Now Lebanon - Sleiman: Lebanon ‘must’ pay share of STL funding, October 31, 2011

President Michel Sleiman said in remarks published Monday that Lebanon must pay its share of funding to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), adding that funding does not mean “not criticizing the tribunal if it makes mistakes.”
Sleiman told Ad-Diyar newspaper that the STL committed a mistake “when it leaked the investigation, and the indictment.”
Asked if Lebanese officials have received warnings related to not paying Lebanon’s share of STL funding, Sleiman said “I am the president of the Lebanese Republic. No one threatens or warns me.”
He added that a certain diplomatic way has to be taken when asking about Lebanon’s position regarding implementing international decisions.
Four Hezbollah members have been indicted by the UN-backed court in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. However, the Shia group strongly denied the charges and refuses to cooperate with the court
Lebanon contributes 49 percent of the STL’s annual funding.
The president also rejected some MPs’ statements that he did not sign a decree promoting Internal Security Forces-Information Branch head Colonel Wissam al-Hassan for “malicious reasons,” adding that he had previously signed two decrees promoting Hassan.
The president signed on Friday a decree to promote officers below the rank of colonel.
Sleiman also denied that there is a dispute between him and Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun regarding Christian positions in certain institution.
-NOW Lebanon