Let's see who did not vote for the bill condemning the Syrian arrest warrants towards Lebanese parliamentarians... because in Lebanon we have the right to freedom of speech and Lebanese parliamentarians have immunity against prosecution during their term serving in the Parliament.
Hmmm...we see MP Raad and MP Fadlallah of Hizbullah of course not raising their hands. Who else? Does it look like MP Hashem and MP Nabil Nicolas from Aoun's bloc have their hands down on this vote?
This is what I call transparency, a la Lebanon. Here in the U.S., you can easily track the "nays" and "yays" of members of Congress (unless they decide to run a vote without a roll call) and cross-match their promises with the way they vote on issues. In Lebanon, you need a newspaper and a magnifying glass to check how MPs voted on a certain bill.
Anyways, what strikes me the most is how Berri's bloc and Hizbullah's bloc abstained from voting on this important bill. Several questions come to mind: You are benefitting so much from your entitlement of free speech (and even freedom of deciding to launch rocket attacks), why are you indirectly denying others of this right? Would you like and accept to be summoned by the U.S. authorities to face trial in their courts for bashing them and then expect your fellow parliamentarians to turn a blind eye? How can we believe that you share with other Lebanese the importance of our country's sovereignty, when outright, and in front of the journalists' cameras, you abstain from voting for a fundamental issue that matters deeply to our sovereignty as people, and rush to appease the Syrian regime?...
Talk about double standards all the way. This is what Lebanon ails from. You see it happening everywhere, everywhere you go and turn. It's a disease!
"Nobody knows how many rebellions, besides political rebellions, ferment in the masses of life which people earth."
9 comments:
Doha,
Thanks for keeping track of the votes! Keep that magnifying glass at work.
And yes, it is very sad. And your parallel to the Americans is very true!
Kelly K
excellent post, and analytical skills, ;) Doha! unfortunately no one in Lebanon is accountable for their actions. their supporters will vote blindly regardless of their performance. can you imagine having the equivalent of CSPAN for Lebanon? There would have to be major alterations to make the general public stay interested... like music videos during intermission, and strida geagea dancing on the tabletops.
Good picture Doha!
Nothing kills germs like the sunlight. We should always expose those people to the whole country!
No one watches CSPAN in the USA either.. except me :-) But its embarassing to say it... "CSPAN? no sorry I er er meant ESPN.. Yeah that's it.."
So the FPM has an official position regarding the Syrian warrants posted on their website. They unequivocally reject them...in a manner akin to the camouflaged half hand-raise / half hand-stretch technique.
"Malla Rjail".
-FGA
Great point! Double standard, and no one speaks their mind. We have a bunch of wimps for a parliment!
The US has a lot less accountability than a functioning parliamentary system.
In the US, we have "catch and release," where Congressmen will agree to vote for a bill that is unpopular in their districts, but only if their vote is necessary for passage. Where's the accountability there?
Doha,
Although double (triple and quadruple) standards are rampant here, this photo depicts a totally different story.
The parliament had agreed to reject Syria's warrants, but the vote was on one of two versions of the statement to be announced. One proposed by Berri & Co. and another by Hmadeh & Co. The first was more diplomatic than the second. The vote that you see in the picture was for the second less diplomatic version.
Regards.
Doha,
Care to shed some light on the previous comment?
Is Bashir wrong?
Or is he right but you were unaware of that fact?
Or did you deem the issue too un-important to mention?
Thanks
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