From: e.d.wardini@easteur-orient.uio.no (Elie Dib Wardini) (Elie Dib Wardini)
Subject: Re: A secular Lebanon
Organization: UiO
Date: Sat, 26 Sep 1992 11:34:18 GMT

In article <1992Sep23.163637.26883@ee.eng.ohio-state.edu>
rached@sample.eng.ohio-state.edu (Rached Zantout) writes:
>In article <1992Sep23.140621.4109@ulrik.uio.no>,
e.d.wardini@easteur-orient.uio.no (Elie Dib Wardini) (Elie Dib Wardini) writes:
>> 
>> if some Islamic / Christian laws can not and will not be overidden (sp?) we
>> will never come to a solution.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> elie wardini
>
>IMHO, the solution can never be reached before all the different groups in
Lebanon
>learn to trust each other.

very true

>As long as some of the christians want "damant" that Muslims will not unite
with 
>any other country, and as long as they take advantage of that fear to restrict

>access to certain key positions based on religion not identity, the loyalty of
>any lebaneese will remain to his/her religion and not to lebanon.

>Now somebody may ask Muslims to proove to those afraid that they do not want
to
>dissolve lebanon. Well I don't know how we can proove that, but even if the
>present generation of Muslims does that, what guarantees that future
generations
>will not break the promise of the forefathers. For that matter what guarantees
>that christians will not in the future ask to join one country contrary to the
>wishes of the muslims.

I feel that A possible solution, I am not so sure that it is the best or only
one, is to accept the prunciple of pluralism. That this principle be stipulated
in the constitution, and guarding against its being changed by lesss than an
overwhelming 80-90% of the population. THis will guard, hopefully against ANY
group in society (not neessarily divided along religious lines, note Wassim's
post) from imposing important issues on all Lebanese.

Thus if we together this contitutional reform, either add a system of
referendums (a la Swizerland) or a Congress whose job is to make sure that all
laws that are passed by parliament or Government are contitutional. THis will
also mean, that no Christain president willnot be able to impose his views and
treaties on the Lebanese, nor an Atheistic president will forbid freedom of
religion!

>In any system there will be fears from one group overstepping the rights of
>another. Those fears should be alleviated, yet the solution should not
overstep
>the rights of other groups.
>
>IMHO, Elie, the old system did a great injustice to Mulsims like me (to
>non-Maronites for that matter) in order to assure the maronites that Lebanon
will
>stay as they want.
>We either accept democracy and let the will of the majority rule lebanon, or
we
>go back to a variation on the old system and sit on a time bomb that will be
>ready to explode when my son's son is 5 years old.

Yes, you are right Rached. The former system we had in Lebanon was not
completely just (even if it was open for all to take part at different jobs,
where in a sence everyone had a veto right. We need not entre this discussion
now). The point being that we will need something better to replace it.

And as I said before, majority rule in some cases is not equivalet to
democracy. I believe this to be the case in Lebanon.

We should find a system that is flexible enough to accomodate future changes,
yet that can give Lebanese today a security that they will let go of age old,
and outdated, and mistaken guarantees.

We should try to define what we mean by democracy and pluralism. I belive that
we will be able to come to a solution.

>
>rached
>

elie wardini
Newsgroups: soc.culture.lebanon