PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN LEBANON

AZG Armenian Daily #099, 01/06/2005

Diaspora

Four Armenian Deputies from Beirut Elected to Parliament

Saad Hariri, son of the assassinated former prime minister Rafik
Hariri, won in the first independent parliamentary elections in Beirut,
Lebanon. According to the Electoral Code of 2000, the citizens of
Lebanon, representatives of all the religions, can be candidates in
the parliamentary elections. In the course of the first stage of
the elections Hakob Gasarchian (Liberal Democratic Party), Yeghia
Jerejian (Hnchakian Party), Jacques Oghasabian (non-party) and Serge
Toursargsian (Metn) were elected to the Parliament of Lebanon again.

On June 5 another hot stage of the elections is expected to take
place in the elections of the Highland Lebanon, where the Armenian
political forces belonging to various Christian and Durze political
orientation will be represented. The votes of General Michael Aun’s
supporters will be decisive here. The elections will continue in all
the regions of the country, in the North, in Beqaa and in the South,
where the pro-Syrian forces and the Shiites may win.

ARF Dashnaktsiutiun didn’t participate in the elections on May 29,
expecting that its candidate can lose to the representatives of
Saad Hariri.