Makzoumi after meeting Salam: No to turning exceptional measures into a permanent reality… and Beirut is a city of the state and the law

MP Fouad Makhzoumi wrote on his account on the “X” platform:

“Today, together with my colleague former Deputy Prime Minister Ghassan Hasbani, I held a meeting with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam at the Grand Serail, where we discussed a number of key national issues that concern اللبنانيين in general and the people of Beirut in particular.

The focus was on the question I had addressed to the government regarding structures erected on Beirut’s public maritime properties under the framework of sheltering displaced persons, especially in light of circulating information about a tendency to move the displaced to public lands and establish شبه دائمة camps. We reiterate our firm humanitarian position of standing by every affected person and every displaced individual, and our full commitment to preserving human dignity and ensuring the required care. But at the same time, we clearly reject any attempt to turn the exceptional measures imposed by the circumstances of war into a permanent reality outside the framework of the state, the law, and civil regulation.

I raised clear questions to the government concerning the legal basis for these structures, the official bodies supervising them, and the timeline set to address this issue once the exceptional circumstances end, in addition to the measures taken to protect public safety, the marine environment, and citizens’ right of access to public maritime property.

Beirut has always been and will remain an open and supportive city, but it is also a city with its own identity, the rights of its people, and its public properties, which must be preserved and protected from the imposition of any permanent fait accompli.

During the meeting, we also stressed the need for Beirut to remain a safe, demilitarized city, fully subject to the authority of the state and the law, in line with the position announced by Beirut’s MPs at the conference we held at the Phoenicia Hotel on April 16, where we affirmed our categorical rejection of any armed manifestations or any security reality outside the framework of legitimacy within the capital.

We also discussed the issue of a general amnesty, reaffirming our position that this file must be approached from the standpoint of comprehensive national justice, بعيداً عن الانتقائية أو الاستنسابية, and that it should apply to everyone according to unified and clear standards, in a way that preserves the rights of the state and the rights of the people and achieves equality among Lebanese within the framework of law and institutions.

In conclusion, I extended my congratulations to Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and to His Excellency the President of the Republic for the efforts being made within the framework of the ongoing negotiations in Washington, and for their insistence on reaching an agreement that achieves a final end to the war, completes the demarcation process, and secures the return of Lebanese prisoners and detainees, thereby opening the door to the reconstruction of the South and the safe and dignified return of our people to their villages and homes.”