Thursday, March 27, 2008

The Lebanese Government needs to declare Hezbollah a Terrorist Organization

By: Elias Bejjani

The Lebanese government has done well in boycotting the Arab League summit to be held in Damascus on March 29-30.

We wished that this government had shown more steel and had overcome its hesitation with a potion of courage and clarity earlier. Had it done so, it would have saved our Lebanese tortured people lots of intimidation, conning, and the Hezbollah “Godly” anger and noise, as well as General Michel Aoun's lost and cheating general Herculean postures which surpassed basic decency, morality, and logic, even reached insolence and insult to the Lebanese people intelligence and memory.

This clear boycott re-establishes the authority of the Lebanese government and confirms that it is legitimate and constitutional despite the screams and insults of Michel Aoun and the edicts of Hezbollah’s rulers.

This boycott affirms a proper stand which should have been the framework of the government since the resignation of Hezbollah’s and Amal Movement's Shiite ministers in accordance with Syria’s leaders instructions in fear of the Hariri international Tribunal. Our country, Lebanon, would have been in much better shape had the Saniora government shown firmness earlier.

We would have had a president by now, and the downtown protest would have been over. The thousand miles trip always starts with the first step.

We hope that the Saniora government, after all the disappointments it caused to itself and to Lebanon, has decided to exit the bondage of hesitation to deal with the Syrian-Iranian agents (Hezbollah, Amal Movement, Fundamentalists and Syrian made Lebanese and Palestinian military armed groups) as such, and not as resistance, otherwise we will remain in the endless circle.

The government must begin immediately to name political matters clearly and frankly, and abandon its calling of Hezbollah as resistance, such falsification of history as the liberation of the south, and that prior to the year 2000 it enjoyed the support of all the Lebanese people. Fundamentalist Persian Hezbollah is nothing but an Iranian army in Lebanon according to all measures.

Everyone knows it has only retarded the liberation of the south for 14 years. It has never been a Lebanese option never received unanimity in any fashion or shape.

During the Syrian despicable occupation, Hezbollah, the Iranian armed militia in Lebanon, was imposed logistically upon the Lebanese, and specifically on the Shiite community, with financing, organization, command, decision making process and political will of the Iranian revolutionary guard, as an instrument to export the Iranian Khomeini Islamic revolution.

Hezbollah was supposed to disarm like all other Lebanese militias after the "Taef accord" in 1990, but the Syrian occupation hindered this procedure and imposed it as a resistance armed organization through force and terror and not through consensus.

In summary, we wish to state that the Lebanese government has taken an important step today on the road of national and independent governance. But it will not be able to continue this trek unless it maintains its honesty and witness to the truth.

This Government must move with courage and chivalry from the reaction to the action mode. Will it do so? We hope.

Background
Lebanon Boycotts Damascus Summit, Urges Arabs to 'Shepherd' Relations with SyriaNaharnet/Beirut, 25 Mar 08/ The Lebanese government on Tuesday decided to boycott the forthcoming summit in Damascus and urged Arabs to tackle the deteriorating Lebanese-Syrian relations. Information Minister Ghazi Aridi, reading a statement after a meeting by Premier Fouad Saniora's government, said Lebanon would also boycott preparatory meetings that set the stage for the summit that would convene in Damascus on March 29. The government urged "Arab brethren to shepherd Lebanese-Syrian relations to help Lebanon spread its sovereignty over its territories," the statement said. Such an Arab effort should lead to "sound relations between Lebanon and Syria," it added. The decision, according to the statement, is not tantamount to a breach of Lebanon's relations with Syria, but it reflects the need "to respect Lebanon's sovereignty and independence." The decision was adopted in light of blocking presidential elections and Lebanon's determination to be represented at the summit by "the only Christian president among all Arab heads of state," the statement noted. It also reflects the rejection by the Lebanese people to adapt to the existing presidential void, according to the statement. Such a boycott is a "precedent that has been imposed on us," it noted.The statement concluded that Lebanon would remain committed to inter-Arab relations "especially in confronting Israeli threats." *Elias BejjaniChairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC) Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.comLCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.comCLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Christ has Truly Risen and we are Witnesses to His ResurrectionBy: Elias Bejjani

By: Elias Bejjani

March 23/08

But what does it say? The word is with you, in your mouth, and in your heart; that is, the word of faith, which we preach: that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart, one believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says; whoever believes in him will not be disappointed. (Romans 10: 8 -11)

Oh how great is the need nowadays, to understand the meaning and message of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ! The fast pace of life has turned us merely into sad human shells of crippled beings, consumed by greed, selfishness and the race for worldly pleasures. Our thoughts and actions are directed by trifle material matters and concerns. In the midst of all this moral and ethical havoc, we have forgotten that we are the sons and daughters of Almighty God and that He has created us in His image and likeness and made our bodies a temple for Him.

We often find ourselves intentionally forgetting the fact that our Heavenly Father has shown us His great love and affection by sending us His only son; born as human, He suffered humiliation and pain and was crucified so that we could be relieved from the burden of our original sin. Through His crucifixion and death, Jesus triumphed over death and resurrected from the dead, thereby resurrecting us with Him, pure and forgiven of all sin and impurity.

Oh how the yoke of death and sin has been lifted from our shoulders and carried by our Lord Jesus!Worldly matters frequently make us easy prey to our sinful instincts and wrongful human inclinations. How easy we are seduced by sin knowing that our Father gave so much for our salvation. In such darkness, our faith, perseverance and hope become weakened, as we drift away from the teachings of our Lord.

Shame is our neglect of our rightful obligations towards our heavenly Father and towards those who need our love, compassion and friendship.We need to realize wholly and become fully aware of the great blessing that Jesus’ resurrection from death is indeed a new life for all mankind, free from all sin.

This fact alone is a comfort that must be remembered with every breath and allowed to settle deep within our minds, hearts and souls. His resurrection is an established truth in its essence, and this truth should penetrate into our bones.“He is not here, rather He has risen”.

We as Christians truly believe that Christ rose from the dead and is alive within all of us. His resurrection is the essence of our faith, beginning with the holy Apostles and ending with us, the Church. His resurrection is not solely a historical event, but rather it is our source of faith which explodes forth like a powerful volcano in our conscience and thoughts.For the believers, this truth cultivates and purifies the faith, allowing them to courageously walk the road of salvation with steadfastness, strength, and veracity. The Father blesses His sons and daughters with the same compassion and love that resurrected His beloved Jesus.

Our heavenly Father, through the sacrifice of His only Son, provided for us a lesson and an example of true love, fatherly compassion and parental sacrifice. He proved to us, His flock and children, that He is love and that His love for us has no limits and that His forgiveness is unending. What peace and comfort is this for us!

The Resurrection of Christ grants every one of us the right to call himself a child of God; it is the return of Paradise lost, the threshold of the Holy of Holies of immortal life and communion with God. St. Paul tells us that if there had been no Resurrection then our Christian faith would have been deprived of any foundation or value: "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.... If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins (1 Cor. 15:14, 17)."Easter is a festival of hope for salvation and for a new life and a new beginning.

This Holy season calls on us to renew our faith in Jesus as our Messiah and to consolidate our confidence in His Church and its teachings. Easter calls on us all to love and forgive each other and as a family to unite together in celebration of our risen Lord. It is also a time to repent for our wrongful deeds and thoughts; to cleanse our hearts and walk forward with steadfast the righteous path of salvation.

Let us never forget the humbling truth that all of us will one day stand before our Almighty God to answer for our all our deeds, good and bad. It is in this light we need to remember the teachings of the Apostles; That In the end times, there will be hypocrites, walking before their own ungodly lusts and causing divisions, lacking the Spirit.

They taught us to strengthen ourselves and our faith through prayer and the Holy Spirit and to nurture our love for our God, while seeking the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.Our resurrection through Jesus Christ occurs today and lives on in each day of our life.

Let us pray that the Holy Spirit enlighten and empower us on this Holy day just as with the Apostles on the day of Pentecost. Let us all proudly proclaim that Christ is living in us and with us, Christ has truly risen and we are witnesses to His resurrection!Happy Easter to all and especially to our family and friends in Diaspora and in our Lebanon!May God Bless You All!

*Elias BejjaniChairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC) Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.comLCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.comCLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Saturday, March 15, 2008

The Iraqi Chaldean Archbishop murder is a new victory for Terrorism By: Elias Bejjani

March 15/08
The Lebanese Canadian Coordinating Council (LCCC) strongly condemns the vicious, heinous and cowardice kidnapping and murder of the Iraqi Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul, Paulus Faraj Rahho. The Archbishop's body was found on Thursday 13/02/08 in a grave located in Al-Intisar suburb of the south-east Mosul Iraqi City. An anonymous phone call was received by the police informing them where he was buried. The condition of the body indicated that he had been dead for some time. Archbishop Rahho was kidnapped on February 29/08 during which three of his escorting deacons were also murdered in cold blood.
We offer our warmest and deeply heartfelt condolences to the Archbishop's family, friends, his beleaguered Chaldean Iraqi Catholic Church Sheppard's and members, and to all the Middle East Christian Communities. We ask Almighty God to grant them all patience, solace, and courage to endure this big loss with forgiving spirit and solid faith. We pray that the Archbishop's soul is now resting peacefully in heaven alongside all the other saints and angels.
The kidnapping and murder of the Archbishop along with three of his escorting deacons cannot be accepted or justified by any human means or criteria. There is no doubt that the sole motive for such a barbaric and brutal crime is a deeply rooted sickening hatred complex, a set of evil grudges and a malevolent mentality of intolerance.
This crime is not only a terrorist and immoral atrocity that is committed by wicked individuals and organizations against a prominent Christian figure, but in fact, an organized and systematic pre-set venomous cleansing scheme against all the Middle Eastern Christian Communities.
This scheme is taking place openly and overtly on daily basis in different forms and on many levels in almost all the so-called Arabic countries; Sudan, Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Arabian Gulf countries, Gaza Palestinian territory, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon etcThe Middle East Christians communities are targeted in their very core existence, ethnic identities, properties, freedom, culture, history, civilization and lives. This repugnant cleansing scheme is covert and not a secret anymore. The global evil forces of fundamentalism and terrorism spearheaded by the Axis of Evil countries and terrorist organizations aim to uproot, annihilate, subjugate, enslave and ultimately either force all the Middle East Christian Communities into exodus or mass murder them.
In almost all the Middle East countries, the Christian communities are exposed without any kind of mercy and subjected on daily basis to an orchestrated and well planned tragic and disastrous persecution, torture, terrorism and systematic killing. Meanwhile their historic and deeply rooted existence in Lebanon, the last safe Christian haven left, is becoming more and more hazardous, while the conspiracy against their existence, land, identity and freedoms is escalating around the clockWhat is actually unfortunate, disappointing, despicable and sad about this on-going deadly systematic prosecution and religious cleansing that is targeting all Christian communities in the Middle East lies in the fact that it is carried on with unprecedented brutality while the free world countries are silent, indifferent and completely detaching themselves from this criminal dilemma. We call on the free world in general, and in particular on the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia, and Russia, who boast and brag with their secular and anti-religious democracies to step forward out of their deadly and shameful silence and come to the rescue of the Middle East Christian communities before it is too late.
We denounce these Western countries' naive, shortsighted, uncalculated and uneducated silence. Meanwhile we assure them that the fall of the Middle East Christian communities for terrorism and fundamentalism will put these criminals with their savage anti-humanity schemes on their own Western countries' front doors and backyards.
We are putting all the free world countries on notice and serving them with this warning: Allowing the emptying and cleansing of the Middle East from Christian communities through persecution, annihilation and exodus means simply emptying this historic part of the world from all aspects of civilization, morals, peace, freedom, democracy, stability and human rights.
It remains that the continuation of this Middle East Christian barbaric killing, cleansing and mass exodus is a colossal victory for the education of death, terrorism and fundamentalism, and an abominable defeat for the education of life, freedoms, peace, equality, human rights and moral values.
*Elias BejjaniChairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC) Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)E.Mail phoenicia@hotmail.comLCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.comCLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com

Monday, March 10, 2008

The Axis of Evil Stands Behind the Jerusalem Crime. By: Elias Bajani

March 09/08

The Lebanese Canadian Coordinating Council (LCCC) strongly condemns the heinous and barbaric crime that was committed by the fundamentalist Hamas organization and Hezbollah militants against a religious school students' in Jerusalem. In this immoral act, we see a flagrant violation of all international Human Rights, laws and covenants which prohibit the killing of civilians, or attacking them under any given circumstance.

At the same time, we strongly denounce all the commemoration of glorifying, praising and sanctifying of this suicide and homicide atrocity that was publicly uttered and shamefully exhibited in Lebanon and other countries. It is extremely shocking and disgusting to hear and watch numerous Arab and Iranian officials and well known religious figures praising this murder that targeted a religious school in the Holy City of Jerusalem that took the lives of eight students.

It is inhuman and demeaning to see high-ranking religious clerics in Lebanon and other Middle East countries rejoice in the killings of the unarmed students and tag the crime as heroic and martyrdom. This glorification and praising of terrorism is void of all human values, ethics, and is a bold infringement on the International covenant of Human Rights, and on all laws and regulations that safeguard the rights of civilians in situations of war.

It is worth mentioning that this kind of sickening mentality reflects clearly the current tragedy of Lebanon that can be summarized as an existential conflict between two cultures and educations: The culture and education of death, and suicide, that the Iranian-Syrian fundamentalist Hezbollah armed militia personify, and is trying by all terrorism means to force on the Lebanese people, and between the culture and education of life, civilization, coexistence, love , human rights, peace, democracy and law that are all honored by the majority of the Lebanese multicultural and multi ethnic peace-loving people who are longing for freedom, openness, sovereignty and independence.

The LCCC calls on all free and democratic counties, and in particular, the United States, the European Union and Russia to face the global terrorism challenge that is led by the axis of evil (Syria, Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, Al Qaeda) and utilize immediately all their human, economic and military resources to eradicate all the roots and branches of fundamentalism and terrorist organizations wherever they exist, and at the same time punish all those countries that sponsor and finance them.

The entire world should know very well and without any doubt that the only language that terrorist groups, states, organizations and individuals, understand and respond to is the language of force, deterrence and decisiveness.

Continued military confrontation with global terrorism is inevitable and will become increasingly more complex, more difficult, more costly and more dangerous for the whole world and all of humanity as long as it is postponed or falsely believed that it can be won or contained through diplomacy, persuasion and peaceful civilized means.

*Elias BejjaniChairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC) Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)E.Mail http://ca.f882.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=phoenicia@hotmail.comLCCC Web Site http://www.10452lccc.comCLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com