CONFERENCES & WORKSHOPS 1996

 

  Meeting of Regional Arab Research Centers
  1-4 August . Maryland Hotel, Brumaneh Na`ass, Beirut
Organized by: The Lebanese Center for Policy Studies.

Participants:

The seminar was held to further coordination and cooperation between research centers in the Arab Mashriq. In addition to this general topic, the upcoming Lebanese parliamentary elections and the role of Lebanese intellectuals, researchers and NGOs centers in these elections were discussed. PASSIA's presence at the meetings was a manifestation of its support for coordination of research efforts in Arab countries.

Day 1
Morning: Ms. Rosie Nasser, Project Manager at LCPS met Dr. Khalil Shiqaqi and Dr. Mahdi Abdul Hadi at the airport and gave them an informative two-hour tour of Beirut in this crucial stage of post-war rebuilding.
Noon: Introductory meeting at the Institute for Palestine Studies in Beirut
Afternoon: Brief meeting at the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies

The meeting covered the upcoming Lebanese elections of 1996, the formation of a private Lebanese society for observing elections, and the comparison of Lebanon with Palestine and Jordan as case studies. Because PASSIA's activities focus on Palestine and not elections or Lebanon, its role centered less on taking operational benefit from the meeting and more on imparting its knowledge and experience with the recent elections in Palestine. The PLC elections provided PASSIA, as an organization in Palestine and particularly in Jerusalem, with a valuable insight into elections in a society that has never before had political elections. The case of the Palestinian elections, which CPRS's Dr. Khalil Shiqaqi presented, was of great interest to the participants - especially the Lebanese - as the elections were held under such difficult conditions.

The parliamentary elections in Lebanon in 1992 were the first in 20 years, yet the results were unsatisfactory. There were problems and disputes over the basic laws pertaining to the elections as well as many other problems: confusion and complaints about districting; the fact that the elections took place at the time of a Syrian army redeployment; low voter turnout (15-16%); and the government's failure to publish the election results.

The LCPS has organized a project to publish a book on the 1992 elections. The center has also organized a team to discuss election laws for 1996, which met and came up with draft position papers and engaged in discussions about alternative election laws. With the National Democratic Institute supplying information support, 40 Lebanese personalities formed the Lebanese Society for Democratic Elections, to which 300 people applied to become members. The Lebanese Minister of the Interior responded by declaring this society outlawed. When the society issued a statement attacking the election laws, the state postponed the elections to take the opposition off-guard and to prepare its campaign against them.

The 1996 laws are very similar to those of 1992 and prejudice the success of party lists. In other words, in the largest districts (the North, the South, and Beirut) the results are known before the elections even take place. There is a great deal of popular opposition, especially among Christians, to the law. Thus, although there does exist the impulse for democratic elections in the country, the government and the power of fair democratic laws are weak and the election results will probably be "cooked."

One key example of this phenomenon is that the Ministry of the Interior supervises the elections, yet the Minister of the Interior is a candidate. There is a strong possibility that he will use his employees and the military to influence the results of the elections. There are various other obstacles standing in the way of free, fair elections, such as extensive Syrian influence in finalizing the party lists. Currently all candidates for the elections are going to Damascus to have their candidacies approved. Meanwhile, the written media deals with the elections only as an advertiser and not as a watchdog or a source of criticism, analysis or commentary. There is no law about audiovisual media coverage of the campaign, so reporters have so far simply been prevented from holding interviews or programs about the elections. Finally, there are no laws about fundraising and campaign financing, which opens further avenues for problems.

1996 will be the first time since 1963 that voters participate in municipal elections. The LCPS is preparing a study on the future of municipal elections in Lebanon.

A general discussion followed in which the Jordanian case, in which there were no private observation groups, was compared to Lebanon.

Day 2:
The second day of the conference included a detailed discussion of past experiences and ways to improve the coordination/cooperation between the eight centers of the Arab Mashriq participating in this seminar. The main topics discussed were as follows:

Day 3:
The participants discussed and agreed upon future meetings and projects.