| The Daily Star |
BEIRUT: The Lebanese government should discuss with the U.N. and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon any challenges Lebanese groups have to the constitutionality of the court, said Baabda MP Alain Aoun, warning that rejecting the STL outright would lead to a confrontation with the international community.“
I believe the Lebanese government should tackle the issue of the STL by engaging in a discussion with the U.N. and the tribunal, touching on the objections of the [parliamentary] majority on its [the court’s] constitutionality, legality, attitude and opinions,” Aoun told The Daily Star in an interview Monday.
Aoun, of Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement, cautioned “rejecting this issue [the tribunal] in an absolute sense will lead to a confrontation.”
The STL, established to try the assassins of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, released its first indictment on June 30, which is thought to have named four Hezbollah members. The Lebanese government has to detain the indicted individuals within 30 working days, a period that expires on Aug. 11.
But Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah has rejected the indictment, and said that the four members could not be reached “even in 300 years.”
Aoun voiced pessimism that national dialogue sessions would resume in line with a call made by President Michel Sleiman earlier this month, placing the blame on the March 14 coalition.
“Nothing would prevent dialogue if there was a will for it, but it would be useless if there was no such will.”
“I expect that the opposition [March 14] is heading toward boycotting the majority and this was obvious in parliamentary sessions to discuss the Cabinet policy statement,” Aoun said.
He explained that the March 14 coalition did not want to acknowledge that a rotation of power had taken place, and still called it “a coup.”
“Given this atmosphere, they do not have the will to engage in a dialogue with the majority as much as the will to get rid of it,” Aoun said. “That’s why it’s impossible to make any breakthroughs regarding the resumption of dialogue.”
Aoun said that the memorandum of understanding that Michel Aoun had inked with Hezbollah in February 2006 had “restored the balance in power.”
As for the Maronite sect’s share in the upcoming round of administrative appointments in the public sector, which the Cabinet will pursue in the near future, Aoun said that key appointments required political consensus.
“We are preparing ourselves for these appointments and we are concerned with all of them,” he said.
“We are aware that appointments will be made in the judiciary, the Interior Ministry and other ministries. Some are prepared by the relevant ministries but others, like key ones, require political consensus which allows them to be approved by Cabinet,” he continued, adding that efforts were being accelerated to wrap up the appointments.
Aoun also called on the judiciary to investigate the divisive issue of “false witnesses,” individuals who originally gave misleading information to international investigators.
“In principal, the issue of the false witnesses is a judicial issue … the judiciary has to assume its responsibilities, and if it does not, then the government should take the initiative and put it on the right track for the sake of the court’s and majority’s credibility,” he said.
The issue of “false witnesses” was at the center of a dispute which paralyzed the Cabinet of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri after it refused to refer the issue to the Judicial Council, the highest judicial authority in Lebanon, as demanded by Hezbollah. The dispute led to the fall of Hariri’s Cabinet in January.
I believe the Lebanese government should tackle the issue of the STL by engaging in a discussion with the U.N. and the tribunal, touching on the objections of the [parliamentary] majority on its [the court’s] constitutionality, legality, attitude and opinions,” Aoun told The Daily Star in an interview Monday.
Aoun, of Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement, cautioned “rejecting this issue [the tribunal] in an absolute sense will lead to a confrontation.”
The STL, established to try the assassins of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, released its first indictment on June 30, which is thought to have named four Hezbollah members. The Lebanese government has to detain the indicted individuals within 30 working days, a period that expires on Aug. 11.
But Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah has rejected the indictment, and said that the four members could not be reached “even in 300 years.”
Aoun voiced pessimism that national dialogue sessions would resume in line with a call made by President Michel Sleiman earlier this month, placing the blame on the March 14 coalition.
“Nothing would prevent dialogue if there was a will for it, but it would be useless if there was no such will.”
“I expect that the opposition [March 14] is heading toward boycotting the majority and this was obvious in parliamentary sessions to discuss the Cabinet policy statement,” Aoun said.
He explained that the March 14 coalition did not want to acknowledge that a rotation of power had taken place, and still called it “a coup.”
“Given this atmosphere, they do not have the will to engage in a dialogue with the majority as much as the will to get rid of it,” Aoun said. “That’s why it’s impossible to make any breakthroughs regarding the resumption of dialogue.”
Aoun said that the memorandum of understanding that Michel Aoun had inked with Hezbollah in February 2006 had “restored the balance in power.”
As for the Maronite sect’s share in the upcoming round of administrative appointments in the public sector, which the Cabinet will pursue in the near future, Aoun said that key appointments required political consensus.
“We are preparing ourselves for these appointments and we are concerned with all of them,” he said.
“We are aware that appointments will be made in the judiciary, the Interior Ministry and other ministries. Some are prepared by the relevant ministries but others, like key ones, require political consensus which allows them to be approved by Cabinet,” he continued, adding that efforts were being accelerated to wrap up the appointments.
Aoun also called on the judiciary to investigate the divisive issue of “false witnesses,” individuals who originally gave misleading information to international investigators.
“In principal, the issue of the false witnesses is a judicial issue … the judiciary has to assume its responsibilities, and if it does not, then the government should take the initiative and put it on the right track for the sake of the court’s and majority’s credibility,” he said.
The issue of “false witnesses” was at the center of a dispute which paralyzed the Cabinet of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri after it refused to refer the issue to the Judicial Council, the highest judicial authority in Lebanon, as demanded by Hezbollah. The dispute led to the fall of Hariri’s Cabinet in January.
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