March 14 Urges Incorporation of Baabda Declaration in Constitution

The March 14 General Secretariat renewed on Wednesday its condemnation of Hizbullah's involvement in the unrest in Syria, calling on it to withdraw its members from the country.

It urged in a statement “President Michel Suleiman, seeing as he is the guardian of the constitution, to refer in a letter the Baabda Declaration to parliament where it can be endorsed by lawmakers in order to keep Lebanon away from regional crises.”

It made its remarks after its weekly meeting, during with it urged the Arab League to address Hizbullah's involvement in Syria.

Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel announced on Tuesday coming forward with a suggestion to amend the preamble of the constitution to stipulate Lebanon's neutrality towards regional conflicts.

“The Baabda Declaration must be adopted in the constitution and in the laws so that no one can act against it. It will be considered illegal if the declaration is breached,” he said.

The Baabda Declaration was unanimously adopted during a national dialogue session in June 2012. It calls for Lebanon to disassociate itself from regional crises, most notably the one in Syria.

Moreover, the March 14 General Secretariat called for the formation of a neutral government capable of preventing the spread of the Syrian unrest to Lebanon and protecting the Lebanese “against some sides' insistence on linking the country's fate to that of Syria.”

To that end, it hoped that Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam would speed up the cabinet formation process, urging Suleiman to pressure him in this matter “in order to prevent Salam from being subject to any blackmail.”

His efforts to form a new government have stalled over the March 8 camp's alleged insistence to obtain veto power and allow Shiite leaderships to name the sect's ministers.

According to An Nahar daily Wednesday, the coalition has conditioned a 45 percent of seats in the government similar to its weight in parliament and has rejected the rotation of portfolios that Salam had suggested.

Addressing the kidnapping of the nine Lebanese pilgrims in Syria, the March 14 General Secretariat reiterated its condemnation of any “violation against the freedom of any Lebanese national.”

It demanded that General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim relay a letter to authorities in Damascus to release all Lebanese held in Syrian prisons since the time of Syria's hegemony over Lebanon that started in the 1970s.

Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel said Saturday that Lebanese authorities are awaiting from the kidnappers a list of names of Syrian female prisoners held in Syrian jails they want released in exchange for the pilgrims.

Ibrahim is expected to head to Damascus to discuss the release of the pilgrims.