Decentralization in Lebanon

Decentralization is the Key The indictment, international tribunal and formation of government have dominated the Lebanese’s concern lately. This played an important role in forgetting about other crucial issues that need to be discussed in order to ensure the stable growth of Lebanon. Many people blame the Doha agreement for the civil war and for all the chaos in Lebanon. Given the Lebanese situation today, shouldn’t the Lebanese government adopt a different political system, such as federalism, to go back to stable growth? An important article in the Lebanese constitution states that there must be an even development between regions on the educational, social and economic level to ensure stability and unity. ( 'The Lebanese Constitution: A Reference Edition in English Translation ' ).According to the CIA world Fact book, 4,143,101 people are all controlled under the same central authority. How will all regions be treated equally if the main power comes from the center as in the capital only? Are the other far regions such as Akar responsible for this disharmony? A good solution to avoid dissonance between Lebanese regions is decentralization since it scatters the powers and duties of the government among several local authorities and ensures equality. The first time Lebanon came across the concept of decentralization was in the civil war period (1975-1990) (ICL-Lebanon). Founder of the Lebanese Forces and Kataeb leader, Bachir Gemayel suggested adopting the idea of decentralization. However, after he was elected he forgot about it since he felt no threat to the Christian society now that the presidency was in his hands. Instead, he went for a central government in all the 10452km2. After his assassination by the Syrian intelligence, his brother Amine Gemayel opted to represent his legacy although he was against federalism. Ever since, several Lebanese Forces leaders such as Elie Hobeika wanted to adopt an anti-federalist position due to Syrian

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