Lebanon’s present nationality law allows men to pass on their nationality to non-Lebanese wives and children one year after their marriage is registered, but prohibits Lebanese women married to non-Lebanese from doing the same.

Those who oppose granting women nationality rights often argue that the law is aimed at resettling Palestinian refugees and that the naturalization of thousands of Palestinian men and children would tip Lebanon’s delicate sectarian balance in favor of Sunni Muslims, the religion of the majority of the country’s 400,000 Palestinian refugees. [Original Article from the Daily Star]

A study conducted by the National Committee for the Follow up on Women’s Issues (CFUWI) showed that only 2% of Lebanese women are married to Palestinians, and that there is no real threat of naturalizing a large number of Palestinians by changing the law.

However, i beg to differ as no credible statistics are available about the number of Palestinians in Lebanon to begin with, not to mention the Lebanese who live in isolated and far away villages and that do not register their weddings.

Changing the law nowadays is unhealthy unless Palestinians are excluded from it, but i can already see people inventing ways around the law considering how corrupt this country is.

Therefore, even though i am 100% with giving this right to Lebanese women, but i think this is a bad timing to do it and it is the wrong start. This is like asking to remove political sectarianism without decentralizing the country and secularising the people. You can’t start a building with a window. You need strong bases to begin with.

Now that this topic is arising once again prior to the municipal elections, i find myself obliged to point out the dangers of lowering the voting age to 18 in Lebanon.

I posted about this topic almost a year ago and it still stands.

I find absolutely no advantages to such a measure except for our rotten class of politicians who now have easier targets to control and brainwash. Our youth in its large majority lacks political awareness and knowledge, not to mention historical information, and this is manifested in the universities and the incidents that occur there as well as on online forums and blogs where you find 16 and 17 year old supporters fighting blindly and stupidly.

Based on that, any rational and conscious government should promote awareness among the youth and enlighten them on the past and guide them towards striving excellence in education and professional levels. But this is Lebanon and i am dreaming of course that such measures be adopted !

Instead, “minzeed el teen balle” as the Lebanese proverb says, and inject the political fights further into the schools and universities by lowering the voting age to 18.

Some people are saying this law is favorable to Hezbollah and the Shiite community, but numbers show that it doesnt really change anything, except the fact that now political parties are more willing to invest in schools and universities and mess up young people’s lifes to get their votes.

I consider myself as a person who matured early and got involved in politics at a very young age relatively, however i realized with every additional year how unexperienced and unaware i was when i was 18 and until 20 or 21 … University years are crucial for every young Lebanese to forge his character, to enhance his knowledge and to dream of a prosperous future. Instead, now we will have more students failing their classes and beating up each others kermel Nasrallah wou Hariri wou Geagea wou Aoun.

This is a truly sad story, and this country is proving more and more to be a complete joke.

Sarkozy undermines the Lebanese army and it is Hezbollah who answers !
Where is Michel Sleiman to answer ? Where is our army commander to defend the army’s pride, or whatever is left of that pride ?

Sarkozy: France Won’t Provide Lebanon with Gazelle Missiles for Fear They Could Reach Hizbullah

French military commanders, however, voiced fear that such missiles could end up in Hizbullah hands and used in war against Israel.

Hezbollah answers Kouchner and Sarkozy:
Hizbullah: Kouchner’s Stances Colluded with Israel, France Must Actualize Keenness on Lebanon

Hizbullah concluded its press release by condemning “the colluded and unbalanced” stances of Kouchner, urging the French government to “play a role matching with the responsibility, which it has always claimed to practice, concerning keenness on the security of Lebanon and its sovereignty.”

Hezbollah speaking of sovereignty and security of Lebanon …how ironic !

We’ve been hearing talks about an upcoming war for months now, but as i stated earlier and repeat, no one will be spared in the next one, and not even Sarkozy can guarantee us Israel won’t destroy our infrastructure.

Update: here are two links that will clarify why Hezbollah is a terrorist party for those same brainwashed and disoriented “switching-sides” people out there.
Definition of Terrorism
How Hezbollah is a terrorist party ..

In the “Hezbollah playing on dangerous ground” post, the debate went off-topic and turned into a heated argument on the LF and its history and was triggered by a member who claims to have been in the LF since 1995 and switched sides in 2005.

I can stand people critisizing the LF or any other party, as i do it myself and consider it healthy and constructive, but what i can’t bear are people “mich 3arfeen Allah wen 7atetoun”.

The LF has been the same since its foundation, principles-wise. Its leaders changed, their politics changed but the LF manifesto is still the same and LF principles are intact. If you don’t like Samir Geagea or Bashir Gemayel, you don’t quit the LF, you become a pro-LFer or a sympathizer. You definitly don’t become a Aounist or an SSNP or the rest of that trash!

Moreover, Most of the arguments such “phenomenal” individuals present are distorted and biased.
- The LF in the 80s had the biggest majority of the Christian Elite and Christian businessmen supporting it.
- The LF students nowadays are winning elections in the most renowned universities.
- The LF always had the biggest student body organization among other parties.
- The Biggest Christian intellectuals (Charles Malek, Fouad Frem El Boustani, Antoine Najm etc etc …) are supportive of the LF principles.
- The LF did not commit 1% of war crimes compared to what Aoun and his army did to the LF and the Lebanese.
( And i denouce all war crimes FYI)

And the list goes on and on …

I am not proud of the LF nowadays as an organization and leadership. I do not consider myself an LFer as in affiliated with the current LF party, but that doesn’t stop me from staying loyal to the principles and political thought.

When Samir Geagea was asked about his opinion about Antoun Saadeh, he answered that he respected the guy simply because he stayed loyal to his principles, no matter how wrong or right they were, until his death.

Ironically enough, the only politicians nowadays still loyal to their principles are the Pro-Syrians, but i don’t think they are so by choice