Background:
Dūrī Shamʿūn, leader of the Lebanese National Liberal Party, addresses the Syrian influence on Lebanese politics, the general political situation in Lebanon with special regards to the ongoing general elections, his party’s boycott of the elections and their demands, and the current state of Lebanese parties. In the end, voices from a gathering in support of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafīq Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-Ḥarīrī can be heard.
Side A:
Dūrī Shamʿūn, leader of the Lebanese National Liberal Party, explains that 90% of the electoral lists are “precooked“ and candidates without visas from Damascus do not have any chance of succeeding. He called on the Lebanese not to vote because the electoral law is completely unrealistic and biased. The only successful candidates were either those from the government or those supported by Damascus, with the latter being used as an alibi to demonstrate a fair and free nature of the elections, Shamʿūn argues. In theory, the parliament’s mandate could have been extended by the government, but in order to get more public backing the elections have been launched (the turn-out at the 1992 elections was only 13.6%). He says the Lebanese government is a Vichy-type government, handpicked by the Syrian government, resembling the old Syrian dream of swallowing up Lebanon. It is also in the interest of the United States that Syria has free hand in Lebanon, since the two nations fought together in the Gulf War. The stance of Israel on this matter remains unclear. Lebanon is not an independent country, with a German-Austrian-like “Anschluss“ (1938) the only step missing.
Shamʿūn says he does not expect more than 5-7% Lebanese to support such a Lebanese-Syrian union. All Lebanese TV stations (especially state-run Télé Liban) are biased in favour of Syria too, as commanded from above. This bias is less marked in the newspapers. He estimates that in the current elections, turn-out is not more than 30%. Officials figures estimate 40-45% instead. In the north, his party’s calculations result in a turn-out of 29.17%. The National Liberal Party, which is boycotting the elections, was denied holding a meeting in a local cinema due to governmental pressure. Poverty spreads and the middle class shrinks, while in 1975 Lebanon had the biggest percentage of middle class worldwide (76%, United Nations). Today, 6-7% are middle class. Hence bought votes are widely spread. He calls member of parliament Najāḥ Wākīm, who is likely to win as he is supported by Syria, the on/off opposition since he changes his attitude toward the government according to other’s needs. He assumes Prime Minister Rafīq Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-Ḥarīrī is aware of it, as he is interested in having a controllable block of parliamentarians. Shamʿūn believes the Lebanese future is lousy, with the next parliament being Syrian, directed by a flew governmental blocks and weak in terms of having no stakes in any matter of national importance. The Muslims of Lebanon allegedly hate Syrians much more than the Christians do due to the larger intervention against Muslim opponents than against Christian ones. Shamʿūn adds that his brother’s head was chopped off, and there have been attempts against himself and his father. Most of his followers are Christians, but also many Muslims and Druzes are involved in his campaign. He personally comes from the Shūf area, which is half Christian and half non-Christian. The National Liberal Party asked for proper elections, an eight-person government being especially there for running elections and supervising a proper electoral law, and an electoral division according to the Qaḍāʾs instead of the Muḥāfaẓāt.
Side B:
Other demands include an electronic voting ticket, the possibility for expatriates to vote at Lebanese embassies or councils, a supervision by a foreign body, all of which were rejected. America is the world’s hegemonic power and determines Lebanese politics too. His opposition group is trying to consolidate itself as much as it can, closing the ranks and creating an opposition block with a popular base. His allies in Lebanon are the Bloc National, the group around Michel Aoun, the Kataeb Party, parts of Forces Libanaises as well as a large number of independents and the “silent majority“ already has his party a large popular basis, especially among the educated population. The loss of the Kataeb Party is due to its leadership and its inner polarisation according to Shamʿūn.
In the end of the recording, voices from an electoral gathering in favour of Prime Minister Rafīq Bahāʾ al-Dīn al-Ḥarīrī can be heard. One unnamed person gives very brief information on the gathering.
