Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, January/February 1999, pages 52, 95

Special Report

New Lebanese President Lahoud Announces New, Trimmed-Down Cabinet and Wide-Ranging Reforms

By Carole Dagher

Lebanon's former army commander, Gen. Emile Lahoud, was sworn in Nov. 24 as the country's new president, replacing Elias Hrawi. It was the first time in more than 25 years that such a transfer of power had taken place in a peaceful environment.

General Lahoud is the 11th president to be elected in Lebanon since the country's 1943 independence from France, but only the 10th actually to assume power. Bashir Gemayel was assassinated in 1982 after his election but before taking the oath of office.

Lahoud, who arrived at parliament in a white Cadillac without any escort of armed guards, but amidst tight security measures around the parliament building in the heart of the old city center, received a standing ovation from the members of parliament upon his arrival.

He took the oath of office from Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri before his family, members of parliament, Syrian House speaker Abdel Kader Kaddora, diplomats, local dignitaries and parliamentarians of Lebanese descent from Cyprus, Chile, Brazil and Canada, along with U.S. Congressmen Nick Rahall and Ray LaHood, a distant cousin of the president.

The former army commander was unanimously elected by parliament on Oct.15. Describing that as unprecedented in the history of Lebanon, Berri also praised Lahoud for rebuilding the Lebanese army after the civil war and for his support of Lebanese resistance against Israeli occupation.

Noting that parliament has been working in compliance with the constitution and will continue to do so, Berri said it will also do its best to achieve political and administrative reform, highlight the transparency of the state, and insist that lawbreakers be exposed. Declaring that he did not have a magic wand to change everything at once, Lahoud promised governmental reform.

It is the right of the people, he said, to know how their country's funds are spent. The Lebanese are looking for a state from which they secure services with taxes and not with bribes, for a solution to the social crisis, and for supervision of reconstruction project tenders. Lahoud added that the young want to see more interest in educational, social, health and environmental issues.

In his speech to deputies, Lahoud praised the role of Syria and singled out Israel as "the enemy" of Lebanon. "Lebanon and Syria can only be strong together," the president said.

He promised that Lebanon will not sign a separate peace treaty with Israel without Syria. Lebanon, Lahoud said, has a supreme national interest in pursuing peace talks simultaneously with Syria for an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the Golan Heights.

Lahoud pledges Lebanon will not sign a peace treaty with Israel without Syria.

Lahoud criticized some politicians for exploiting ties with Syria for individual interests and not for the benefit of the nation. He also thanked the people of southern Lebanon for standing up to Israeli occupation of Lebanese territory in the south. Lahoud said his main goal was a "clean judiciary and an administration subject to strict supervision free of political and confessional" interference. No one is allowed to be above the law, including himself, Lahoud declared.

A day earlier, on the occasion of Independence Day, General Lahoud had addressed soldiers for the last time as army commander and reaffirmed that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) would not interfere in politics and that politics should be kept distant from the army. He added that the armed forces will remain committed to the orders and instructions of the political authorities as constitutionally represented by the Council of Ministers. The army's primary mission, General Lahoud stressed, remains the resistance to Israel's occupation of Lebanese territories.

General Lahoud is credited with reuniting the army after it was splintered along sectarian lines during the 15 years of war which ended in 1990. All army brigades and units were merged in a way which promoted a united national spirit, eliminating political, confessional and regional affiliations inside the armed forces. That was accompanied by an institutional reform process, with competence becoming the determining factor in deciding assignments, appointments and promotions. Lebanon's 65,000-strong army is now a symbol of independence, unity and successful institutional reform.

U.S. Congressional Delegation Attends Ceremony

At Lahoud's swearing in, U.S. Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV), who is of Lebanese origin, voiced confidence in Lebanon's future. U.S. Congressman Ray LaHood (R-IL) predicted that his cousin, General Lahoud, "will be one of the greatest presidents in the history of Lebanon," adding that the U.S. administration highly respects the army commander's unification and restructuring of the Lebanese armed forces.

The president-elect has maintained good ties with the U.S., Rahall said, adding that he expects relations between Beirut and Washington to further strengthen during Lahoud's presidential term. Congressman LaHood, who has visited Lebanon three times in the past three years, said he was impressed by the almost unbelievable progress in the country.

LaHood said two or three things made that possible. First, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's visit was a very strong indication that the U.S. is interested in Lebanon and in strengthening bilateral ties. Second, Pope John Paul's visit showed that Lebanon is an important part of the world. Third, U.S. Secretary of Commerce William Daley's visit to Beirut indicated the importance of economic and trade ties between the U.S. and Lebanon.

The congressmen also visited Beirut's International Airport to underline their support for resumption of direct flights between Lebanon and the United States. A few days later, U.S. Secretary of State Donna Shalala, who also is of Lebanese descent, arrived in Beirut, where she relayed President Clinton's strong support for President Lahoud. She also reaffirmed that the south Lebanon conflict should be resolved within the framework of Mideast peace.

Hariri Leaves Office

The significance of Lahoud's election as a harbinger of change was confirmed by the unexpected withdrawal by incumbent Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri of his candidacy for prime minister in the new government. He allegedly did that on the grounds that some deputies decided to defer their choice of premier to the president, a move Hariri said was unconstitutional, since the majority of MPs had chosen him as the next premier.

Hariri's relations with General Lahoud as commander-in-chief of the army had involved some strains in the past, and many analysts had foreseen inevitable clashes between the two strong leaders under a Lebanese tradition which allots the presidency to a Maronite Christian, the prime ministry to a Sunni Muslim, and all other positions by religious sect. Lahoud represents the re-emergence of Christian Maronite leadership, after eight years of weakened Maronite representation and a strong Sunni Muslim power under Hariri.

No sooner had Hariri announced his withdrawal than a highly-respected veteran politician, Selim Hoss, was appointed prime minister by President Lahoud, after 95 out of 128 MPs named him as the country's premier. Hoss, who headed the government during the darkest days of the civil war that ended in 1990, outlined his mandate's priorities: reducing the budget deficit (currently at 40 percent), implementing administrative reforms, liberating the south from Israeli occupation and repatriating war-displaced populations to the home towns and villages from which they were driven during the civil war. Projects initiated by the former government will continue, Hoss stressed, but there will be a policy of "belt-tightening" in next year's budget.

The mood of change that swept the country with Lahoud's election was reflected in the formation of the new government. The cabinet was selected and announced in less than one week. More significantly, it was downsized from 30 to 16 ministers, of whom 11 were first-time appointees.

What characterizes the new government is that half of it comprises technocrats, well-known to the public for their competence and integrity, and that no new political parties are represented in the cabinet.

Further, as soon as the cabinet was formed, news media discussion began concerning scrutinizing public agencies in charge of the reconstruction projects, reviewing records of the main ministries, and of fighting corruption and illegal transactions. Hopefully a new era of restoring the rule of law and the accountability system has just begun.