VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHLB #1664/01 3261435
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 211435Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIRUT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3623
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 3186
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 3393
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL

UNCLAS BEIRUT 001664 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA 
ALSO FOR IO A/S HOOK, PDAS WARLICK 
P FOR DRUSSELL AND RRANGASWAMY 
USUN FOR KHALILZAD/WOLFF/SCHEDLBAUER/GERMAIN 
NSC FOR ABRAMS/RAMCHAND/YERGER/MCDERMOTT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER PINR UNSC LE SY
SUBJECT: LEBANON: FEMALE POLITICIANS AND CIVIL SOCIETY 
LEADERS:  CHANGING THE SYSTEM 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU)  Participants in a recent MEPI U.S. election 
observer program, representing women from both March 14 and 
the opposition, said education on political participation is 
needed to change Lebanese women's perception of politics as a 
"dirty game."  At a November 19 lunch hosted by the 
Ambassador, the women urged changes to electoral, municipal, 
and family laws to encourage female representation in 
politics and ensure social equality.  Participants noted that 
an atmosphere of security was necessary before Lebanese feel 
confident to vote for candidates based on qualifications and 
not sectarian or familial loyalty.  They said change within 
the system was "impossible" and argued the need to change the 
system itself.  Although they mentioned media campaigns as a 
positive first step to improve the image of women in 
politics, more practical plans are necessary before female 
involvement in politics becomes the norm.  End summary. 
 
CHANGING IMAGE OF POLITICS THROUGH EDUCATION 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU)  Recent participants of a MEPI-funded election 
observer trip to the United States, at a November 19 luncheon 
hosted by the Ambassador, focused on changing the way 
Lebanese women view politics.  Participants said young women 
in Lebanon view politics as a "dirty game."  Unless they can 
rely on extensive familial or political backing, women choose 
to avoid the intense scrutiny and criticism they see as 
inherent in the political process by not running in 
parliamentary elections. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Change, participants noted, begins by educating 
women -- in the home, in schools, and through women 
leadership programs at the university level -- to involve 
themselves in politics; such projects are currently scarce. 
Young Lebanese, in general, also lack the motivation to stay 
in Lebanon; growing a culture of political activism through 
education could encourage young women to take political roles 
in their own country and not leave for better-paying jobs in 
Gulf countries, as is the current practice.  Participants 
were struck during their trip to the U.S. that American 
citizens believed their individual votes mattered.  Women in 
Lebanon need first to learn to vote based on their own 
viewpoint -- not that of their parents, husband, or 
confession -- and to be activists before they can be 
successful political candidates, they said. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Dunia El-Khoury, head of an non-governmental 
organization (NGO) in Baalbeck and affiliated with Samir 
Geagea's Lebanese Forces, noted women like herself are able 
to accomplish more through NGOs outside the bureaucratic, and 
corrupt, government system.  Ferial Abu-Hamdan, a former 
member of the Shouf municipal council and allied with March 
14, suggested women should first become active at the 
municipal level; she argued candidates at the local level are 
more likely to be elected based on technical skills than 
candidates for parliamentary elections. 
 
NEED TO CHANGE LEBANESE LAWS 
---------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) The women unanimously agreed that new electoral laws 
were required to increase female representation in politics. 
A quota setting the number of women in parliament would be 
especially helpful.  (Note:  Some, though not all, advocated 
introducing a women's quota into the recently passed 
electoral law.  End note.) However, an "unofficial quota," 
namely through efforts by political leaders to include female 
candidates on their lists would perhaps, participants 
thought, begin to normalize the idea of women as 
parliamentary candidates.  Abu-Hamdan argued the municipal 
election law -- which currently forbids relatives of 
municipal council members from campaigning for a spot 
themselves -- needs amending.  Municipal laws also allocate 
voters by hometown, not current place of residence; this 
hinders technically-sound candidates with plans of work for 
their towns from beating candidates with money or more 
established positions.  Additionally, Sleem Sumar, lawyer and 
 
member of Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement, cited the 
need to change family laws to further social equality before 
advances are made in the political arena. 
 
SOVEREIGNTY AND SECURITY FIRST 
------------------------------ 
 
¶6. (SBU) The need for security and sovereignty before major 
political change was a common refrain during the luncheon. 
The women noted that the Lebanese must feel confident that 
they will be protected by the state system before they vote 
for politicians based on ideas and platforms.  They explained 
that daily needs are still addressed by sectarian leaders; 
voters will continue to vote for the leaders who provide them 
jobs, money, and protection until the state does. 
Participants stressed the Lebanese Armed Forces should be the 
only armed defender of the state. Participants opined that 
about 30 percent of Lebanese were unaffiliated with either 
March 14 or the opposition and would support honest, 
independent candidates. 
 
REDO THE SYSTEM 
--------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Lamia Osseiran, an independent-pro March 14 social 
activist from a prominent Shi'a family, summed up the group's 
views when she called change within Lebanon's current 
sectarian system "impossible."  She asserted that the Taif 
Accord, which ended Lebanon's fifteen-year civil war, failed 
in its intention of making government representation more 
fairly distributed among Sunni, Shia, and Christian sects. 
Instead, she said, Taif divided Lebanese society into 
confessions, making secularism impossible.  No side would 
accept a secular representative since a certain number of 
sectarian representatives are allotted under the current 
system; a secular candidate would weaken the sect's voice in 
local and national politics. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Ghada Al-Yafi, an independent and daughter of former 
Lebanese Prime Minister Abdallah El-Yafi with political 
aspirations for the 2009 parliamentary elections, offered a 
proposal -- supported around the table -- for the 
restructuring of the Lebanese political system.  She argued 
that parliament, assigned to make laws for all Lebanese, 
should, in fact, make laws for all Lebanese.  They should not 
focus on their particular region or sect when making laws for 
the whole country and should, therefore, not be elected 
solely by their home constituents.  The cabinet would serve 
as the sectarian representative body and the parliament would 
be elected by all Lebanese.  This would require that 
politicians do more than offer patronage to a select group to 
win office.  Parliamentary candidates would need to appeal to 
a broad slice of Lebanon and, supposedly, have more 
qualifications for the role of lawmaker. Municipal councils 
-- elected from people living in the region -- would act as 
place of first complaint for local issues (a role currently 
held by party bosses and MPs). 
 
¶9. (SBU) Al-Yafi said the sectarian makeup of the Lebanese 
system hindered women in particular, as party bosses.  When 
faced with the choice of a male or a female for a specific 
seat in a specific system, rarely pick a female candidate. 
Until elections move away from hand-picking strong candidates 
for particular seats on party lists, women will be 
disadvantaged. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Al Yafi and many other participants were impressed 
by the transparency in the electoral process they observed in 
the U.S.  They named improvements in transparency as a first 
step to improving the quality of politics in Lebanon.  The 
women, representing both sides of the Lebanese political 
spectrum, agreed that they preferred to work with or compete 
against honest people with different viewpoints than corrupt 
people with similar political stances to their own.  However, 
they noted that currently corrupt politics feed off of more 
corrupt politics; March 14 and March 8 opposition leaders 
have "dirty hands," so neither side forces the other to 
reform. 
 
PRACTICAL PLANS, THE MEDIA 
 
-------------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Agreeing that big ideas need practical plans, 
several participants mentioned media as a useful tool to 
bring women into politics.  They discussed using themselves 
as an example of women from opposing political parties who 
are working together with the goal of improving Lebanon. 
They agreed that younger women -- who commonly have no desire 
to participate in politics -- need role models who 
acknowledge changing Lebanon's political process will take 
time but believe the change is possible. 
 
¶12. (SBU) Interestingly, participants mentioned Hizballah as 
an organization that genuinely encourages women to 
participate in grass roots activities and in lower-level 
politics.  They cited an implicit discouragement by Hizballah 
for women to run in parliamentary elections, but noted that a 
prominent Shi'a woman, Rima Fakhry, has served on Hizballah's 
political bureau for two years. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶13. (SBU) The themes echoed throughout the November 19 
luncheon suggest that the number of female MPs (five out of 
128 seats) will not increase significantly in the Spring 2009 
elections.  However, political party outreach and activism 
programs, along with pressure on party bosses, could improve 
women's chances in 2010 municipal elections and 2013 
parliamentary elections. 
 
¶14. (SBU) MEPI alumni present seemed genuinely motivated by 
their trip to the U.S.  Most have not yet formed concrete 
project proposals to start changing the Lebanese political 
system or to increase female representatives in politics, but 
some of their ideas -- such as urging party bosses to put 
women candidates on lists, particularly in uncontested seats 
-- could start a positive trend.  A recent NDI study notes 
lack of family backing as a common obstacle for potential 
female candidates.  It also suggests party bosses will pick 
known, family-backed male allies over the independent female 
candidates mentioned.  End comment. 
 
SISON