NNA - President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, addressed the Lebanese on the eve of the April 13th civil war anniversary:
"My fellow Lebanese brothers and sisters,
Today, at this very moment, I am addressing you, openly and straightforwardly, on the eve of April 13, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of that ominous day. Fifty years have passed by, and those who were born on that day are now past middle age, having spent a life marred by anxiety, fear, and instability. As for those who, in 1976, were looking forward to choose their representatives for the first time, they are now seventy or older, and may not yet have been given the opportunity to choose which Lebanon they want.
Fifty years, two entire generations, whose days were lost, whose dreams were shattered, whose lives were squandered, and who still exist in limbo. It is even more important on this occasion for us to remember the thousands of martyrs who have fallen from all over Lebanon, the thousands of wounded whose wounds are still visible, the thousands of families whose wounds are still fresh, and the missing who, along with their families, will remain the perpetual victims of the war.
Fifty years later, I ask myself, and I ask all officials: what for? It is true that the war has ended with the Taif Agreement, which included important settlements aligned with the national pact and substantial constitutional amendments, but the question remains, wasn’t it possible to achieve these amendments through dialogue, without the need for war? Could we not have developed our system through dialogue and consensus, without destruction and battles? We definitely had what it takes to do so. Why haven’t we succeeded in this endeavor?
Yes, we have a great responsibility in this regard; the onus is also on many external inhibiting factors that contributed to setting off our war, which intersected with the wars of others, but which unfolded exclusively on our soil, spilled our own blood, and made us pay the price alone.
Today, half a century after that tragedy that spawned other tragedies, I have come to convey the following message to my fellow Lebanese: we must have learned from the past fifty years. The first lesson drawn is that violence and hatred do not solve any issue in Lebanon, and that only through dialogue can we find all solutions to our internal and systemic problems, as our country is based on fundamentals, the first of which is that no one eliminates the other.
The second lesson is that every time someone relies on foreign powers to manipulate their fellow partner back home, they have already lost, their partner has lost, and the country has lost. We have all made this mistake and paid the price, and the time has come to draw lessons. It is time for us to realize that no matter how costly an internal settlement can get, it remains minimal for us all and for Lebanon than any price we pay to foreign powers.
The third lesson is that the Lebanese state is the only resort for us all in this country. Over fifty years of war and one hundred years of Greater Lebanon, we have come to the conclusion that neither ideas that fall short of accommodating Lebanon in its entirety have a place in the Lebanese reality, nor illusions that go beyond the borders of Lebanon have done any good for our country and its people.
Thus, we have all expressed our belief in Lebanon as a final homeland to all of us. When we say, "No matter what we do, the only one that will get us through this is the Lebanese state", we mean its institutions and our mutual commitment to be all equal, even when we disagree.
Thus, none of us shall be intimidated, and none of us shall be intimidators. None of us shall be oppressors, and none of us shall be oppressed. None of us shall be unfair, and none of us shall be aggrieved. We are all, as I keep saying and reiterating, united under one banner and carrying a single identity.
A few days ago, unclaimed rockets were fired from southern Lebanon. The Lebanese people unanimously agreed that the incident was against Lebanon and constituted an insidious plot jeopardizing our country’s stability and our people’s security, for it provides an additional pretext to those who do not look for an excuse to attack us, and it leaves the Lebanese state in a weaker position, vis-a-vis the global actors that support us and our friends willing to assist us. It is very important that the Lebanese people have unanimously condemned these practices and rejected these violations. The Supreme Islamic Shia Council has even taken the initiative to file a judicial report against those who committed this act, which is a very commendable and appreciated step that is of great significance.
Therefore, let me say today that the time has come for us to draw the last lesson from these fifty years since April 13... It's time for all of us to say: Only the state protects us… the strong, sovereign, just and present state… the state that emanates from the will of the Lebanese people and that strives to ensure their well-being, peace and prosperity. As long as we unanimously consider that any weapons outside the framework of the state or its decision would jeopardize Lebanon’s interest for more than one reason, it is time for all of us to say: Lebanon can only be protected by its state, its army, and its official security forces. The time has come as well for us to adhere to this stance, so as to preserve Lebanon, to prove that we have learned from fifty years of insane wars, and to say to those who left us and those who are still among us, I swear by your sacrifices that we have buried the war for good and that there is no way we can afford returning to it or letting it find its way back to us.
I also swear by your children and future generations that our unity is our weapon, and that our weapon is our army, so that all the days of the fifty years ahead shall be filled with goodness, peace, joy, and life, for life and us were made for each other....Long Live Lebanon!"
---- Lebanese Presidency
=============
