BEIRUT:
Prime Minister Najib Mikati hit back Friday at opposition March 14 politicians
who had criticized his handling of paying Lebanon’s share of the annual funding
for the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
“No
sooner had Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced the payment of Lebanon’s share
toward the funding of the STL, then an ‘organized chorus’ resumed a campaign
against Prime Minister Mikati, unleashing again stances that are devoid of any
logic,” a statement by Mikati’s office said.
Referring
to March 14 politicians, the statement said that “this chorus” described
Mikati’s move to fund the STL with terms that reflected the “deep hatred” in
the hearts of these people to the extent that they have lost logic and
foresight.
“What
this chorus is saying categorically confirms that these people do not want
justice and knowing the truth [in former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s 2005
assassination],” the statement said. “They have no argument except using the
blood of martyr Rafik Hariri in political outbiddings and on occasions when
they need leverage through which they show up before their supporters,
belittling the minds of all the Lebanese,” it added.
The
statement said Mikati’s move to pay Lebanon’s share of the STL’s funding
reflected his deep-rooted patriotic and personal belief, as well as that of the
majority of the Lebanese, in “achieving justice and revealing the truth [in
Hariri’s assassination] away from any politicization and the need for Lebanon
to respect its international obligations.”
“He
[Mikati] did not fund [the STL] in order to satisfy anyone or to get a
certificate of good conduct from anyone, namely from this chorus and those
belonging to it on occasions,” it said.
Mikati
declined to provide details on how Lebanon paid its share of the STL’s annual
budget as he was attacked from mainly March 14 for transferring the money
without Cabinet approval.
After
chairing a Cabinet meeting that approved the draft 2012 state budget at the
Grand Serail, Mikati told reporters that Lebanon transferred its share of the
STL’s funding Wednesday morning in the same manner it did last year, but was
not reliant on donations from Lebanese banks.
The STL confirmed Wednesday
that it had received the funding from the government of nearly 27 million euros
($33 million), amounting to 49 percent of the tribunal’s 2012 budget.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Politics/2012/Jul-14/180551-pm-fires-back-over-stl-funding-slurs.ashx#axzz20V2YWRw4
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