LF
Letter to Congress: Ill-Founded at Best
Once again, the President
of the Lebanese Republic General Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Saad Hariri came
through for Lebanon and formed the new government after months of democratic
talks and peaceful negotiations. Once again, they overcame intricate obstacles
and major drawbacks to ensure that Lebanon is well represented by a government that
would lead the country toward its long awaited reform and desired peace. All
this did not happen without scrutiny and criticism; yet, the strong tenure
never wavered and kept assiduously working toward achieving its goals. We
celebrate today the formation of the new government and look forward to a new
era of stability, prosperity, and peace.
Disconcerting though is
the fact that the Lebanese Forces still seek to hinder the efforts of the
President and look to create the appearance of failure and unsubstantiated
impending turmoil caused by the composition of the new government. In
their recent letter to U.S. Congress, the Lebanese Forces attempt to incite
doubt in the roles of the Lebanese Armed Forces, UNIFIL, the President, and the
Foreign Affairs and Defense Ministers. All this in the hopes to acquire the
support and approval of the Government of the United States to gain a
longed-for popularity in the Christian communities of Lebanon; an aspiration
that never materialized but kept slipping away with the increased popularity
and success of President Aoun’s Strong Bloc. It is apparent that the Lebanese
Forces are not willing to recognize that they only represent a (very) small
minority of Christians in Lebanon.
What the Lebanese Forces
chose not to highlight in their letter are the consistent and diligent
efforts of President Aoun and Minister of Foreign Affairs Gebran Bassil to
obtain the support and instrumental aid of the U.S. Government and how in the
process, they solidified the bilateral relations between Lebanon and the United
States. What the Lebanese Forces failed to mention is the unquestionable
alliance between Lebanon and the U.S., made possible by the laudable efforts of
President Aoun and the distinguished contributory accomplishments of Minister
Bassil. What the Lebanese Forces “forgot” to acknowledge is the remarkable work
of the Ambassador of Lebanon to the United States H.E. Gabriel Issa who has
been unswervingly building and strengthening relations with U.S. Senators,
Congressmen, and other high-ranking officials from all states by opening direct
lines of conversations, inviting them to dinners at the embassy in Washington,
and sharing with them crucial information about the Lebanese army, UNIFIL, the safe
and dignified return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, the security of
Lebanon’s borders and most significantly, the momentous impact of U.S. aid on
Lebanon. All these efforts went unnoticed in the Lebanese Forces’ statement, in
an attempt to undermine their magnitude and vilify their positive impact on the
Lebanese-U.S. relations. Fortunately, the truth always prevails. The truth is
the Lebanese President and his Strong Bloc have been faithfully and tenaciously
working toward gaining U.S. support for the Lebanese army, strengthening the
role of UNIFIL, alleviating the effect of U.S. sanctions on Lebanese banks,
advocating for the safe return of Syrian refugees to Syria, safeguarding
Lebanon’s sovereignty, and increasing the interfaith dialogue among all sects
to unite the Lebanese and infuse them with the sense of solidarity and
tolerance.
Therefore, the distrust
in the Lebanese government that the Lebanese Forces are trying to implant is ill-founded
at best. Their letter to Congress does not relay the real image of Lebanon’s
successful and noble journey toward preserving its independence and
strengthening its economy. It is yet another desperate attempt to impinge on
the honorable and successful achievements of our strong president. In its
accusatory and defeated tone, it is nothing but a failed tactic to taint our
democracy; Its purpose being to convey a wrong sense of fragmentation and a false
image of a national conflict.
We know that under the
tenure of President Aoun, his “son-in-law”, and Prime Minister Hariri, Lebanon
is and will always be strong and united. We feel confident that better days are
coming. As Lebanese-Americans, we are standing for our government, we are
standing for our Lebanon, we are standing for our president. We are supporting
his efforts and tenure for a better, stronger, and more united Lebanon.