Lebanon’s Culture Ministry is putting the constitution under the microscope on its centenary, urging citizens, especially young people, to examine their rights and the gap between the text and a century of political practice. The aim is to help Lebanese people read between the lines to understand “their constitutional rights and the political system it established,” Culture Minister Ghassan Salame told Asharq Al-Awsat. It also seeks to “open a debate about the gap between what the constitution stipulates and what has been implemented over a hundred years, exploring the relationship between the constitutional text and political practice in the country,” he said. The centenary events begin with an exhibition titled “Between the Lines of the Constitution,” as Lebanon debates its political system and how its institutions function. Drafting of the 1926 constitution began under the French mandate. Its draft then underwent extensive debate and consultation involving Lebanese figures. Contrary to an easy assumption, it did not copy the French constitution. France had a parliamentary system; Lebanon’s was parliamentary in name, presidential in practice. From the 1926 constitution to the Taif Agreement The exhibition opens on Oct. 8 and runs through the end of the year. Tracing the constitution’s history, Salame stressed that its origins under the French mandate did not make it a replica of France’s constitution. “After independence, the constitution underwent various amendments, some aimed at removing the vestiges of the mandate. The most significant came in 1990, following the adoption of the Document of National Accord, the Taif Agreement,” he said. The Taif Agreement’s importance, Salame said, lies in having “incorporated its proposed amendments into the constitution itself.” “If someone wants to take a major step that would contravene the constitution, that requires a special vote,” he said. “This respects the constitution. Implicitly, the political authorities acknowledge that there is a book they must respect, rather than doing whatever they please.” Constitutional breaches and political exceptions Salame also pointed to cases he considers constitutional breaches, urging Lebanese people to learn about them and debate them as part of their understanding of the constitution. He cited exceptional amendments that allowed a president to be elected outside the timeframe or conditions set by the constitutional text. He warned against treating breaches lightly or turning exceptions into routine political practice. Departures from the text should not become the rule through repetition or appeals to political necessity, he said. Salame also cited political understandings reached outside the constitutional text. Among them was the “troika,” an arrangement among the president, parliament speaker and prime minister in the 1990s that concentrated key decisions in their hands. Another was the 2008 Doha Agreement, which left no constitutional imprint comparable to that of the Taif Agreement. “A political understanding does not, in itself, acquire constitutional status unless it is translated into a constitutional text,” he said. Reading the constitution closely The exhibition began with a basic question, Salame said: How well do Lebanese people know their constitution? “That is why, for the first time, we have brought original documents held in France, including the document signed by the French high commissioner, and other documents that Lebanese people will be able to see for the first time,” he said. The exhibition will go beyond historical documents. It will offer a detailed reading of the constitution in accessible language — an approach reflected in its title, “Between the Lines of the Constitution.” “We want to make the constitution part of Lebanese citizens’ political culture,” Salame said. Constitutional conventions and interpreting the text “No country relies solely on the text. There are constitutional conventions,” Salame said. But he stressed the distinction between constitutional conventions and political practice. Repeating a practice does not automatically make it a constitutional rule. “I want Lebanese people to think: Was this justified? Was it legitimate? These questions must be asked,” he said. Constitutional rights and freedoms “The constitution not only organizes the political system. It also sets out fundamental rights,” Salame said. He highlighted freedom of belief and expression, saying their survival through Lebanon’s crises and wars is a central part of its constitutional experience. “It is no small matter that, after 50 years of all the calamities that have struck Lebanon, everyone can still speak freely, and freedom of opinion and belief remains a constitutionally acquired right that we refuse to relinquish. That is something great,” he said. Documents from the republic’s founding Some original documents were borrowed from France and elsewhere, Salame said. They will be returned to their owners or the institutions that hold them after the exhibition closes. The National Library will retain facsimile copies. The Culture Ministry is targeting young people, particularly school students, seeking to turn the centenary from a historical commemoration into an opportunity to understand Lebanon’s constitutional system. Salame said the exhibition would remain open through the end of the year, with efforts underway to add afternoon hours for school and student visits.
