PSP Sources: FPM Wants to Eliminate 'Historic Pro-Jumblat Christian Representation'
The Free Patriotic Movement alliance with the Lebanese Forces is targeted against “Christian leaders such as Kataeb Party chief Sami Gemayel, Marada Movement leader Suleiman Franjieh, MP Butros Harb and other independent Christians,” Progressive Socialist Party sources have said.
“Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil told the four-party committee (discussing the electoral law) that he is willing to be lenient with (PSP leader Walid) Jumblat regarding the Druze seats but that it is out of the question for his bloc to comprise any Christian MPs,” the sources told al-Joumhouria newspaper in remarks published Sunday.
“The FPM is disregarding the fact that there is a historic pro-Jumblat Christian representation in Mount Lebanon, which increases or shrinks according to alliances. The FPM wants to eliminate this representation,” the sources added.
While al-Mustaqbal Movement has rejected that the electoral law be fully based on the proportional representation system, arguing that Hizbullah's weapons would prevent serious competition in the party's strongholds, Jumblat's Democratic Gathering bloc has totally rejected proportional representation, even within a hybrid law, warning that it would “marginalize” the minority Druze community.
Hizbullah, Mustaqbal, the FPM, AMAL Movement and the Lebanese Forces are meanwhile discussing several formats of a so-called hybrid electoral law that mixes proportional representation with the winner-takes-all system.
The country has not organized parliamentary elections since 2009 and the legislature has instead twice extended its own mandate.
The last polls were held under an amended version of the 1960 electoral law and the next vote is scheduled for May.
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