LEBANON HAS NEVER HAD AN MP LIKE MELHEM KHALAF
January 6, 2024Lebanese Change MP Melhem Khalaf has been staging a sit-in in the Lebanese Parliament since January 19, 2023 in an attempt to force the parliament to abide by the Lebanese Constitution and remain in session until a President is elected.
Khalaf began his sit-in with another Change MP, Dr Najat Saliba, who ended her sit-in on Sept 16, after 242 days, sleeping in the cold and darkened parliament in a show of solidarity for the Law.
In this interview Khalaf says he has become accustomed to the discomfort, dark and mistreatment by some parliament officials, but is determined to continue his protest until the vacancy for the Presidency ends. Lebanon has been without a president since the term of former president, Michel Aoun, ended on 31 October 2022.
Lebanon has been in economic meltdown since 2019 when the Ponzi scheme that was being run by the Lebanese Central Bank under its Governor, Riad Salameh, to keep the country afloat financially unraveled. In 2020 the country defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time in its history and the Lebanese Lira has lost 98 percent of its value. More than 80% of the population are living below the poverty line. The World Bank has called the situation ”among the worst economic crises globally since the mid-19th century.”
The Presidential vacancy has further compounded these problems and deepened the hardship on the citizens. The Parliament has held 12 sessions to elect a president but has failed to confirm a candidate. The Speaker of the House has refused to follow Article 74 of the Constitution requiring the parliament hold ongoing and consecutive sessions until a president is elected to avoid a void.
It’s all a game of politics! However, Melhem and others including Saliba and some of the Change and reformist MPs have tried to force other political parties and the Speaker to place the Constitution above political interests. However, this has been to no avail so far.
Kudos to Khalaf for his defiance and integrity. ✊🏼🇱🇧✊🏼
If you advocate for TRUTH & JUSTICE, *SHARE* to spread the knowledge.
@melhemkhalaf @najat.aoun.saliba
#freeandfairlebanon #lebaneseconstitution #onelebanon #justice4lebanon”
English Script:
Rebecca Semaan: How long have you stayed in the Parliament?
Melhem Khalaf: 342 days.
Rebecca Semaan: Meaning almost 1 year.
Melhem Khalaf: 19 January 2024, it will be 1 year. I became part of this place.
Rebecca Semaan: He is a Representative of the nation, entrusted with the interests of the people who elected him to make their voice heard and represent them in the parliamentary session. Starting from this date, MP Melhem Khalaf refused to implement the constitution according to the whims of some and for the interests of others.
Melhem Khalaf: The sofa is still comfortable, and there is water, even if it’s cold, that’s fine. But we must look at what’s important, what’s important for the citizens. This is essentially a choice to be this close to people, who today may feel abandoned, and forgotten.
Rebecca Semaan: Long time passes quickly sometimes between hard work, preparing files, and parliamentary committee sessions, but the evening period is difficult with the power outage.
Melhem Khalaf: If there was no electricity, I would have to find a lightbulb, I don’t have a lightbulb.
Rebecca Semaan: His steps in Nejmeh Square and the Parliament courtyard caused disruption for some, so the opponents confronted him by making things harder for him.
Melhem Khalaf: I have to move, so I often go walk around the square or further.
Rebecca Semaan: Because he is with the people, and he feels their pain. Khalaf spent Christmas in the South, where he felt the breeze of Palestine and stayed close to the Christmas capital, Bethlehem.
Melhem Khalaf: On Sunday at two o’clock I went, and I felt that I should be next our people in the south and perhaps be closest to Bethlehem and the pain of Gaza.
Rebecca Semaan: Melhem Khalaf stands freely in the face of the system, armed with the constitution. But some colleagues shame him for this steadfastness.
Melhem Khalaf: I want to tell you something. One of the MPs came and asked me: “Why did you come so early?” So, I said to him, “what do you mean? I was sleeping here”. He said to me: “What? Are you sleeping here?” Let them mock me as much as they want, that is not my goal. I look to future generations and tell them: Never lose hope. This is a country that we must work for, to have a country that can live up to our dreams.
Rebecca Semaan: He will not leave behind his parliamentary arena, nor will he take his belongings and leave before a President is elected and before the provisions of the Constitution are implemented. He is visited by his colleagues and ignored by foreign delegations who came for a purpose that has become his primary cause, he is knowledgeable about legal affairs and loyal to his primary profession and parliamentary duty. Since ancient times, we have not seen a Representative like Khalaf in Parliament. Rebecca Semaan, Al Jadeed.
