WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 (UPI) -- Members of the Lebanese parliament are calling for the reconstruction and revitalization of the government in an attempt to gain and keep support from the United Nations and western governments, including the United States.
Musbah Ahdab, a Lebanese parliamentarian, addressed a group at the Woodrow Wilson Center last week. He discussed the steps the government needs to take to grow stronger and continue to be supported by the West.
Ahdab's goals were optimistic, and if the Lebanese government does in fact attempt to implement them, there would be immense challenges.
"The whole infrastructure needs to be rebuilt, for the seventh time," Ahdab said. "There has been no victory for anyone yet."
Though the recently passed U.N. Security Council resolution 1701 gave Lebanon an opportunity by extending sovereignty and deploying troops, Lebanese journalist Joyce Karam, Washington correspondent for the London-based Arabic daily newspaper Al Hayat, believes the government has their work cut out for them.
"Based on the last speech given by Hezbollah's leader, the Lebanese government is facing tremendous challenges," said Hisham Melhem, Washington correspondent for An-Nahar. "There are two competing contradictory visions for the future of Lebanon."
Building a more credible government and reconstructing in a transparent way to avoid corruption was high on Ahdab's list. He also wants to see democracy pushed in and Syrian and Israeli agendas forced out.
"We need support from the international community during this transition to avoid meddling from Israel and Syria," Ahdab said.
Support from European countries and the United States would help the Lebanese government regain their legitimacy and rebuild both cities and government.
But there are still rifts within Lebanese communities. Part of Syria's and Iran's agendas has been to keep Shiites, Sunnis and Christians in disagreement.
"Given the divisions, it's hard to see all of the goals achieved anytime soon. The Lebanese society is divided, and as long as the divisions are there you'll hardly see anything achieved," Karam said.
Ahdab also mentioned the importance of an international tribunal to try the assassins who killed former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri.
While the goals are all important and should be strived for to maintain Lebanon's sovereignty, there are more immediate challenges that must be faced.
"More support on the ground is needed. The government is still absent from the scenes of destruction," Karam said. "We need real action, not just promises."
Part of what Syria gained from occupying Lebanon was economic benefits, including the absorption of unemployment and a training ground for their military, said Ahdab. Now Lebanon must rebuild their economy and job structures. He suggested private funding might help to generate jobs.
He set many ambitious goals for the Lebanese parliament, but gave hardly any suggestions as to the means of achieving the goals. The people of Lebanon need to be unified and have their cities rebuilt before government changes can take place.
Before the Israeli invasion in July, there was national dialogue about Hezbollah turning in their weapons, and, for the first time in Lebanese history, Hezbollah was involved in the process.
"Those talks are history now," Karam said.
More than half of the community participated in recent protests.
"The March 14 Movement and most recent Hezbollah and Christian rallies are proof that the youth want to be involved and we should invest in that," Karam said. "Both sides protested peacefully without guns on display or blood on the street and that is unprecedented in the Arab world."
If the international community got involved financially there might be more pressure put on Hezbollah to disarm and assimilate into society, as Ahdab suggested. With support, the government could be the sole provider of services to the people, instead of non-government groups such as Hezbollah.
The U.N. resolution put limitations Hezbollah's control of southern Lebanon, but the Lebanese government needs Europeans and Americans to maintain pressure on Hezbollah so they become a fully-fledged political party, Melhem said.
Disarming Hezbollah would encourage the militia to disband and assimilate into the community, becoming a political party instead of a military force.
There are a number of issues facing the Lebanese government, and it's difficult to place priority on just one or two.
"You have to work on the politics, but you can't ignore the urgent needs of the people," Melhem said.
