The patriarch of Lebanon's Maronite Catholic Church said early presidential elections could be the first step in resolving the country's ongoing political crisis."I've addressed a letter to (Lebanese President Emile Lahoud) to tell him that he is the judge of the situation and that he must step down ... because the country will not support his position," said Cardinal Nasrallah P. Sfeir, Maronite Patriarch (pic'd alongside).
Cardinal Sfeir suggested that a "simple solution" to the dilemma would be to elect a new president now in preparation to replace Lahoud when his term expires in November.
The presidential election would be followed by the creation of a new Cabinet and parliamentary elections, and the examination of the country's electoral law, which are all conditions stipulated by the Hezbollah-led government opposition.
However, Lahoud, a Maronite Catholic, has claimed he cannot hand over power to a government which he has been calling illegitimate since the resignation of all five Shiite Cabinet ministers in November.
Lebanon's Constitution says the president must be Christian, and the prime minister and parliamentary speaker must be Sunni and Shiite, respectively. Members of all religious sects must be represented at the Cabinet level.
Cardinal Sfeir said that despite his best efforts to unite Christian factions, they have not budged in their positions because of external pressures.
"Unfortunately the Christians are divided because each party follows an (external) party," he told CNS. "Some Christians are with Hezbollah and so definitely with Syria and Iran, and the others are with (government-coalition leader Saad) Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia and the United States."
The cardinal said this pressure was particularly true for Lahoud, whose term in office was extended in 2004 while Lebanon was still under Syrian occupation.
"Here in Lebanon nobody is completely free in their actions. Mr. Lahoud is allied to Syria, and Syria can influence his position. If he makes something against Syria he will be threatened," the cardinal said.
Since December, the Shiite militant group Hezbollah has led a campaign, backed by most Lebanese Shiites, the country's largest Christian bloc and some Druze, to bring down a government they claim is corrupt, unrepresentative and subservient to the United States.
The alliance has been demanding the government be replaced by a national unity Cabinet in which Hezbollah's allies would wield veto power.
Government supporters – comprising most Sunnis, Druze and some Christian parties – argue the protest is merely a coup-attempt instigated by Hezbollah's backers in Syria and Iran.
Government supporters claim Hezbollah would use veto power to thwart the formation of an international investigation into the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
The political crisis in Lebanon has crippled an economy still reeling after Israeli bombardment last summer and has led to an exodus of young workers.
The anti-government protest has been based around an ongoing three-month sit-in outside the prime minister's office in downtown Beirut and has sparked spates of sectarian street violence.
Cardinal Sfeir criticized the sit-in for forcing the closure of many businesses in the area. He said it exacerbated the exodus of young people from the country.
"The demonstration is useless and harmful and for three months has not given any result," he said.
Cardinal Sfeir said that there was currently no political leader who could unite the country's Christian factions.
However, he said plans were underfoot for a "third way," possibly in the form of a new party that could bridge gaps between Lebanon's widely divergent Christian factions. The cardinal did not elaborate.
"When we have faith we must be optimistic because our country has passed through many difficulties such as this which we are passing through now, and with God's help we will find a way to get out of it."
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