Pro-Berri candidate nominates himself for 'District 16'

In a step reflecting a possible new escalation related to the electoral clash, Speaker Nabih Berri has decided to push Abbas Fawaz, the ex-head of the World Lebanese Cultural Union, to nominate himself for the newly-introduced and controversial 16th electoral district in the upcoming parliamentary elections, media reports said.

According to reports, the Free Patriotic Movement might also file nominations for District 16, which is dedicated to expats, and might file appeals against the electoral process should the Interior Ministry reject the nominations.

As Lebanon prepares for the May parliamentary elections, it is still not clear if and how the expatriates will participate. Interior Minister Ahmad al-Hajjar said that despite all the confusion, the elections will be held on time.

In 2018 and 2022, expats voted abroad for the 128 parliamentary seats. While the law stipulates that expats should vote for six new seats reserved for the diaspora, that provision was suspended in 2018 and 2022.

Hezbollah, the Amal Movement, and the FPM currently want the expats to vote for these 6 new seats instead of voting for all 128 MPs. Hezbollah and Amal argue that they do not enjoy the same campaigning freedom that other parties enjoy abroad.

The Lebanese Forces, the Kataeb party and the Change MPs want the law amended to allow expats to vote for all 128 MPs. Sixty-five MPs, constituting a parliamentary majority, demanded to amend the law in order to allow expats to vote for all 128 seats but Berri refused to discuss the amendment in parliament. He insisted that expat elections should be held according to the current six-seat rule.

Hajjar said that in order to elect according to six-seat rule, executive decrees are needed, with the approval of a two-thirds Cabinet majority.

These decrees have not been issued, but Hajjar says he can't stand idly by and wait for the legal texts. "There are deadlines that must be respected," he told al-Joumhouria newspaper.

Expats are supposed to vote on May 1 and May 3, but even the interior minister himself does not know if they can vote from abroad, or if they should come to Lebanon to vote -- the option that Speaker Berri is insisting on.

Hajjar said, "Give us a law or an amendment, and I am ready to implement it," but added that he cannot wait and be held accountable for obstructing the elections. "There are legal deadlines and the elections will be held on time," he vowed.

Lebanon is divided geographically into 15 electoral districts. The expats law created a new virtual district for the Lebanese diaspora, a 16th district.

Berri said Friday he is committed to holding the parliamentary elections on time. "It is not acceptable, at a start of a new era, to obstruct or delay the most important constitutional juncture," he said.