issue number 132 |July 2013 LEBANON’S PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IF HELD EXTENSION OF PARLIAMENT’S TERM WEIGHED BY THE CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL THE MONTHLY INTERVIEWS www.iimonthly.com Published by Information International sal GEORGE DAMON LEBANON’S USURPED COASTAL PROPERTIES Lebanon 5,000LL | Saudi Arabia 15SR | UAE 15DHR | Jordan 2JD| Syria 75SYP | Iraq 3,500IQD | Kuwait 1.5KD | Qatar 15QR | Bahrain 2BD | Oman 2OR | Yemen 15YRI | Egypt 10EP | Europe 5Euros July INDEX 2013 4 LEBANON’S USURPED COASTAL PROPERTIES 11 LEBANON’S PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IF HELD 16 EXTENSION OF PARLIAMENT’S TERM WEIGHED BY THE CONSTITUTIONAL COUNCIL 18 MIXED MARRIAGES IN LEBANON (2) THE NORTH MOHAFAZA 22 MARINE FISHING: RESOURCE NEEDING REGULATION P: 26 P: 22 23 RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME: DR. HANNA SAADAH 24 MEASURING THE ELEMENT OF KNOWLEDGE IN NATIONAL ECONOMY: ANTOINE BOUTROS 25 THE ADOLESCENCE CRISIS: DR. MICHEL NAWFAL 26 HOW DO LEBANESE SEE THEMSELVES?: MAËVA DREVET 27 INTERVIEW: ACS HEADMASTER GEORGE DAMON P: 16 29 BADER - YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM 31 POPULAR CULTURE 44 HISTORY OF THE BAATH PARTY IN SYRIA 32 DEBUNKING MYTH#71: SAF’IT HAWA OR HOW 45 THE CHRISTIANS OF IRAQ THE WIND MADE US SICK 46 IRAQ: JOURNALISTS’ GRAVEYARD 33 MUST-READ BOOKS: AMERICAN CULTURAL ANNIHILATION: THE ENGLISH CURSE OF CANAAN 47 IRAQI PARLIAMENT 34 MUST-READ CHILDREN’S BOOK: KNOWLEDGE MASTERS: HISTORY OF THE WORLD 49 REAL ESTATE PRICES IN LEBANON - MAY 2013 35 LEBANON FAMILIES: FAMILIES DENOTING 50 DID YOU KNOW THAT?: PERFORMANCE OF LEBANESE TOWNS (4) THE WORLD’S BIGGEST AUTOMAKERS IN 2011 36 DISCOVER LEBANON: AAINATA 51 LEBANON’S STATS 37 MAY 2013 HIGHLIGHTS 41 THIS MONTH IN HISTORY- LEBANON JULY 1958: US MARINES IN BEIRUT 43 THIS MONTH IN HISTORY- ARAB WORLD THE ASSASSINATION OF KING ABDULLAH I OF JORDAN |EDITORIAL THE STOLEN LAND Once upon a time, there was a small village in a country called Lebanon. The village was often mistakenly called “Shekka”, for people did not realize its real name: El-Heri. One day, a man decided to buy a property by El-Heri’s seaside and demolished all infringements around the area, so that his property became exemplary. Slowly, beach sand accumulated, and the shore was restored, an event that was quickly celebrated by the “neighbors” who hurried to launch advertising campaigns urging people to come and swim at the most wonderful beach in Lebanon, [ and cutting trees and excavating land. Ironically, the landowner became the transgressor, while the beach swimmers and visitors were subjected to threats at gunpoint, should they fail to pay. This is not a rift between March 8 and March 14 Forces. This is simply a story of people who place themselves above the law. Railways, public roads and beaches are all victims of \ Transportation, which prohibits charging money for access to the beach and urges the settlement of all infringements on public property. Picking holes in the previous or future practices of March 8 or March 14 Forces should never stem from hatred or envy or be employed for personal political gain. Encroaching on public and private property, threatening people and fabricating accusations to cover theft are all punishable \ and they are nestled within both March 8 and March 14 Forces. There is another stamp though: the respect of the laws, oneself and others and the abstention from R[ "#$%O' \()( So let it be known that however strong those in power are, only justice can grant them immunity, for it is the foundation of governance. From a sound judiciary emerges a sound nation.” ) '*) to sleazy politics and nepotism. Coastal and riverside properties are stolen in Lebanon and this is criminalized by the law. Indeed, the matter is not connected to March 8 and March 14 Forces, but to having access to electricity, roads, schools and hospitals and to maintaining values and principles that can save our society and what we call “a state” from decay in both form and substance. 4 | LEADER LEBANON’S USURPED COASTAL PROPERTIES Since the end of the Lebanese civil war in 1990 to date, three presidents and 15 governments have succeeded to power in Lebanon. All ministerial statements issued in the past 20 years or so have recognized the need for taxing illegal coastal properties, but no action has been taken to tackle the problem. The same monotonous recital has been repeated so many times that people have eventually become tired of it especially that no actual measures have been taken to control the expansion of unlicensed and illegal properties along the shoreline. Even those, who were licensed to put up structures on public property, have overstepped their licensed areas and are paying hardly any fees to the state for occupying the land. The chaotic status of coastal properties is an indication of an impotent political system incapable of resolving the existing encroachments, especially that politicians have agreed to \ \ Legal Framework of the Occupation Permanent facilities may not be erected on coastal of Coastal Public Properties public property except for sporting facilities measuring no more than 5% of the total area of the Decision No. 144/s of 1925 A General Saray, High Commissioner of the Republic + $ / 0) License seeker should own a property neighboring and the Mountain of the Druze issued on June 10, the coastal public area he wishes to occupy, 3567'399;) provided that such area is at best twice as big as including coastal ones. Despite being 75 years old, the private adjacent property. the law is still in force today. Decree No. 2522 of 1992 The decision stipulated that public property > ' 6766 # 37 3556 should not be sold, nor should ownership over it [>'36?9367 be acquired with time. The seaside, including the 35AK farthest distance that waves can reach in winter in appraisal of every square meter. The decree divided the addition to sand and gravel beaches, makes part of 0)K@N[ public property. The state and the municipalities rating. Occupiers were to pay for each square meter have the right to issue temporary occupancy lump-sum fees ranging from LBP 10 000 (from licenses for these properties for a period of one year 'Lebanon to the north border of Mennieh) that may be renewed by tacit consent, granted that to LBP 1 250 000 (from the northern side of the the occupancy fees are mentioned in the working or ' occupancy licenses. ) X #Y Z rule is used to determine the annual fees: Decree No. 4810 of 1966 >'9?3@#6935AA Occupancy fee= Occupied area × value of a disposition of coastal property and contains major square meter × 0.50% (or 0.75% or 2% or 0.1% provisions aimed at protecting such property: depending on the nature of the facility- See the example in the following box). Coastal public property shall remain at the disposal of the public and no one shall have the right to use The decree permitted free reclamation of the sea area it in favor of a personal or private interest, unless provided that the license holders do not impose fees in exceptional cases where the project bears a on the boats and yachts using the waters or prohibit )( citizens from using them. Otherwise, they will be industry. subjected to taxation at a proportion of 1 per thousand. issue 132 | The Monthly is published by Information International s.a.l. LEADER | 5 Status of the Occupied Areas of the Coastal Coastal Occupancy Revenues Public Property >'6766;5 The occupied areas of the coastal public property are state charges on the legally occupied seafront properties A% 0`*9K)Z{) ?[A @@@ 2 licensed and draft decree aimed to raise those fees to LBP 15.7 billion legalized by virtue of government decrees prior to per year, but to no avail. The draft decree still falls short the 1975 civil war. Occupiers of these areas pay of giving the state its fair share of income from Lebanon’s their dues to the Lebanese state (Table 1). shores as no fees are being collected from the aggressors, 3576?6[2 licensed by which encourages further violations. However trivial the virtue of permits issued between 1990 and 2012. revenues channeled to the state, it is also unreasonable Occupiers of the majority of these areas pay the to impose higher fees on the licensed occupiers while fees required of them and include municipalities exempting the illegal ones, whose annual revenues are and other public institutions like the Council for estimated at USD 200 million. Development and Reconstruction (Table 2). permits issued by virtue of government decrees. How are the annual fees calculated? Z 9K @@@ 2 and their occupiers pay for the licensed square meters only, To calculate the annual fees that occupiers must ]Z)KY pay, the following is adopted: Unlicensed areas amounting to 1 500 000 m2 and occupied during the war and the years that Swimming pools and baths without dormitories followed. Controversy over these areas might be owe the state a fee amounting to 0.5% of the resolved as their occupiers have ownership over value of the existing or reclaimed land they (]Z)KY occupy, 0.1% of the open water area and 1% of _ A7@ @@@ 2 and the closed water area. occupied during the war. It is unlikely that the Seaside hotels and resorts for tourists owe the dispute over these areas will be settled as their state a fee amounting to 0.75% of the value of occupiers have no adjacent private property. the occupied land, 0.1% of the open water area ) and 1% of the closed water area. municipalities without obtaining a permit. Industrial and commercial facilities owe the state a fee amounting to 0.5% of the value of the occupied land, 0.1% of the open water area and 1% of the closed water area.