Hizbullah's parliamentary bloc on Thursday reiterated the party's call for approving an electoral law based on the proportional representation system in order to ensure “fair representation.”
“An electoral law that would best comply with the stipulations and content of the Document of National Accord (Taef Accord) and the articles of the Lebanese Constitution would be one ensuring proper, fair and effective representation through a system that is fully based on proportional representation,” the Loyalty to Resistance bloc said in a statement issued after its weekly meeting.
“Accordingly, the Loyalty to Resistance bloc reaffirms its call for endorsing full proportional representation in a single electorate or in a few expanded electorates so that the Lebanese can have a representative, modern, effective and fair electoral law that can preserve coexistence,” the bloc added.
Hizbullah has repeatedly called for an electoral law based on proportional representation but other political parties, especially al-Mustaqbal Movement, have rejected the proposal and argued that the party's controversial arsenal of arms would prevent serious competition in regions where the Iran-backed party is influential.
Mustaqbal, the Lebanese Forces and the Progressive Socialist Party have meanwhile proposed a hybrid electoral law that mixes the proportional representation and the winner-takes-all systems.
The country has not voted for a parliament since 2009, with the legislature instead twice extending its own mandate.
The 2009 polls were held under an amended version of the 1960 electoral law.
The national dialogue parties announced Wednesday that they will tackle the electoral law in three consecutive sessions that will be held on August 2, 3 and 4.
Naharnet Newsdesk
Source: http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/212049-hizbullah-bloc-urges-electoral...
