chief was renewed for the second time on 28 November, a day after the Israel-Hezbollah war ended and when Berri called for Thursday's election session.
The decision to extend his mandate was opposed by the Free Patriotic Movement, which has had tense relations with the general for years. Hezbollah, the FPM’s former ally, agreed to extend Aoun’s term after refusing the first time.
Growing support
While Aoun’s name had been circulated as a potential presidential candidate since 2022, most political parties had lobbied for other candidates, among them Hezbollah-ally Suleiman Frangieh, former IMF official Jihad Azour, Independence Movement leader Michel Mouawad, General Security chief Elias Baysari, and others.
Following the last war with Israel, and with the Lebanese military’s crucial role in implementing the ceasefire deal, particularly in light of the weakening of Hezbollah, some politicians have argued that only a military man will be fit for the job in the coming transitional period.
Aoun now is the fourth army general to become president since the late 1990s, after Emile Lahoud, Michel Sleiman, and Michel Aoun.
Constitutional violation?
Electing the current army commander as president would require a constitutional amendment as the country's constitution prohibits public servants, including members of the military, from running for or assuming political office while still in service.
But constitutional expert Saeed Malek told The New Arab's Arabic sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that even without an amendment, General Aoun can still be elected president.
In order for the election to be stopped, 43 MPs would have to use their right to appeal the election to the Constitutional Council within 24 hours of the vote ending in parliament, and this was unlikely to happen.
In 2008, constitutional prohibitions were dropped to elect Michel Sleiman as president following a consensus reached in Doha among Lebanon's rival parties, which ended a week of deadly armed clashes in and around Beirut sparked by Hezbollah, Amal and some of their allies.
"It is true that electing Aoun without a constitutional amendment represents a constitutional violation, but in order for this measure [his election] to be declared, we would need a decision issued by the Constitutional Council," said Malek.
Amid these exceptional times in Lebanon, nobody is expected to appeal the vote.
Many Lebanese however have decried the constitutional violation, and some reform MPs have said they will not vote for Aoun.
Other reform MPs have said the country’s long-time ruling and corrupt political class have given them no choice, saying Aoun's election was needed for Lebanon to begin its recovery, with no clear agreement on any other candidate.
No comments:
Post a Comment