11 crucial days for the Tribunal

Just as it did following the resignation of the Shiite ministers, March 14 should take the initiative once again in order to finalize the adoption of the international tribunal. It’s a race against time and the majority has only 11 days left to achieve it, before the end of the current parliamentary session on the last day of 2006. The next ordinary session won’t start before March 15 2007, and the opening of an extraordinary session might prove to be a bit complicated.

The problem, as it is clear to everybody now, is that the President of the Chamber, who calls the MPs for a meeting and sets the agenda, will most probably refuse to convene the parliament in the current situation. But this is not an insurmountable problem: According to legal expert Hassan Rifai , if the speaker refuses to convene the parliament, the vice-president not only has the right, but also the obligation to do it following a petition signed by a number of MPs:

أما عن اعادة مشروع المحكمة الدولية الى مجلس الوزراء بعد تعديل الحكومة ومن ثم احالته على رئيس الجمهورية كما تطالب المعارضة، فقال الرفاعي: "لست من هذا الرأي، وقد درست كل مسودات نظام المحكمة ووضعت دراسات حولها، ولا لزوم اطلاقاً لاعادتها حتى لو قبل بذلك مجلس الأمن. وأنا أرى ان تحال فوراً على مجلس النواب فاذا لم يجتمع يجب توقيع عريضة نيابية تطالب بانعقاده ويمكن انعقاده برئاسة نائب رئيس مجلس النواب. فهذه واجبات ولا يمكن تعطيلها بحجة دستورية أو عدم دستورية الحكومة، الامر الذي يعود بته الى المجلس الدستوري".

I understand March 14’s reluctance to go down that road as it would constitute a definitive break-up with Nabih Berri, but if this is the only way to pass the Tribunal then they have no other choice. The Tribunal is a priority. It is an essential instrument to consolidate Lebanon’s fragile independence and as such it should be left outside political settlements. March 14 should make it clear to all sides that no compromise is possible regarding the Tribunal. Let it pass and then be open to discuss virtually any other topic with the opposition.

We now have the chance to adopt the text of the tribunal and the opportunity might not present itself again in a few months, with the opening of a new parliamentary session, especially that March 14 won’t retain the 2/3rd majority in case of a cabinet reshuffle. Which means that if it’s not adopted in the next few days, the Tribunal might never see the light of day. Syria and Hezbollah, backed by Iran, have declared war against it. In an interview with the Egyptian Al-Araby magazine, Hassan Nasrallah openly announced what everybody knew anyway: that the reason they took to the streets is the international tribunal. The masks are down. March 14 knows who it is dealing with, it is now up to them to take the right decision and adopt the tribunal.

Farid Makari: You can now make history.