35.The Daily Star - Politics - Parliament grants wider work rights for Palestinians

The Daily Star - Politics - Parliament grants wider work rights for Palestinians

Parliament grants wider work rights for Palestinians

Lebanese MPs pass law allowing oil exploration, drilling

By Agence France Presse (AFP) and The Daily Star

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

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BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Parliament adopted Tuesday a law granting wider employment rights to some 400,000 Palestinians in the country, revoking a ban that had barred the refugees from tens of professions for years.

MPs also passed a law on Tuesday authorizing exploration and drilling of offshore oil and gas fields which have fueled tensions with Israel over maritime borders.

“Parliament approved a law amendment lifting former restrictions on employment for Palestinian refugees, who will now have the right to work in any field open to foreigners with benefits including social security from their own special fund,” a senior official told AFP.

Like other foreigners, Palestinians will not be able to work as doctors or lawyers, or in the army and police force, all reserved for Lebanese citizens.

Palestinian refugees have until now been allowed limited in employment opportunities.

But the thorny issue of the Palestinians is far from resolved, as they continue to live off UN handouts in destitute conditions in a dozen camps across the country and are still deprived of health care, the right to own property and the right to citizenship, among others.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) estimates Lebanon today houses 400,000 Palestinians, but Lebanese officials estimate no more than 300,000 refugees actually reside in the country as UNRWA does not strike off its lists those who emigrate.

Most refugees live in camps that are armed to the teeth and which international groups warn provide fertile ground for breeding Islamist extremists.

Palestinian Ambassador Abdullah Abdullah lauded Tuesday’s move as “a progressive step forward” but said in a statement that Palestinian leaders would continue to push for their rights, primarily the right to own property.

The fate of the Palestinians has split Christian and Muslim legislators in the 128-strong Parliament, which is equally shared by the two confessions.

Armed Palestinians played a major role in the outbreak of the 1975-90 Civil War, which initially pitted Palestinians and leftists against rightwing Christians.

Two decades later, the threat of tawteen, Arabic for the naturalization and resettlement of Palestinians, looms especially large over Lebanon’s diminishing Christian community.

The country’s demographic reality is fast changing: studies show two-thirds of the Lebanese population today is Muslim, roughly split between Shiites and Sunnis. Around a third of the population is Christian, mainly Maronites loyal to the Vatican.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea, an ally of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, welcomed Tuesday’s vote but warned in a statement that the government could not “bear further burdens in addition to that passed today.” 


The Phalange Party, however, said it was disappointed that its comments on the draft proposal were not taken into consideration, Social Affairs Minister Selim Sayegh told The Daily Star.

Christians fear that granting the refugees the right to own property, among others, would be a slippery slope to permanent settlement and giving the mainly Sunni Muslim Palestinians full-fledged citizenship.

The Lebanese Constitution prohibits the naturalization of the refugees, but Palestinian officials have consistently said they refuse permanent resettlement in Lebanon.

Christian MPs also argue that the 12 camps should no longer be immune to state control, demanding the government have a say in arms within the camps.

By longstanding convention, the army does not enter the camps, leaving security inside in the hands of Palestinian factions.

Meanwhile, Parliament on Tuesday also passed a law allowing oil and gas exploration off the Lebanese coast, amid worries that neighboring Israel was trying to infringe on its reserves.

For the past decade, Lebanese politicians have been unable to agree on how to exploit the country’s natural resources, bickering over which companies would do the surveying.

But recent Israeli discoveries in the east Mediterranean and a rising national debt have pushed Lebanese politicians to close ranks and approve the new energy law, which was strongly backed by the Parliament speaker and his allies in Hizbullah.

Their decision was given added impetus by Israel’s discovery of two natural gas fields last year and another Leviathan, this year.

The law was passed unanimously, said Ali Hamdan, an aide to Berri, adding that by the end of 2011 Lebanon should have demarcated its maritime borders and divided the area into blocs in order to be able to sign production-sharing agreements with companies.

The discovery of large natural-gas reserves under the waters of the eastern Mediterranean would spell a huge economic windfall for Lebanon.

Lebanese lawmakers have also said some of Israel’s recently discovered gas fields stretch into Lebanese territorial waters. Israel has denied the charge. Hizbullah has threatened to use force to protect Lebanon’s natural wealth.

Lebanon is a resource-poor nation and any finds could help Lebanon’s government pay off what is one of the highest debt rates in the world, valued at about $52 billion or 147 percent of the gross domestic product. – AFP, AP, with The Daily Star