Hussein Dakroub| The Daily Star BEIRUT: Leaders’ talks on the sidelines of an iftar to be hosted by President Michel Aoun at Baabda Palace Thursday could lead to a breakthrough in the monthslong stalemate over a new electoral law, political sources said Wednesday.
In the meantime, Prime Minister Saad Hariri joined Aoun in voicing optimism that an agreement on a new vote law would be reached before Parliament’s term expires on June 20, thus averting a vacuum in the legislature and clearing the way for parliamentary elections later this year, the first since 2009.
“Very important contacts involving all the main parties are being held with the aim of ironing out remaining differences over a proportional vote law proposal,” a senior source close to Hezbollah told The Daily Star.
“There will be a serious attempt at the Baabda iftar to come out with an understanding on a new electoral law,” the source said. He was referring to a closed meeting to be held on the sidelines of the iftar between Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri and Hariri to discuss the outcome of the rival parties’ talks on Lebanese Forces’ deputy chief MP George Adwan’s recent proposal that calls for the adoption of a proportional voting system dividing Lebanon into 15 districts.
The source added that if an agreement was reached by the three leaders on a new vote system, “this would lead automatically to a decree [signed by Aoun] opening an extraordinary session of Parliament.”
The source denied reports that Hezbollah was mediating in a constitutional row between Aoun and Berri over whether the speaker has the right to call for a Parliament session beyond the end of the legislative period in the absence of an extraordinary parliamentary session.
“There is no need for a Hezbollah mediation between Aoun and Berri because the two leaders are talking to each other,” the source said.
A ministerial source said he expected the closed talks to smooth the way for a deal on a new electoral law. The source said he expected a meeting to be held between Aoun and MP Walid Jumblatt.
Aoun will host an all-embracing iftar at Baabda Palace at sunset Thursday on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan, a statement issued by the president’s media office said. It added that the country’s top leaders as well as ministers and lawmakers, former presidents, prime ministers and Parliament speakers, the religious heads of Christian and Muslim sects, chiefs of military and security apparatuses and senior officials have been invited.
At the end of the iftar, Aoun will deliver a speech dealing with the internal situation and regional and international developments during which he will outline Lebanon’s position on them, the statement said.
A source at Baabda Palace said Aoun would also touch in his speech on the ongoing efforts to forge a new electoral law to replace the disputed 1960 winner-take-all formula used in the last parliamentary elections in 2009.
Asked about the reasons for Aoun and Hariri’s optimism about an imminent solution to the vote law problem, the source told The Daily Star: “The optimism is felt in the seriousness of behind-the-scene contacts involving all the main political parties to break the deadlock over a new electoral law.”
Adwan struck an upbeat note on ending the standoff over the vote law soon. He spoke after a lengthy meeting held at the Foreign Ministry Wednesday night that brought him together with Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil and MPs Ibrahim Kanaan and Alain Aoun from the Free Patriotic Movement focusing on Adwan’s proportional vote proposal.
“There is indeed a positive atmosphere. Tomorrow’s iftar in Baabda will carry to all the Lebanese a positive atmosphere [concerning a new vote law],” Adwan said after the meeting. “Everyone will understand that we are heading in firm steps toward the approval of a new electoral law.”
Noting that time is tight ahead of the expiry of Parliament’s mandate on June 20, Adwan, who has been shuttling between Berri, Hariri and Bassil in an attempt to narrow differences over a new vote system, said: “I can confirm that we will reach a new electoral law.”
In a clear reference to an article in his proposal that calls for shifting three Maronite seats from districts that have a Muslim majority to districts with a Christian majority, Adwan said: “The remaining points will not pose obstacles.”
Although Berri has voiced his support for Adwan’s vote law proposal, he strongly rejected the shifting of parliamentary seats. Former Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Marada Movement leader MP Sleiman Frangieh, and Kataeb MP Nadim Gemayel also publically oppose the shifting of parliamentary seats.
Earlier in the day, Hariri expressed optimism about an imminent agreement on a new electoral law, saying efforts had been stepped up to overcome remaining difficulties.
Speaking about the electoral law during a Cabinet session he chaired at the Grand Serail, Hariri said: “We still have 19 days to agree on a new electoral law. I am optimistic about reaching a solution, and this is what we must work to achieve. We are working day and night to overcome the remaining difficulties,” according to a statement read to reporters by Culture Minister Ghattas Khoury.
Asked if there was any progress on the electoral law, Khoury, who belongs to the Future Movement, said: “We are very close to an agreement, as Prime Minister Hariri said, and we are working toward the final agreement.”
Responding to a question on whether he is optimistic about the leaders’ meeting on the sidelines of the Baabda iftar, Khoury said: “We are optimistic about the entire month of Ramadan and about the iftar.”
Hariri, according to Khoury, called on ministers to maintain government solidarity, especially the political groups represented in the Cabinet.
Without giving details, Khoury said the Cabinet discussed items on the agenda and approved most of them.
Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk said that if rivals manage to agree on the proportional vote law based on 15 constituencies, then “a three-month period will not be enough to prepare for the elections.”
For his part, Berri said he was waiting for the outcome of ongoing talks on Adwan’s proposal. “We are waiting for the results of ongoing contacts over the 15 district law. We hope to reach an agreement on the law as soon as possible,” Berri was quoted as telling MPs during his weekly meeting with lawmakers at his Ain al-Tineh residence.
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