The Daily Star, Lebanon
May 28 2005

Lebanon gets ready for ‘free’ election

First ballot looks set to deliver uncontested victory to Hariri’s
lists in Beirut

By Majdoline Hatoum
Daily Star staff
Saturday, May 28, 2005

BEIRUT: Lebanon’s most eagerly awaited parliamentary election in
years kicks off in Beirut tomorrow. The polls, billed as Lebanon’s
first free elections in more than 30 years, are taking place just one
month after the withdrawal of Syrian troops who occupied the country
in 1976, shortly after the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war the
year before.

Tomorrow’s ballot, the first in a series of four rounds ending on
June 19, looks set to deliver a virtually uncontested victory for the
election list of Saad Hariri, son of slain ex-Premier Rafik Hariri,
whose assassination last February was the catalyst for uniting
Lebanon’s disparate political opposition and forcing an end to
Syria’s presence in the country.

Hariri, who took over his father’s political mantle following his
assassination, has found himself assured of victory in the Beirut
district because most of his political rivals decided not to contest
the 19 seats available in the area.

Hariri has aligned with maverick opposition figure, Druze leader
Walid Jumblatt, along with other opposition groups, including the
Christian Qornet Shehwan and the right wing Christian Lebanese
Forces.

Despite being assured of victory in Beirut, Hariri urged his
supporters to go out and vote. He said: “Don’t feel comfortable about
expectations. Out of loyalty to Rafik Hariri I urge everyone to go
out and vote.”

But while the fate of Beirut’s parliamentary seats looks sealed, a
fierce electoral battle in Mount Lebanon, which goes to the polls on
June 12, is on the cards.

Opposition Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun, who returned
to Lebanon from a 15 year Syrian imposed exile earlier this month is
running independently of the rest of Lebanon’s opposition parties.

But despite his strong antipathy toward Syria, Aoun has allied
himself with pro-Syrian Druze politician Talal Arslan, an arch rival
of Jumblatt.

Jumblatt launched a scarcely veiled attack on Aoun yesterday accusing
him of weakening the opposition by his actions.

He said: “I wish the opposition didn’t have to fight side-battles,
but some factions did not want it to stay united and wanted to take
over everything.”

Aoun, who is expected to formally announce his electoral lists today,
said after meeting with Arslan that they “agreed on a political
agenda, not just for the elections, but for the period after
elections as well.”

Aoun failed to reach an electoral alliance with the rest of the
opposition largely because he and Jumblatt were unable to reach
agreement on seat allocation in Mount Lebanon

Aoun’s alliance with Arslan will give him crucial votes from the
Druze community in Aley, Arslan’s stronghold, enabling him to pose a
threat to Jumblatt.

In another surprise, Aoun is also expected to form an alliance with
another staunch pro-Syrian, Deputy Speaker Michel Murr, who yesterday
announced his list for the Metn area in Mount Lebanon.

Commenting on a deal with Aoun, Murr said: “Agreement between us on
certain issues is there. We still have to decide on an alliance, and
that will

happen after Aoun formally announces his lists.”

Aoun had announced during a television interview late Thursday night
he will leave two empty seats in the Metn area, which are expected to
have been left in order to allow an alliance between the FPM and
Murr, who draws wide support from the large Armenian community in
Metn.

Aoun also announced that he will head a list of freshman politicians
in the Kesrouan-Jbeil district in Mount Lebanon, challenging the
opposition Qornet Shehwan Gathering list.

During the interview, Aoun denied reports of a coalition with the
Syrian Social Nationalist Party, whose leader Gebran Araiji met with
Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus on Thursday.