A Lebanese Fudge (updated)

How do you make an electoral law in a country where powerful groups have strong, opposing viewpoints? Just give every group a little and hope everyone will be happy.

Nobody in Lebanon has a more difficult Job than that of Fouad Boutros. The elderly ex-MP seemed like an odd candidate to be in charge of such an energy-consuming task: That of presiding over the committee for devising a new electoral law for the eternally squabbling Lebanese.

After months of hard work, hundreds of hours of meetings and consultation sessions, Mr. Boutros will finally present his first draft to the government tomorrow (June 1), and the media has already received leaks.

The proposed project is a Frankenstein; if some people have strong views about the small district, and others have strong views about the large one, why not have both? Mr. Boutros seemed to be asking.
The proposed law will keep the total number of MPs to 128. 77 of which will be elected using a winner-takes-all system in small districts (kazaas), and 51 using a proportional system on larger districts (Mouhafazas). Also, in a welcome move, the whole of Lebanon would be voting in the same day.

Will this please everyone? Signs are not promising: George Adwan of the LF has already dismissed the draft, while Ibrahim Kanaan from the FPM has cautiously welcomed it. It remains to be seen how the final form of the law will be. But what is beyond doubt that it will be similar to what Mr. Boutrous presented: A characterless fudge.

Update: According to Annahar, the draft law reduces the suffrage age to 18, allows Lebanese nationals abroad to vote, and forms an independent body to run the elections, in lieu of the much loathed Ministry of Interior. Also, the draft law includes a quota of 30% for women to stand for the elections.

A little bit for everyone indeed. Just don’t get too excited, this draft will only become law after a lot of dilution…