In Harissa, Independent Christians Agree to Draft 'Plan for the Future'
A group of independent Christian figures on Sunday held a meeting at the Basilica of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa to “discuss the national and political affairs and the outcome of the alignments and conflicts in Lebanon, inside and outside state institutes, and in the Arab world,” state-run National News Agency reported.
The conferees also discussed “the situations the Christians are going through, especially in the hotspots, and the repercussions of the sudden changes on their freedoms and existence.”
The meeting with attended by head of the basilica, Father Khalil Alwan, ex-ministers Elias Saba, Joseph al-Hashem, Suleiman Trabulsi, Karim Pakradouni, Naji al-Bustani, George Qurum, Yacoub Sarraf, Elias Hanna, Jack Jokadrian, ex-MPs Elie al-Ferzli, Jebran Touq, Elias Skaff, Fares Boueiz, Marwan Abu Fadel, George Najem, Pierre Daccash, Abdullah Farhat, Salim Habib, ex-Phalange Party chief Munir al-Hajj, lawyer Rashad Salameh, ambassador Fouad al-Turk, Shadi Masaad, Charles Ghostine, Fouad Abu Nader, Joe Edde, economist Joseph Yachoui, retired Brig. Gen. Michel Karam and Claude Boueiz Kanaan.
“Given what Lebanon is going through and the dangerous developments in the region, and the concerns they raise, as (recently) expressed by (Maronite) Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi, especially over the fate of the Christians, we believe, as independents, that we have to shoulder the responsibility of drafting an unchained national plan for the future,” the conferees said in a statement issued after the talks.
The plan in question would “tackle the main central issues away from the mentality of alignments, for the sake of a pluralistic civil state and the drafting of a new social contract,” they said.
The Christian figures added that they will hold another meeting on January 20 to discuss a paper that is currently being drafted by a specialized committee.
Source: Naharnet
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