General Law of Amnesty … stillborn? Phalanges

Maysam Rizk wrote on the news:

The general amnesty law proposal will be at the top of the agenda of the legislative session that will take place over the course of two days (Wednesday and Thursday) amid field movements, and after a political movement that failed to generate a climate of consensus. The law seems to be born dead, especially since the proposed formula does not satisfy any of the blocks, although each of them has a category related to the proposal.

The proposed general amnesty law, which was previously debated in the meetings of the mixed parliamentary committees, will be presented today in the General Assembly of Parliament. And the last session that witnessed a strong debate between the blocs – especially in regards to amnesty for agents fleeing to occupied Palestine since 2000 – and today’s session, in which the proposal is in the top of his agenda, did not witness the “general amnesty” no new amendment. The session was preceded by political contacts and parliamentary coordination, especially between MPs Yassin Jaber and Hadi Hobeish, as civil society bodies made proposals to MP Jaber to amend some articles, which in turn presented them to the blocs. The result? There is no progress, and it is likely that the proposal will not go its way in the committee for a fundamental reason, which is that the proposed formula does not satisfy any of the blocks, although each of them has a category that concerns them, and the proposed amendments, especially from Representative Bahia Hariri, will be difficult to discuss before today’s session.

The daily debate on the general amnesty law did not stop, showing sectarianism and sectarianism in the cases and the difference in perception of basic issues, from terrorism to dealing with the Israeli enemy, while the pressure increased recently. after the outbreak of the Crown crisis in prisons on the one hand, and on the other as a consequence of events in the North. And the assault on the army by terrorists, some of whom had previously been jailed, and these two events represented an opportunity for each side to hold its ground.
“He neither walks nor walks,” according to MP Jamil Al-Sayed, who referred to the contacts that preceded the session to ensure the majority of his followers. Al-Sayed emphasized that MP Hariri added some amendments, including those related to Article 9, which provides for the replacement of the death penalty by forced labor, and that convicts are exempt from serving their sentences when two conditions are met: that the period of the sentence executed is not less than 20 years in prison and the prisoner has completed 65 years, since Hariri proposed abolishing the second condition. Regarding the issue of people fleeing to occupied Palestine, the suggestion is to withdraw article 8 of the law, on the condition that it becomes a government decree, especially since there is a law previously issued on them. Al-Sayed says that there are “many mines that open the way to different interpretations” but that there is an intention, especially from the president of the council, to approve it.
The “Democratic Meeting” still maintains its position on the law. And unlike all the other blocs, he believes that the current formula is balanced and eliminates injustice, “it does not include terrorism or financial crimes,” says MP Bilal Abdullah. Voting with the proposal, according to Abdullah, has “health, social and national reasons”, and the cases excluded from it are much more than the category that will be covered by the amnesty, and is limited to some serious crimes and misdemeanors. or those who have not yet been tried but are detained with documents, considering that “the attempt to defame the law is what will prevent its approval.”
Although the “forces” decided not to participate in the session, their position before the law was, and continues to be, rejection. The bloc of the “strong republic” considers that it does not make sense and that it is not framed within the legislation of necessity, and according to its sources, “the Lebanese state can take many measures.” As for the prison crisis, far from dictating an amnesty law ”, knowing that the deputy Walid Jumblatt contacted the forces before the session to persuade them to retreat from their position by tempting them with a clause to pardon the convicted before 2005.
The law was resolved yesterday at the table of the “Strong Lebanon” bloc, which will participate in the session and vote against the proposal, as confirmed by deputy Simon Abi Ramia in a call with “Al-Akhbar.” Abi Ramia confirms that the movement is “absolutely” against the proposal, and agrees with the point of view of the forces on solutions to the prison crisis without amnesty. Abi Ramia asks to return to “the tables prepared by the Minister of Justice Marie-Claude Negm for the detainees who have not paid the fees or have not yet been tried, or have served their sentences but cannot pay the outstanding fines”, noting that “going to solve these cases will reduce a lot.” Overcrowding without a general amnesty ». According to Abu Ramiya, without him, the law has many complications that will not be allowed to pass. Even in the case of those fleeing to occupied Palestine, there are gaps related to those who were born and raised in the enemy entity, and these gaps led to the suspension of the last session of the committees due to the strong disagreement that occurred in this point. Among the most opposed was Congressman Asaad Hardan, who expressed surprise at discussing the law in light of these security conditions, especially after the events in the North and the resurgence of terrorist cells. Hardan, who voiced his objection to the proposal, noted that “the last formula will determine the direction of the vote.” Even the “Future Movement” will not follow the proposal in its current form. Representative Hadi Hobeish confirms it. Despite the importance of the issue of Islamist detainees, the list of amendments tabled by MP Hariri may prove difficult to reach a consensual solution in this regard.

“The problem is in the formula that does not satisfy anyone,” say parliamentary sources. Neither those interested in Islamists support the current formula, nor can the formula to flee to occupied Palestine be a matter of consensus, nor will those related to smugglers, for example, be sufficient, since the items on sale and the category covered by law represent only dozens of expulsions. This is what will make the public body the ultimate graveyard of law.
Criminal trials are the most important!
In the opinion of Congressman Hobeish, the most important thing that the amnesty law proposal is the proposed modification of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Hobeish, who said in a statement on social media, “Congratulations on justice if the law passes,” indicated in a call with “Al-Akhbar” that the most important provisions of the proposed reform of the due process law is that “it is forbidden to summon anyone without a lawyer, and it is forbidden to take their statement without recording this on audio and video, otherwise it is considered invalid”. Therefore, “no one can manufacture files anymore.”