Fed Event: Promoting Political Reform in Lebanon: Opportunities and Challenges

September 29th - 10:30am @ Beacon Hotel, 1615 Rhode Island Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

Over the past fifteen months, Lebanon has held two critical elections: the June 2009 parliamentary elections and the May 2010 municipal elections. Limited but important electoral reforms accompanied both polls, and the elections could mark the beginning of Lebanon’s transition to a stable democracy. Many view electoral and other political reforms as critical to managing Lebanon’s complex sectarian diversity. However, a dangerous escalation in tensions with Israel and the increased potential for internal unrest with possible indictments by the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon underscore the challenges along Lebanon’s difficult path to reform and stability.

In this event, co-sponsored with the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), Lebanese Interior Minister Ziad Baroud will discuss the pursuit of political reform in Lebanon from his unique vantage point as a longstanding civil society activist who was subsequently appointed as Interior Minister. Tamara Wittes, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern affairs, will offer a U.S. policy perspective on the opportunities and challenges of democracy promotion in Lebanon, placing Lebanon in a broader regional context of US democracy promotion strategy in the Middle East. Richard Chambers, Chief of Party in Lebanon for IFES, will provide remarks from the perspective of an on-the-ground democracy promotion organization, working towards long term electoral reform and strengthened election administration in Lebanon.

Speakers:

H.E. Ziad Baroud, Minister of Interior and Municipalities, Republic of Lebanon
Tamara Cofman Wittes, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs, U.S. Department of State
Richard Chambers, Chief of Party, Lebanon International Foundation for Electoral Systems
Mona Yacoubian, Moderator, Director of the Lebanon Working Group, U.S. Institute of Peace

Please contact Leslie Thompson at mailto:jclaes@usip.org with any general questions about this event.