New elections law in September

Minister of Interior Affairs Colonel Marwan Charbel Beirut - George Shahin    The Lebanese Minister of Interior Affairs Colonel Marwan Charbel spoke to Arabstoday about the new Lebanese elections laws, after reviewing administrative divisions guaranteeing a Lebanese commitment as stipulated under the Taif Agreement; which are set to be ready in September depending on the prevailing mood. Charbel said that appointing internal security forces is his arena and that he is capable of giving the right job to the right person, due to his life-long experience as an internal security forces Officer. He tells Arabstoday in detail about this and more in the following interview. * Lebanon is, and for the first time, looking for a new form of elections, two years before their selected date. Where are you up to in this process? What we have achieved in the past two months could not have been and was not achieved by anyone for years, and we are aiming to set new elections laws by this September. I have previously followed up law preparations when I worked in security forces; I was on the committee which carried out the 2009 Law, in cooperation with the European Union; who took a huge part in funding, Including the National Commission which accompanied the elections in 2009. If we form a rough draft of our plan, then Parliament will have a year ahead of them to finalize it. Following its approval the next elections shall take place in 2013 according to a new and clear law. * What is the new law and what does it depend on? A huge daily workshop is in place in the Ministry of the Interior and I meet with them at the end of the every week to discuss what they have come up with during. During the meetings we discuss legal materials, different work stages and set a schedule for what will be done the following week. We are aiming for a modern law that represents the Lebanese people from all different backgrounds. * What topics does the new law project fall under? The new law committee is made up of 11 members. The new law will constitute of 3 chapters holding 3 titles which are the following: 1.    A constitutional introduction to verify each law and its aims 2.    The permitted and unpermitted in media, financially, and electorally 3.    Electoral divisions and the types of departments and the way MPs will be allocated to each one according to their religious sects and doctrines. The main committee working on the overall new law will consist of 9 expert members; those will be experts in electoral matters and some of which have previously contributed to putting new laws in place. Two more expert members will be added; the first specializing in Chapter II and the second in Chapter III. * What does the content of the new law state? As directed by President Michel Suleiman we are working on a law that depends on the prevailing mood, after reconsidering administrative divisions, as stated in the Taif Agreement. Talks are still in place in regards to the size of each department but we have a few suggestions that we are still discussing. * Where are you up to in appointing persons for the Internal Security Forces leadership Council? I follow up all appointments according to certain specifications, the most important being seniority and competence, so when the two are present I don’t discuss appointing them with anyone. In other cases however I consider competence before seniority, in order to give the right person the right job. But what’s important is that politicians are convinced that I know what’s best for the Forces more than anyone else, it’s because I spent the majority of my life working as an Officer with them, and I know Lebanon inch by inch, so I am not waiting for anyone’s advice. I meet a lot of politicians but I don’t discuss this with them. I do listen to their views and take what I could have missed myself. The only people who I discuss my thoughts on this with and ask for their permission are the President and Prime Minister, but even they probably know that I know exactly what I’m doing, as they trust me and I give them respect and appreciation in return.