Lebanese still deadlocked as vote looms
By ZEINA KARAM, Associated Press Writer
Thu Nov 22, 5:26 PM ET
BEIRUT, Lebanon - A Christian opposition leader made a last-minute proposal Thursday seeking to resolve Lebanon's impasse over the presidency and avert a dangerous power vacuum, but the pro-Western parliament majority rejected the idea.
Foreign envoys trying to mediate a solution were pessimistic about breakthrough before a parliamentary vote Friday to choose a successor to President Emile Lahoud, a leader in the country's pro-Syria factions.
Lahoud's term expires Saturday and failure to elect a new president on time could lead to two rival governments, much like during the last two years of Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war.
Three previous attempts have failed amid a power struggle between the U.S.-backed government of Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and the opposition led by Hezbollah, an ally of Syria and Iran.
Saniora's camp wants an anti-Syria figure to replace Lahoud, a staunch ally of Damascus, which controlled Lebanon for 29 years until it was forced to withdraw troops in 2005 under pressure from the international community and mass street protests in Beirut.
Michel Aoun, a Christian allied with the Shiite militants of Hezbollah, proposed a compromise that included naming a neutral candidate to serve a shortened presidential term — two years instead of six. The president would step down after parliamentary elections in 2009.
He also proposed that a neutral candidate be named to replace Saniora as prime minister and that a new unity Cabinet be appointed with 45 percent of its seats held by the Hezbollah-led opposition.
Aoun, who has a strong support base among Christians and Shiites, offered to withdraw his own presidential candidacy as part of the deal.
Accepting Aoun as president would be hard for the anti-Syria camp led by parliament majority leader Saad Hariri. Although he was long an opponent of Syria, Aoun has sided with Hezbollah throughout Lebanon's political crisis in the past year.
Leaders of the parliamentary majority met late Thursday and quickly rejected Aoun's proposal, saying it was against the constitution. They also warned Lahoud against making any unconstitutional moves before leaving office at midnight Friday.
The French and Italian foreign ministers said a breakthrough seemed unlikely.
"A miracle is still possible tomorrow but I think the issue is complicated," said French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who came to Lebanon on Monday trying to work out a deal.
Spain's foreign minister was also trying to mediate. France, Italy and Spain are the top contributors to the 13,600-strong U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon, which borders Israel.
Pessimism settled over the country as it marked 64 years of independence from France on Thursday. "The last day before zero-hour: A miracle or power vacuum," read the headline of Lebanon's leading newspaper, An-Nahar.
Hezbollah and its allies have impeded previously scheduled presidential votes by staying away from parliament, preventing a quorum.
But the anti-Syria majority was threatening to elect a president by simple majority if no quorum was reached Friday, a move that would likely create turmoil and increase the risk of street violence.
In the absence of a president, the government would take executive power. But Lahoud vowed not to hand his authority over to Saniora's administration, considering it unconstitutional after all five ministers of the Shiite Muslim community quit a year ago.
Possible scenarios included Lahoud transferring presidential powers to the military chiefs, creating a rival government to take over the powers or even declaring a state of emergency — deepening the struggle with Saniora.
Source: AP