“It
is our right and our duty to adhere to independence and seek to fortify it, and
political exploitation of crises will only result in more tension and
fragmentation”.
President
Aoun: “The constitution has found a way out of the crisis of stopping the government
through the principle of separation of powers, and this situation should not
continue”.
President
Aoun: “We are keen on the best relations with Arab countries, especially the
Gulf countries. I continue to seek to resolve the emerging crisis, and I hope
that this will be soon”.
President
Aoun: “Accusations would not have taken place if the judiciary had not failed,
even if the hand was lifted from it and its independence was strengthened, and
it can still initiate”.
President
Aoun: “Make the ballot box your weapon against corruption and the corrupt, and
let your faith in your country be bigger than any doubt, and I seek to
alleviate your suffering”.
President
Aoun: “Our choice is indirect negotiations to demarcate our southern maritime
borders, and there are positive signs that are beginning to appear to reach an
agreement that guarantees Lebanon’s interest and sovereignty”.
President
Aoun to the Lebanese Army: “Preserving security and stability is your role, and
I have faith that you were and will always remain the safety valve and the
trust of your citizens”.
President of
the Republic, General Michel Aoun, stressed that “Lebanon and the Lebanese paid
dearly to transform independence from a memory to a holiday, and it is our
right, rather it is our duty to all adhere to it, and we seek to fortify it”.
The President stressed that the political exploitation of crises will only
result in more tension and fragmentation.
Regarding the
government’s suspension crisis, in which “The judiciary mixed with security and
politics”, President Aoun considered that the way out is not insurmountable,
and “The constitution created it for us, specifically in paragraph (E) of its
introduction, which states that the Lebanese system is based on the principle
of separation of powers”.
Then the
President asked “Do we all abide by the ceiling of the constitution and leave
what belongs to Caesar to Caesar and what belongs to God, so that the
government can return to exercising its duties in these stressful
circumstances?”.
As for the
emerging crisis with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a number of Gulf states,
President Aoun reiterated Lebanon’s keenness to establish the best relations
with Arab countries, especially the Gulf states, stressing that he will
continue to strive to resolve the recent crisis, and hopefully that will be
soon.
President
Aoun’s words came during a speech he addressed to the Lebanese on the eve of
the 78th Independence Day, which was broadcast by the media this
evening.
In his speech,
the President considered that the accusation fray the country is witnessing
would not have taken place “If our judiciary had not failed and fulfilled its
duties, and if the hand of politicians and non-politicians was lifted from the
judiciary”.
In this
context, President Aoun stressed that “The judiciary can still take the
initiative, if it is able to distance itself from all interference, and abide
by the legal texts”.
The President
then called on the Lebanese to have faith in their country greater than any
skepticism and to make the ballot box their weapon against corruption and the
corrupt.
“It is your
chance and the real opportunity of the nation. The corruption rooted in all the
joints of the state seeks its owners in solidarity to strike any rescue
attempt. What happened and is happening in the forensic audit in Central Bank
accounts is a clear example to that” President Aoun added.
“I live with
you the extent of your suffering and I strive to alleviate it. I call on the
Lebanese not to let despair creep into their hearts and to restore their
confidence in their state and its institutions” the President said, warning
against extremism and rejection of the other, and from the hate speech that is
raging with the approaching election seasons, and from promotions that some
media undertake to sow discord and strike trust between each other.
President Aoun
addressed Army soldiers to affirm his belief that they were and will always
remain a safety valve and a place of trust for their citizens.
Moreover,
President Aoun indicated that “Our choice was, and still is indirect
negotiation to demarcate our southern maritime borders. Positive signs began to
appear to reach an agreement that guarantees Lebanon’s interest and sovereignty
over its waters and natural resources, and leads to the resumption of the
process of oil and gas exploration”.
President
Speech:
Address to the nation by His Excellency President Michel Aoun
on the eve of Lebanon’s 78th Independence Day
21/11/2021
“My fellow
Lebanese ladies and gentlemen,
Here comes Lebanon’s seventy-eighth Independence Day, and the nation is
still drowning in a sea of successive crises that prevent us from celebrating joyfully,
but do not keep us from living its meanings.
Lebanon and the Lebanese have
paid a heavy price to turn Independence from a mere commemoration to a festive
occasion, and it is the right - rather the duty - of all of us to hold on to it
and seek to fortify it.
For the State, Independence means free decision and the protection of
the nation’s interest while preserving the best relations with all States.
As for the citizens, independence means empowered and trustworthy State
institutions that protect them and ensure their rights while they ensure in
turn their obligations towards these institutions.
This independence needs a daily strife to preserve it and recover what
we have lost, to make a clean break with an exhausting reality against which
our nation and our people are struggling. It also requires an honest
cooperation between all components of the nation, groups and individuals alike.
As for the political exploitation of crises, it will only generate further
deterioration and fragmentation.
My fellow Lebanese,
Forty percent of this presidential term passed without a government, because
the formation processes were stalled by artificial obstacles and clashes, which
delayed treatments and exacerbated crises.
After a strenuous gestation, and under pressing circumstances, the
“Together for the Rescue” government saw the light, with tremendous and thorny
challenges ahead: an unprecedented financial and monetary crisis, a stifling livelihood
and sanitary crisis, an economic atrophy and an increase in unemployment,
migration and poverty rates. The cabinet has committed to a realistic program
that puts Lebanon on the path out of the tunnel, and as soon as it started to
grope its way, it stopped due to a new crisis in which the judiciary, security
and politics got mixed up.
The exit from the present crisis is not impossible, it was provided to
us by the Constitution, specifically paragraph “e” of its preamble, which
stipulates that the Lebanese system is based on the “separation of powers”
principle. Shall we all abide by the ceiling of the Constitution and "render
unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's", in order for
the Government to resume its duties under these pressing circumstances? Or
shall we allow the noose to be further tightened around our parents and
children, threatening their livelihood or security? Are we really aware of the
extent of harm caused to our society by the paralysis of the government?
The current situation must not go on.
Another crisis has emerged with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a number
of Gulf States, troubling the relations between them and Lebanon, and leading
to negative repercussions at many levels, including the governmental reality.
Here, I wish to reiterate Lebanon’s keenness on establishing the best relations
with the brotherly Arab States, in particular the Gulf countries, based on the
need to draw a line between the positions of the Lebanese State and the
possible statements of some individuals and groups, especially that the
democratic regime in Lebanon guarantees freedom of opinion and speech. I am pursuing
my endeavors to solve this emerging crisis, and I do hope a solution is reached
soon.
My fellow citizens,
You want accountability. You want to see those who wreaked havoc in the
country and those who embezzled or squandered your funds pay for their abuses,
and you always ask the obvious question: “why has no one been put behind bars
yet?”
No one has been put behind bars yet because accountability belongs to
the Judiciary, and everything else is mere media accusations that may be right
or wrong, and no one can be incarcerated without a judge’s sentence.
I therefore address you, Judges of Lebanon,
Accusations are numerous and so are the accused. Everyone has made
themselves judges, prosecutors and attorneys; everyone accuses and everyone is
accused. This mess of accusations which threatens now, in some of its instances,
stability and even civil peace, would not have happened if our Judiciary had
not failed to do its job, if it had been kept off limits for politicians and
non-politicians, and if its independence had been consolidated by a law that
has not yet seen the light.
Today, the Judiciary can still take the lead, if it manages to
dissociate itself from interference and abide by legal provisions that govern
the work and independence of the judicial branch and correct any infringements
that may obstruct its performance.
Let everyone keep in mind, politicians, spiritual leaders and judges
alike, that if the Judiciary is fine, the nation is fine.
My fellow Lebanese,
My message to you today is: soon, you shall have the opportunity to
change. Turn the ballot box into a weapon against corruption, the corrupt and
those who were brought up in their school. It has been proven, throughout the
past thirty years, that they are deeply rooted and shielded with all sorts of redlines.
This is your chance and the nation’s real chance. Do not allow them to
return with new masks and imported clothes, supported by political finance that
will bring you no good or favor, but will rather sabotage the election’s
credibility and try to control key positions by filling them with people who are
pliant to foreign will.
Corruption is entrenched indeed in all junctions of the State; and its
lords seek, jointly and severally, to undermine any rescue attempt. What has
happened and is still happening with the forensic audit in the accounts of the
Central bank bears testimony to that. Indeed, this self-evident procedure which
marks the beginning of any reform process in the various State agencies and
which aims at unveiling the reasons behind the collapse and defining
responsibilities to pave the way for accountability and recovery of rights, has
been subject to all sorts of obstacles, way before it had been adopted at the
Council of Ministers and till the moment; and we were untying the knots
consecutively, one after another…
I call on you to watch vigilantly and spot the blockers once masks have
fallen off: it is the same corrupt establishment, and you will soon have an
opportunity to deter it. Don’t waste this opportunity!
My fellow Lebanese,
Internal concerns, no matter how numerous, cannot make us forget about the
real confrontation to defend our sovereignty, liberate our remaining occupied territories,
and protect our rights in our waters. Our first choice has been and still is to
engage in indirect negotiations for the demarcation of our Southern maritime
borders, knowing that positive signals have begun to emerge to reach an
agreement that guarantees Lebanon’s interest and sovereignty over its waters
and natural resources, thus leading to the resumption of the oil and gas
exploration operation.
My fellow soldiers,
You come from this people and I am one of you. I know well the situation
of the institution and the repercussions of the economic and livelihood crisis
on it, but I am confident that no matter how tough the crisis gets, it cannot nail
your upbringing and your doctrine, and you shall keep shouldering the
responsibility vested in you no matter how heavy it may be.
Your role today and every day is to preserve security and stability, and
I have faith that you have been and shall always remain the security valve and
the object of confidence of your fellow citizens.
My fellow Lebanese,
Do not let despair sneak into your hearts. I share the scale of your
suffering and I am sparing no effort to mitigate it. I am convinced that the
beginning of the solution of today’s crisis lies in the cooperation with
international institutions, and its preparation has started indeed. As the
input of these institutions is organized, the practical phase begins, marking
the actual beginning of the way out of the crisis.
Restore your confidence in your State and its institutions, because
there is no alternative for them, and those who bet on their fall and rejoice
about it are slaughtering the nation and its people.
Beware of extremism and the rejection of the other.
Beware of the rhetoric of hatred which becomes inflammatory with the
approach of electoral seasons.
Beware of the propaganda conducted by some media to sow division and
undermine mutual trust between you.
Remember that you are the children of one nation, and that after the
closure of ballot boxes you will go back to living together.
You must remain as one united coherent entity to work for the rescue of
Lebanon.
My fellow Lebanese,
On the eve of Independence Day, and in my last address to you on this
occasion, may your faith in your country be greater than any skepticism,
because this country has faced throughout its history many events and calamities,
but it got out of them sound; and it must embrace, once more, the path of
recovery no matter how tough hardships can get.
Long live Lebanon!”.