Meeting of the general assembly in the Sectarian Council headed by Sheikh Al-Aql and attended by Jumblatt and other Parliament Members
2021-04-27
His Eminence, Sheikh Aql of the Druze monotheistic faith (Tawhid), Sheikh Naeem Hasan chaired the meeting of the General Assembly in the Sectarian Council at the Community House in Beirut, in the presence of the President of the Progressive Socialist Party Mr. Walid Jumblatt, the head of the “Democratic Gathering”, MP Taymour Jumblatt, representatives Hadi Abu Al-Hosn, Faisal Al-Sayegh, Wael Abu Faour, former MP Ghazi Al-Aridi, the chairperson and members of the Druze sect, as well as the members of the Council. Various general topics as well as matters of the council and the work of its committees were discussed.
Speaking at the meeting, His Eminence Sheikh Al-Aql, said the following:
“Honorable attendance,
Today, at the national level, we are in the midst of the most difficult challenges as the dark picture has not yet fully revealed all the danger areas. Lebanon, which we knew is in danger. The possibilities of its rise are becoming narrow under the pressure of the crises arising from all sides. The pandemic not only strikes people's health, but it also strikes politics, the economy, and the entire national assets. Furthermore, there are other pandemics which are striking in parallel, such as the loss of national cohesion, the decline of political performance to the lowest levels, the frustrating tendency towards fragmentation and the provocation of sectarian populism, as well as lingering in the heart of the abyss in the midst of a world indulging in the game of great nations and the renewed struggle of empires; the old of which and the new.
Today, in the face of all these fateful crises, it would be fair to say that Walid Beik Jumblatt had always anticipated and preempted the presentation of the means of confrontation, by supporting its means at all levels, by consolidating the foundations of resistance and by supporting every initiative that would save the national entity in its people and its meanings. We thank him for his efforts, especially the ones related to combating the emerging pandemic and everything that fortifies society with resilience.
This reality requires awareness with pure impartiality. We in the sectarian council and with you, and through the principles that will protect the clan, not in its sectarian sense, but with its national-Arab affiliation rooted in the core of the general social fabric and coexistence, we will continue.
This council, which is representative of all sectors of society, administration, committees, staff, systems and conscious elites, must be employed in every effort seeking the good of people, the good of society, and the good of the homeland, regardless of the difficulties and obstacles faced. And if our first phase of responsibility is the phase of preparation, planting, and confronting disputes with the judicial decisions that have been concluded, then it is necessary to harvest good one day, and we ask God Almighty to inspire some in the sect and the homeland that the institutions are indispensable for the sake of exiting the circle of chaos. God is the Grantor, and He is our only Helper.
Jumblatt:
The President of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, also had a word, during which he said: “After eighty years you as the Sectarian Council have restored the right of the Druze, and this marks a victory for the council, whose establishment and unity of the office of His Eminence took us more than fifty years, and thus the unity of the word. The future is with us in relation to the possibility of investing this land for the public good one day. "
He added, "Today I cannot promise anything, and I did not take any initiative, I just answered an invitation by President Michel Aoun, and everything got shook. I was not the initiator and I said there must be a settlement. At the height of the war when the cannons were bombing, we formed a government of reconciliation with President Amin Gemayel, with whom we were at odds at the time. It did not produce results, but we formed a government at the height of the war in 1984. You shall deal with and talk with people, and we tried to form a settlement but the circumstances did not allow. Today, if anyone in the country thinks that we are being taken into consideration by the international community, then they are mistaken, and if the major national stakeholders do not initiate an internal settlement, then neither Moscow nor any other country could take our role in an internal settlement, which we think may open the door to negotiations with international bodies, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in order to reduce the economic and social burdens and provide us with some financing... These are international institutions, provided that we, as Lebanese, unify our financial figures. During the last attempt there were three different financial figures, the difference between each was in billions; last of which was with MP Ibrahim Kanaan. I repeat again that I did not take any initiative, but rather put forward a settlement and withdrew from the issue. God willing, inspiration will come to them, because the upcoming is more difficult and the surrounding circumstances would be each on his own, and perhaps there is hope from the French initiative for what remains. "
Jumblatt continued: “Together with the good ones internally and in the diaspora, we have made an effort related to supporting the well-known Arab origin Druze clan (Bani Maarouf), by supporting the health sector and confronting Corona, and the burden will increase in the absence of a settlement, as well as additional burdens related to immigration of the brains, for example Ain w Zain Hospital lost thirty doctors and the American University more than a hundred, and others are on the way. Unfortunately, there is no horizon. Our mission is to immunize health institutions and the citizens, es[pecially the mixed areas from Al-Kharroub region to Rashaya and Hasbaya passing through mount Lebanon, and speaking of which, I requested the Minister of Health to replace the board of directors of the Hasbaya hospital, who could not cope with the Corona crisis or even assist in the treatment of the average patients. We want a new administration that does this away from politics. So the important thing now is how to support the medical staff in hospitals of doctors and nurses before the hospitals become empty. This is a new joint mission and I thank all those who contributed, including expatriates from the monotheistic faith (Tawhid) and other benevolent people who have responded well and are able to do more and who have cooperated in this matter. I hope that, in the new missions of the sectarian council, as I mentioned before, after returning the right to its owners to all Druze, there will come an opportunity to invest this property for the public good, the needy, and the institutions. "
Statement of the board:
After the meeting, the confessional council issued the following statement:
First: The relevant forces responsible for forming the government are called upon to stop obstruction and exchange of accusations, plunging the country into the barricades of attitudes that push it deep into the abyss. They are required to form a government that implements the required reform program to start the desired solutions against the worsening crises as soon as possible.
Second: The continuing official neglecting of the scourge of smuggling leads to more direct damages to the livelihood of the Lebanese people who pay double prices, the last of which is the farmers' loss of the opportunity to export their products. And while the sectarian council appeals to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Gulf states to revert the decision of preventing Lebanese agricultural exports, at the same time it demands the Lebanese agencies to control the borders and to stop this fatal leakage that is destroying the Lebanese economy, especially since the current support mechanism drains all the remaining funds of the Lebanese in the service of the smugglers and monopolists, which is making it necessary to endorse the rationalization of financial support on the goods.
Third: The delay in issuing judicial formations, and practices that affect the prestige and credibility of the judiciary body, expose the judiciary body to losing its immunity and confidence by the people. In view of this, the Council reaffirms the urgent necessity to urgently pass the Law on the Independence of the Judiciary body and to strictly apply it, in parallel with approving judicial formations, to protect justice and the truth from the scourge of maliciousness and revenge.
Fourth: The health situation remains present with all its priorities, and under the pressure of the economic crisis and the pandemic, the top priority is to support the medical and hospital sector, in parallel with the repeated call to citizens to adhere to all preventive measures without any negligence, as well as registration to receive appropriate vaccinations in order to immunize personal health and immunity of the whole community.
Fifth: In return for the continued aggression of the Israeli occupation on the occupied territories in the Golan heights as well as in all of Palestine, where it continues the processes of Judaization and attempts to change the identity, the Arab resistant will of the people of the occupied Golan remains stronger than all the exaggeration of the occupation, and the renewed Palestinian violence in the uprising of the Jerusalemites remains the best evidence of the sincerity of patriotism, history and identity, and the strength of the will to live, no matter how long the occupation lasts.
Beirut on: 27/04/2021
Speaking at the meeting, His Eminence Sheikh Al-Aql, said the following:
“Honorable attendance,
Today, at the national level, we are in the midst of the most difficult challenges as the dark picture has not yet fully revealed all the danger areas. Lebanon, which we knew is in danger. The possibilities of its rise are becoming narrow under the pressure of the crises arising from all sides. The pandemic not only strikes people's health, but it also strikes politics, the economy, and the entire national assets. Furthermore, there are other pandemics which are striking in parallel, such as the loss of national cohesion, the decline of political performance to the lowest levels, the frustrating tendency towards fragmentation and the provocation of sectarian populism, as well as lingering in the heart of the abyss in the midst of a world indulging in the game of great nations and the renewed struggle of empires; the old of which and the new.
Today, in the face of all these fateful crises, it would be fair to say that Walid Beik Jumblatt had always anticipated and preempted the presentation of the means of confrontation, by supporting its means at all levels, by consolidating the foundations of resistance and by supporting every initiative that would save the national entity in its people and its meanings. We thank him for his efforts, especially the ones related to combating the emerging pandemic and everything that fortifies society with resilience.
This reality requires awareness with pure impartiality. We in the sectarian council and with you, and through the principles that will protect the clan, not in its sectarian sense, but with its national-Arab affiliation rooted in the core of the general social fabric and coexistence, we will continue.
This council, which is representative of all sectors of society, administration, committees, staff, systems and conscious elites, must be employed in every effort seeking the good of people, the good of society, and the good of the homeland, regardless of the difficulties and obstacles faced. And if our first phase of responsibility is the phase of preparation, planting, and confronting disputes with the judicial decisions that have been concluded, then it is necessary to harvest good one day, and we ask God Almighty to inspire some in the sect and the homeland that the institutions are indispensable for the sake of exiting the circle of chaos. God is the Grantor, and He is our only Helper.
Jumblatt:
The President of the Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, also had a word, during which he said: “After eighty years you as the Sectarian Council have restored the right of the Druze, and this marks a victory for the council, whose establishment and unity of the office of His Eminence took us more than fifty years, and thus the unity of the word. The future is with us in relation to the possibility of investing this land for the public good one day. "
He added, "Today I cannot promise anything, and I did not take any initiative, I just answered an invitation by President Michel Aoun, and everything got shook. I was not the initiator and I said there must be a settlement. At the height of the war when the cannons were bombing, we formed a government of reconciliation with President Amin Gemayel, with whom we were at odds at the time. It did not produce results, but we formed a government at the height of the war in 1984. You shall deal with and talk with people, and we tried to form a settlement but the circumstances did not allow. Today, if anyone in the country thinks that we are being taken into consideration by the international community, then they are mistaken, and if the major national stakeholders do not initiate an internal settlement, then neither Moscow nor any other country could take our role in an internal settlement, which we think may open the door to negotiations with international bodies, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in order to reduce the economic and social burdens and provide us with some financing... These are international institutions, provided that we, as Lebanese, unify our financial figures. During the last attempt there were three different financial figures, the difference between each was in billions; last of which was with MP Ibrahim Kanaan. I repeat again that I did not take any initiative, but rather put forward a settlement and withdrew from the issue. God willing, inspiration will come to them, because the upcoming is more difficult and the surrounding circumstances would be each on his own, and perhaps there is hope from the French initiative for what remains. "
Jumblatt continued: “Together with the good ones internally and in the diaspora, we have made an effort related to supporting the well-known Arab origin Druze clan (Bani Maarouf), by supporting the health sector and confronting Corona, and the burden will increase in the absence of a settlement, as well as additional burdens related to immigration of the brains, for example Ain w Zain Hospital lost thirty doctors and the American University more than a hundred, and others are on the way. Unfortunately, there is no horizon. Our mission is to immunize health institutions and the citizens, es[pecially the mixed areas from Al-Kharroub region to Rashaya and Hasbaya passing through mount Lebanon, and speaking of which, I requested the Minister of Health to replace the board of directors of the Hasbaya hospital, who could not cope with the Corona crisis or even assist in the treatment of the average patients. We want a new administration that does this away from politics. So the important thing now is how to support the medical staff in hospitals of doctors and nurses before the hospitals become empty. This is a new joint mission and I thank all those who contributed, including expatriates from the monotheistic faith (Tawhid) and other benevolent people who have responded well and are able to do more and who have cooperated in this matter. I hope that, in the new missions of the sectarian council, as I mentioned before, after returning the right to its owners to all Druze, there will come an opportunity to invest this property for the public good, the needy, and the institutions. "
Statement of the board:
After the meeting, the confessional council issued the following statement:
First: The relevant forces responsible for forming the government are called upon to stop obstruction and exchange of accusations, plunging the country into the barricades of attitudes that push it deep into the abyss. They are required to form a government that implements the required reform program to start the desired solutions against the worsening crises as soon as possible.
Second: The continuing official neglecting of the scourge of smuggling leads to more direct damages to the livelihood of the Lebanese people who pay double prices, the last of which is the farmers' loss of the opportunity to export their products. And while the sectarian council appeals to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Gulf states to revert the decision of preventing Lebanese agricultural exports, at the same time it demands the Lebanese agencies to control the borders and to stop this fatal leakage that is destroying the Lebanese economy, especially since the current support mechanism drains all the remaining funds of the Lebanese in the service of the smugglers and monopolists, which is making it necessary to endorse the rationalization of financial support on the goods.
Third: The delay in issuing judicial formations, and practices that affect the prestige and credibility of the judiciary body, expose the judiciary body to losing its immunity and confidence by the people. In view of this, the Council reaffirms the urgent necessity to urgently pass the Law on the Independence of the Judiciary body and to strictly apply it, in parallel with approving judicial formations, to protect justice and the truth from the scourge of maliciousness and revenge.
Fourth: The health situation remains present with all its priorities, and under the pressure of the economic crisis and the pandemic, the top priority is to support the medical and hospital sector, in parallel with the repeated call to citizens to adhere to all preventive measures without any negligence, as well as registration to receive appropriate vaccinations in order to immunize personal health and immunity of the whole community.
Fifth: In return for the continued aggression of the Israeli occupation on the occupied territories in the Golan heights as well as in all of Palestine, where it continues the processes of Judaization and attempts to change the identity, the Arab resistant will of the people of the occupied Golan remains stronger than all the exaggeration of the occupation, and the renewed Palestinian violence in the uprising of the Jerusalemites remains the best evidence of the sincerity of patriotism, history and identity, and the strength of the will to live, no matter how long the occupation lasts.
Beirut on: 27/04/2021
