Hariri on March 14 Anniversary: Protecting Tyranny Wrong Way to Combat Terrorism
Head of the Mustaqbal Movement MP Saad Hariri stressed that the March 14, 2005 “independence intifada” will be remembered as a day when the Lebanese achieved a victory in the name of “their freedom, sovereignty, and national dignity,” while remarking that “protecting tyranny is not the right way to combat terrorism.”
He said in a statement on the tenth anniversary of the uprising: “Dragging Lebanon towards neighboring civil wars is the easiest way to ruin the lives of the Lebanese, who will not accept to become a part of the Iranian empire.”
“The use of all forms of threats and heavy and light weapons will not make the arrogance of the empire a reality in Lebanon or the Arab states,” he added in reference to Hizbullah's fighting in Syria and Iran's ambitions in the region.
“March 14 was not a passing day in the lives of the Lebanese people as opposed to the rally of those who thanked the Syrian regime and attempted to buoy the joint security apparatus,” continued the MP in reference to the March 8, 2005 demonstration that thanked Syria for its role in Lebanon during is 29-year presence in the country.
“For ten years, the March 14 intifada has remained a symbol of the rebellion of the Lebanese spirit against oppression and a symbol of unprecedented national agreement to reject tutelage and the manipulation of the country's resources,” Hariri stated.
“The days of showing solidarity with the regime of (Syrian President) Bashar Assad are over and dead, buried by the ashes of history,” he declared.
“Those days taught us the policies of bullying and creating division,” he said.
“The March 14 intifada however created the basis for a national alliance that committed to the pledges of establishing a state and protecting the democratic system,” he noted of the coalition that was formed in the wake of the 2005 rally.
The alliance is committed to limiting the possession of arms to the army and legitimate state institutions and “it has defended these vows with the lives of its leaders, symbols, and lawmakers,” Hariri added.
“On the tenth anniversary of the independence uprising, we stress that the March 14 movement is greater than the interests of any political party or organization and its spirit and values transcend pettiness,” he remarked.
“Our commitment to the spirit that revived hope in the rise of Lebanon is the basis of our political existence and national convictions, which will not change under pressure or any form of threat that the Lebanese know all too well,” he said.
Hariri pledged before the March 14 coalition's allies to continue the movement's mission.
The March 14, 2005, rally was staged to commemorate the one-month anniversary of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was killed in a massive car bomb in downtown Beirut on February 14.
The coalition blamed Syria for the murder and the March demonstration demanded that it withdraw its troops from Lebanon and end its hegemony over the country.
Over a million demonstrators took part in the rally that was held in downtown Beirut.
Syria eventually withdrew the last of its forces from Lebanon on April 26, 2005.
M.T.
G.K.
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