After Two Years, Lebanon Finally Has a President Again

posted on: Nov 2, 2016

BY: Nisreen Eadeh/Staff Writer

Michel Aoun, 81, was chosen president of Lebanon on Monday, ending a political stalemate that lasted more than two years. Lebanon had been without a head of state since May of 2014 when Michel Suleiman’s term ended.

Mr. Aoun, a Maronite Christian and retired military general, won the position by securing 83 votes in the 128-seat Parliament chamber. Members of the Lebanese Parliament voted 45 times on previous occasions to select a president, but each attempt failed due to Lebanon’s political system, which allows any sectarian “warlord” to veto government decisions. Hezbollah, a powerful Shia militant group backed by Iran and Syria that is listed as a terrorist organization in the United States, had been using the law to veto previous candidates for president.

Mr. Aoun is supported by Hezbollah, making this election a small win for Iran, which has been vying for regional dominance. However, it was an endorsement from Mr. Aoun’s rival, former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, which paved the way for the general’s win. Mr. Hariri is a Sunni supported by Saudi Arabia.

Under a power-sharing agreement, Lebanon’s president must be a Maronite Christian, which is the country’s largest Christian group. The prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim, while the speaker of the parliament must be a Shia Muslim. This law has come under fire during Mr. Aoun’s candidacy because it excludes a considerable number of other religious minorities, such as Melkite and Orthodox Christians. The law also keeps a Maronite Christian in the highest position, despite the religious group’s dwindling population in Lebanon.

In his endorsement statement, Mr. Hariri said supporting Michel Aoun was necessary to “protect Lebanon” and “preserve the political system, reinforce the state, relaunch the economy, and distance us from the Syrian crisis.”

Mr. Hariri has been appointed Prime Minister by the new president. Together, Aoun and Hariri hope to defend Lebanon from the Islamic State, strengthen the military, and push over 1.5 million Syrian refugees currently in the country back home.

Often referred to as “the General” by his supporters, Mr. Aoun ‘s military experience is what helped place him in the running. During Lebanon’s civil war, he served as chief of staff to the army and led one of two rival governments. He garnered much of his support because of his strong stances on independence and combatting corruption and nepotism in the government.

Millions of Lebanese expats in the diaspora have been celebrating this anointment. Many are happy to see their former homeland back on track to political stability and economic growth.