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The Lebanese Forces Party
Human Rights Department
At the end of a seminar for the
Euro-Mediterranean training program on Human Rights held in
Lebanon (September 29 - October 2, 1999 and unattended by the
Lebanese Government), Mr. Patrick Baudouin president of the
International Federation of Human Rights (F.I.D.H.: a Paris Based
NGO with some 150 branches worldwide) stated: “Lebanon has the
conventions and the strong basic elements of democratic
institutions, but much progress is needed for Lebanon to become
democratic, especially that his sovereignty is compromised by the
occupation of its neighboring country, Syria.”
Mr. Baudouin added:
“ There is no paradigm for a nation under partial or
complete occupation by a neighboring state that can adopt
legislations and practices that conform with international
standards. It is impossible. The occupying force must withdraw
first to allow for the establishment or re-establishment of a
system of total freedom.”
Perhaps those words, spoken
eloquently, express the true reality of the situation in Lebanon.
Hardly a day passes by without hearing a Lebanese Official
reiterating the respect for Freedoms, Human Rights and the reign
of “the Government of Law and Institutions”
While in reality each one of these principles has been
violated. In fact, the year 1999 has witnessed tangible
deterioration in domains that were until then free from restraints
and censorship such as Culture, Education and Arts.
It is worth mentioning that Lebanon
in general and Beirut in particular were the beacon of freedom for
Intellectuals, Researchers, Artists and Politicians who came to
Lebanon either as visitors or as victims of censorship and
repression in their native countries or as seekers of a better
environment where the elements of inspiration and Cultural
creativity were made easily accessible.
Part 1: Political and Legal Rights
1)
Parliamentary Elections:
The Parliamentary Election, provided
by the Constitution every four years, will be held in the summer
of year 2000. The elections of 1992 and 1996 witnessed many
violations characterized by forgery and rigged lists of candidates
in addition to an election law that fundamentally violated the
principle of fair and equal representation for Christians and
Muslims. These elections resulted in the vast majority of
Christian deputies being elected by non-Christian voters
destroying their credibility and community standing.
Despite the repeated promises by the
Government to offer a more just an equitable election law for year
2000, the one issued on December 14, 1999 did not fulfill such
promises.
The new election law fails in the
following areas:
A)
Disparities:
·
Disparity in the criterion between governates (muhafazat)
whereby no single district is equal to another in the number of
circumscriptions (One district with two circumscriptions in the
North and another district with four circumscriptions in Mount
Lebanon).
·
Disparity in the number of deputies in the circumscriptions
(The West Bekaa and Beirut have each six deputies while the second
North circumscription has alone seventeen deputies).
·
Disparity in the numbers of casas (Kada’a) in each
circumscription (One circumscription with one single casa as in
the case of both the Shouf and the Northern Maten, while another
circumscription encompasses five casas as in the case of the
second North circumscription including Zgharta, Batroun, Koura,
Tripoli and Al Minnieh).
B)
Partitioning a number of districts and dissecting their
electorates to distribute them into different circumscriptions in
order to falsify the representation of their constituents. This
occurred in the following:
·
Dividing the casa of Tripoli into two sections, (Al Minnieh
and AlDinnieh). Each was joined to a separate circumscription.
Tallying the casa of Besharreh, (a
totally Christian and staunch supporter of the Lebanese Forces
Party) to the casa of Akkar-AlDinnieh, (a predominantly Muslim
Sunni area), despite the fact that the two areas are not
geographically contiguous or connected in any way).
issecting the predominantly
Christian casa of Jezzine from its historic and traditionally
established district of the South in order to append it to the
Nabatieh district (where the vast majority of the constituents are
Muslim Shiites).
Separating Beirut into a totally
unreasonable three circumscriptions aiming to dissipate the blocks
of Christian votes and provide the Muslim majority constituents of
the newly formed areas with determining control over the Christian
seats.
It is thus evident that the new
election law is not leaving any Christian circumscription within
its own natural electoral environment. The Jezzine District, for
example, which was historically connected to Saida and now
attached to Nabatieh is under the tutelage and control of Amal and
Hizbollah; the newly formed Beirut
circumscriptions would lead to the marginalization of the
Christian votes whilst in the past they had a sizable and
determining influence. In the Mount Lebanon district where the
vast majority of the constituents are Christians, the projected
divisions would essentially diminish the Christian electoral power
in three circumscriptions out of four;
The Shouf circumscription is kept under the control of the
Druze leader Walid Jumblat; the Alay and the Southern Maten
circumscriptions are kept under the control of the Shiite and the
Druze; while the Northern Maten is especially created to provide
an area of influence to the Interior Minister, Michel al Murr and
his partners in the electoral list.
Moreover,
it is quite obvious that joining Besharreh to Akkar and AlDinnieh
is designed to sabotage the true representation of its
constituents as was demonstrated in the results of the 1998
Municipal Elections where the regime’s allies suffered a total
defeat.
2)
The Judicial System
One
of the main prerequisites of a true democracy in any nation is the
independence of its Judiciary. Regrettably, the Lebanese Regime
who pays excellent lip service to “judicial independence” is an
expert in utilizing the Judiciary as an instrument of Political
revenge.
The debate over Judicial
Independence does not center solely on regulating judicial laws
but also on the total consent and willingness to free the Judicial
System. Though the present laws insure such independence in
principle, the problem resides in implementation. Article 20 of
the Lebanese Constitution provides for Judges to be independent in
the exercise of their functions but this article has been violated
repeatedly and with impunity.
It is fruitless to debate the issue
of Judicial Independence when the Investigative Magistrate is
bound to the will of the Minister of Justice and when the Council
of Ministers, without taking heed of any independent
recommendation, is appointing the Prosecutor General in the same
way they appoint an army officer or an administrative director.
The fact remains in Lebanon today that those who possess the power
to appoint and to promote are the ones with the means to control
and influence the Judicial System.
There is no doubt that the Judicial
Council should make use of administrative and security apparatus
to function properly but when political interference allows for
the Lebanese and Syrian Security Forces to prevail over the
judiciary, corruption becomes inevitable.
A)
The Military Law Courts:
Many cases came before the Military
Courts this past year despite the fact that the majority of the
accused were civilians. Fair trials could not be guaranteed nor
provided due to the fact that military officers, presiding over
these cases, have not obtained the proper training and are not
well versed in the law and thus are unable to deliver adequate
justifications to the judgments they render. Moreover, lawyers
are not able to fulfill their duties nor are they allowed the
required time to prepare the defense of their clients.
B)
The Investigative Magistrates:
The authorities continue to ignore
the constitutional rights of suspects, of the accused and of the
convicted. The Investigative Magistrate appoints a lawyer for the
defendant without his/her consent and the Investigative Officers
act beyond their specific jurisdictions (spying, betrayal and
possession of weapons) and investigate misdemeanors and crimes.
C)
Breaching of rules:
Suspects often spend the duration of
their sentences in jail before attending trials either for lack of
available judges or complications in procedures even though many
are found innocent at later trials. When a trial is held and the
accused is found innocent, no compensation is offered nor the
Investigative Magistrates are questioned (as was apparent in the
case of Antoinette Chahine and Jihad Abi Ramia in June 24, 1999
for example).
D)
The Judicial Police:
Much controversy encircled the
extent of authority given to this unit and its practices that
violated the legal proceedings transcendent by the Office of the
Attorney General. It is virtually impossible to hold this unit
accountable for actions committed by its members because the
majority of them belong to the security apparatus (Army
Intelligence, Military Police, Security Forces and Internal
Security). They answer only to the Attorney General who, in turn,
is himself subject to political manipulation and works under the
directives of the Security Apparatus.
The violations committed by this
unit are too many to be detailed but here are few examples:
·
Undertaking interrogations without any warrant or
authorization from the Office of the Attorney General (Often the
State Prosecutor obliges either with a blank and pre-signed
warrant or with the authorization and warrant at a later date).
·
Summarizing the initial interrogations in statements that
do not reflect the actual facts of the investigation and using all
forms of torture and intimidation to extract pre-arranged
confessions from victims.
E)
The Office of the Attorney General:
The State Prosecutor Adnan Addoum
has violated the law as well as the Constitutional practices and
traditions since the early days of his appointment without being
subjected to any reprimand. He is in constant contact with the
President of the republic and he visits him in his Presidential
Palace three times a week despite the fact that Addoum should take
his directives from the Minister of Justice and not the President.
Moreover, he intervenes directly in
Court cases pertaining to the pro-regime political class even if
they fall beyond his jurisdiction. For example, Mr. Addoum
interfered and “filed” the court case brought by the lawyer Jihad
Fadil against the Interior Minister Michel al Murr and Colonel
Maroun Abou Diwan. The case charged the two Regime instruments
with excessive misuse of power and influence and inflicting
intimidation and bodily harm…
Furthermore, on October 10, 1999 a
heated debate erupted between State Prosecutor Addoum and Judge
Walid Ghamra, head of the Judicial Investigative Committee who
issued an inquiry report detailing and criticizing Addoum’s
overstepping his jurisdictions, especially in the field of
interrogating suspects without due process and authorization.
Despite brining this conflict to the attention of the Supreme
Judicial Council, political influence was deployed and the matter
was “classified”.
F)
The Executive Power, the custodian of the Judiciary:
Despite of the Separation of Power
clause provided by the Constitution, the proposal of August 12,
1999 upholds the authority of the Minister of Justice to appoint
judges in the Offices of the Attorney General and the
Investigative Magistrates while other Judiciary positions are left
for the Judicial Supreme Council recommendations. Such a proposal
consolidates the authority of the Executive Power over the State
Prosecutors and Investigative Magistrates and insures their
loyalty and dependability. This allocation would produce the
following results:
·
Maintaining the Judges under the influence of the Executive
Power. The Lebanese experience shows that many Judges prefer to
assume the positions of Attorney General and Investigative
Magistrate at the expense of other Judiciary positions.
·
Facilitating Political Interference in all the functions of
the Office of the Attorney General and Investigative Magistrates
G)
The Administrative Courts Magistrates:
This branch is completely subdued
and has been devoid of its authority. The request submitted by
this branch to the State Council five years ago challenging the
Naturalization Decree was put on hold by the Political
Authorities. Furthermore, the Interior Minister and the Bekaa
Mayor disregarded three conclusive decisions issued by the Supreme
Administrative Court regarding “the dissolution of the Municipal
Council in Shtoura” without any sequel.
Furthermore, on December 23, 1999,
sixty-six well-trained judges were drafted into military service.
This new development worsened the pre-existent deficiency in the
number of judges serving the different courts and destroyed the
administrative independence of the Judiciary as a separate
Constitutional Authority.
Part 2: Civil Liberties
1)
Freedom of Expression and of Press
Despite the guarantees that the
Lebanese Constitution provides for the Freedom of the Press and
despite the lip service offered by Government Officials supporting
Democracy and freedom of opinion, The Press in Lebanon suffered
major setbacks:
·
In May 1999, the Ministry of Information issued a decree
banning the circulation of the book “From Israel to Damascus” by
Rober Hatem known as Cobra. This book reveals the involvement of
several Lebanese and Syrian Officials in political assassinations
and in cases of bribery, intimidation and corruption.
·
In August 1999, the Regime brought a libel suit against a
number of Journalists: Milhim Karam, the president of the
Journalist’s Union in Lebanon and owner of two weekly magazines,
“Al-Hawadeth” and “La Revue De Liban”, Mr. Paul Salem, owner of
“Lebanon Report”, Mr. Jamil Merouweh, owner of “Daily Star”
Newspaper, and Mrs. Viviane Dagher along with Ms. Salam Gharishi
from Al-Massira Magazine for interviewing Rober Hatem or
publishing excerpts from his book. (which was already widely
available on the Internet).
·
In August 1999, The Regime brought a libel suit against two
journalists, Ibrahim al Khoury and Walid Choucair, “publicly
exposing” and accusing them with squandering money while serving
on the board at the State Owned Television, Tele-Liban. These
public accusations were circulated prior to any judicial process,
causing a wave of objections voiced by the Unions of Journalists,
news reporters and other professional Unions.
·
In July 1999, Paul Khalifeh, a Journalist at “L’Orient Le
Jour” Newspaper was physically assaulted and threatened by members
of the Security Apparatus and instructed not to criticize the
Regime again. Khalifeh had written a series of articles
criticizing the Government’s stand on the issue of Jezzine and its
reluctance to fulfill its duties after the Withdrawal of the South
Lebanese Army (SLA) from the area.
·
In May 1999, Hiam Al-Koussaifi, a journalist from the
AlNahar Newspaper was summoned before Judge Riad Talii who asked
her not to evoke the dismal conditions at Roumieh Prison.
·
In August 9, 1999, The Minister of Information, Anwar Al-Khalil
threatened to suspend the publication of Al-Massira Magazine,
claiming it is operating under an unlicensed name. Al-Massira
has been operating under this name for almost 20 years and it is
licensed under the name Al-Najwa. This was preceded by tremendous
pressures and threats exerted by the security services upon
advertising agencies, Publishing Houses and businesses to stop and
remove their advertisements from the magazine and consequently
force it to shut down.
·
In September 1999, The State suspended a political program
produced by the journalist Samir Kassir for National TV (Tele-Liban)
on the grounds that it is “compromising Civil Peace”.
2)
Censorship
During the past year, Censorship
became the sword of Damocles hanging over each and every Cultural
and Artistic manifestation in Lebanon:
·
In May 1999, “The Arabic Cultural Club” in Beirut was
raided by security forces. Club Officials were questioned and were
forced to fill questionnaires on all the Club’s activities and
members.
·
On October 10, 1999 Security Forces imposed censorship on
the film “Civilisees” by the Lebanese-French Producer Randa Chahal
Sabbagh and removed several scenes, which made it impossible for
Sabbagh to present it in movie theaters.
·
On November 8, 1999 Security Forces imposed on Maurice
Bejart, the founder of “Ballet Bejart” company radical changes to
his show under the pretext that some scenes “are offensive and
contradict religious rites”. It is noteworthy that the same show
was exhibited in its entirety and without any omissions in Egypt.
·
On November 2, 1999 the case against the Lebanese Musician
Marcel Khalifeh was reopened. Khalifeh was accused of insulting
Islam when he recorded a song by a renowned Palestinian poet
Mahmoud Darwish, which contained a verse from the Koran. It was
only after the intervention of several Human Right Organizations
such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch that Khalifeh
was acquitted.
·
On November 7, 1999 the Cultural “Ashkaal Alwaan” Society
was forbidden from opening its Painting and Sculpture Art
Exhibition on the grounds that it “failed to fulfill the necessary
legal requirements” despite the fact that the Society obtained a
permit from the Ministry of Culture.
·
On November 10, 1999 the political satire TV show “Ta’ Rir”
was suspended on the grounds that it impersonated, criticized and
offended a number of Government Officials.
·
Despite the Government’s constant assurances of total
freedom of press and of Opinion and despite the fact that many
cases were dropped against several journalists, the Media in
Lebanon, especially TV and Radio, has become similar to those in
dictatorial regimes. Under the notion of self-censorship, all
forms of control, suppression and expurgation are exerted
especially in the political programs making the news in all the
different medias similar and analogous and allowing very rarely
for the display of opposing opinions.
·
A new legislation is being prepared in order to control and
regulate advertisements. This law stipulates the creation of a
committee to overlook the statistical procedures and to control
the allocations of advertising funds. The Regime would thus
acquire great influence upon this sector and would obtain ample
opportunities to meddle in the domain of private institutions.
3)
Prison Systems
The majority of prisons in addition
to the 18 detention centers in Lebanon are situated in antiquated
buildings erected in the 19th century. The rooms are
contiguous and there are not enough beds for all the prisoners.
The cells are overcrowded and leave no room for inmates to stretch
their feet or move around. The prison authorities do not provide
mattresses or covers. Some inmates sleep on the floor and others
use a board laid over the toilet hole in the ground in order to
find a place to stretch out.
Roumieh Prison is the main prison in
Lebanon, built in 1971 and remains under construction till today.
It accommodates approximately 4 thousand prisoners, i.e. 50% of
total prisoners in Lebanon. Roumieh Prison consists of four
buildings, 3 or 4 stories each with one occupied by the Lebanese
Army.
The cells originally equipped to
hold two prisoners are used to cram 8 to 12 prisoners and although
the rooms are equipped with toilet facilities, the use of water is
strictly limited to half an hour between 3:00 and 3:30 PM.
Inmates are obliged to stock water in containers for drinking and
bathing. There is neither heating in the prison nor any
playgrounds for sports or facilities for libraries and places of
worship.
The official statistics on the
number of inmates could not be obtained but are estimated to fall
between five to eight thousand prisoners placed in facilities
designed to host a maximum number of two thousands. Prisoners are
placed indiscriminately in rooms and are not separated according
to age or nature of crime. In Zahleh Prison for example, an
estimated number of 400 prisoners are hosted in 4 narrow corridors
without any triage or separation.
Women prisoners are held in Zahleh
and Baabda without any special provisions available for pregnant
inmates or for mothers with infants.
Although the Lebanese constitution
provides for separate facilities for adult and juvenile prisoners,
Men and young boys are kept together in the same cells at the
Police stations, and young girls are not separated from the rest
of the female prisoners during the whole duration of their
sentences.
The right of Defense is not
respected. To request a Defense lawyer is subject to the approval
of the authorities and incur a fee of 50 American Dollars
representing 30% of the minimal wage in Lebanon. Whilst the
Constitution provides for the right to private consultations with
lawyers, this right is often violated. In the Roumieh prison, for
example, Lawyers often meet their clients in halls in the presence
of other prisoners and under the watchful eyes of the prison
guards.
Nutrition in Prisons is also
lacking: A prisoner receives one meal a day at noon often cold and
consisting of rice and vegetables. No provisions are made for
prisoners with diabetes or with other medical ailments.
Furthermore, healthcare facilities
are almost nonexistent. The number of doctors attached to the
prisons is vastly underprovided and medical equipment and
medicines are scarce and inadequate. In Roumieh prison for example
there are 4000 prisoners with only one attending physician
visiting the prison three times a week.
In mid 1998, a delegation from the
“International Prison Watch” (OIP) visited Lebanon to check the
conditions of prisons and prisoners. The delegation succeeded in
raising awareness to these conditions and despite its call for
improvements, no measures were taken to remedy the situation.
Additional facts:
·
Violence often erupts between prisoners due to egregious
levels of overcrowding and a fierce competition for basic
necessities thus leading occasionally to anarchy and total lack of
control.
·
The antiquated Lebanese Penal Code does not limit the
period of “provisional arrest” awaiting trial. Tragically, due to
the great shortage in the number of Judges, many victims may spend
a number of years in prison before they are brought to Court.
Until today, the practice of the law does not distinguish between
an accused awaiting trial and a convicted prisoner.
·
On a humanitarian level, Prisoners, with time, often lose
their sense of identity. Instead of being rehabilitated the
prisoners are deprived from their dignity.
·
Torture is another aspect of prison life in Lebanon. During
interrogation, prisoners are beaten up and tortured until they
“confess” to crimes they often did not commit. Najwa M., for
example, imprisoned in Baabda, was beaten severely until she
confessed to murdering her husband. Irrefutable evidence was
discovered later and proved that she was innocent.
From 1994 to 1998, a number of
detainees died in Lebanese jails as a result of torture. Fawzi al
Rassi, a Lebanese Forces member, died from acid immersion and
electric shocks while held at the Ministry of Defense Jail and
Tariq Hasaniyah was beaten to death in Bayt Al-Din Prison.
4)
The Right to Protest and Arbitrary Arrests and Detention
The Lebanese Government widely
publicized the “lifting of the ban on demonstrations provided a
prior permit is obtained”. It is significant to note that since,
not a single demonstration took place although the economy is in a
catastrophic decline and despite the numerous grievances,
complaints and demands voiced by the Unions of teachers, workers
and others. This unusual situation shows that any attempt to
organize a demonstration is suffocated in its prime by indirect
“friendly advice”, threats or denial of permits.
The arbitrary arrests and detentions
in 1999 are numerous. The following cases are but an example:
·
The regime continues to summon periodically officials and
members of the Lebanese Forces Party for interrogation. Toufiq Al
Hindi, Silman Semaha, Milad Assaf and others were intimidated into
signing declarations in which they agree to cease all political
activities.
·
On September 11, 1999, the Union of Tele-Liban’s workers
issued a press release demanding the release of Milad Hayek, an
employee accused of damaging a turnstile at the TV station’s
Hazmieh building. Hayek who is deaf and mute was not allowed
proper representation nor was able to defend himself during
interrogation.
·
In July 6, 1999, Mustafa Kanso was arrested and charged
with dealing and smuggling drugs. Kanso died during interrogation
at the Office of Drug Control. The report filed by investigators
indicated that his death was due to a drug overdose. His family
was denied any access to medical reports or Laboratory results
performed on the deceased.
·
On November 22, 1999, Joseph Mansour from Koura, North
Lebanon, was detained without a warrant for belonging to the
Aounist Movement. He was transferred to the prison of a military
barracks in Tripoli. Mansour was only released after signing a
statement undertaking that he will cease all political activities.
·
On December 2, 1999, security officers wearing civilian
clothes arrested Walid Ashkar, a student who belongs to the
Aounist Movement, at the entrance oh his university in Balamand
(North Lebanon). They led him to a military compound and from
there to the Military Police Headquarters - Noura Palace in
Beirut. Four days after his illegal detention, his fellow
students gathered in front of the building carrying banners and
demanding his release. Two hundred and fifty military officers
responded by indiscriminately beating and assaulting the students.
A big number was injured and required hospitalization (Tony Irian,
Marteen Abi Nader and several others). Local and International
Human Right Organizations voiced their concern and condemned the
regularly executed waves of arbitrary arrests and the oppression
methods employed by the Security Services.
·
On December 23, 1999, two students from the American
University in Beirut, Alexander Hawat and Rami Abou Alaf were
summoned to the Police Station in Houbeish on the charges of
distributing political leaflets inside the University.
·
On October 11, 1999, the engineer Wadih Youssef Saaid was
detained and questioned in Jbeil Police Station without due
process and without allowing the presence of a representative from
the Engineer’s Union as required by the Law in this case.
·
Three doctors were brought before the Military Court on
charges for medical negligence. The Doctor’s Union staged a
protest accusing the authorities of following improper procedures
and ignoring the law, which provides for consultation with a
committee of professionals to look into cases of negligence prior
to any legal action.
Furthermore, the Lebanese Security
Apparatus along with the Syrian Intelligence Agency working in
Lebanon succeeded in creating an ambiance of terror effecting a
tightly controlled grip on public life and interfering in
day-to-day minutiae and practices. The following are few examples:
·
The Lebanese Security Forces demanded of school
administrations to provide them with names of all their newly
employed teachers.
·
Representatives of the Security services are positioned in
various Ministries preparing daily reports and submitting them to
the Department of Affairs at the Presidential Palace.
5)
Prisoners in Syrian and Israeli jails
The
issue of Lebanese detained in Syrian and Israeli prisons is
gathering great momentum. International and Local Human Right
Organizations obtained detailed information regarding the
existence of a large number of Lebanese Nationals detained in
Syrian prisons and living in intolerable conditions. Their
families are denied any information on their whereabouts and are
not allowed to visit them in their prisons. The Lebanese
Government, who often delivers them to the Syrians, refuses even
to acknowledge their existence.
The last Lebanese victim of illegal
detention in Syrian jails was the 52 years old Adel Khalaf Ajouri.
He was abducted at a Syrian checkpoint on the road to the Lebanese
National Airport on May 5, 1999. It took two years for his family
to discover that he was detained in Tadmur jail in Syria and
subsequently moved to Saidnaya jail without any trial or right for
a defense lawyer. Mr. Ajouri died on September 22, 1999 under
suspicious circumstances. His body was delivered to his family for
burial on October 23, 1999.
A large number of Lebanese are also
detained without a proper trial in Israeli prisons and in the
Khiyam Prison under the control of the South Lebanese Army (SLA).
6)
The Trials of Dr. Samir Geagea and the Lebanese Forces
The
political trials of Dr. Samir Geagea, Commander in Chief of the
Lebanese Forces Party, continued into the year 1999. At the
conclusion of the case of the assassination of Prime Minister
Rashid Karameh, the Judicial Council issued a verdict of Death
sentence against Dr. Geagea and then reduced it to life
imprisonment with hard labor (June 1999).
A
number of Human Right Organizations criticized the “politically
motivated trials”, the “process of the initial investigations”,
the “gathering of proofs”, the “interrogations”, “threatening
witnesses” etc…leading to the unfair Judicial Council prerogatives
and Court processes. The Karameh trial took a clear and obvious
political perspective due to the arguments and political
background inherent to the case. It was used and utilized to put a
whole period of the Lebanese war on trial and showed the extent of
political revenge and prejudice born against the Lebanese Forces.
It is important to note that the Judicial Council verdicts are
final and complete and are not subject to any review or appeal.
Apart
from the aggressed judicial rights, Other Human Right perspectives
are also assailed. Dr. Geagea remains confined to a tiny
cell, three stories underground, devoid of any sunlight or
fresh air at the Ministry of Defense Jail. He is kept in
solitary confinement and denied any form of contact with the
outside world either through correspondence or through exposure to
any news Media. When he is moved out of his cell, he is handcuffed
and blindfolded.
Recently
Dr. Geagea suffered from severe pains in his stomach and teeth
without obtaining the required medical care or the proper
investigation tests that are performed in these instances.
7)
The Environment
The
environment was not spared from the assaults of the government and
the military forces:
In September 1999, the Interior Minister issued a permit
allowing a quarry, previously closed for breaking the Law, to
reopen near the village of Knat. This act violated the 1994 decree
that requires a complete evaluation of the projected damage to the
environment prior to issuing any permit for a quarry. Since the
plant was opened, it was met with widespread outrage and
objections from intellectuals and environmentalists. The quarry is
chewing up areas situated on the borders of a very old and
irreplaceable forest consisting of Cedars of Lebanon and other
coniferous trees. The forest extends from Tannoureen to Hadath El
Jibbeh to Knat areas and is known as the forest of “the Cedars of
the Lord”. In September 1999, a group of European Community
experts who volunteered to “conserve” and “maintain” the forest
were shocked to see the quarry operating on that particular site.
It was revealed later that the owner of the plant is related to
the deputy Istephan Al-Dweihi (the North) who asked the favor from
his friend the Interior Minister who in turn obliged by issuing
the permit in violation of the Ministry of the environment decree.
·
On October 11, 1999, Green Peace activists were assaulted
and arrested when they staged a peaceful protest in front of Port
Selaata in North Lebanon against dumping toxic waste in the
Mediterranean Sea. The Security Forces attacked the peaceful
protesters and reporters covering the events and confiscated their
films and broke their cameras. |
