Former Minister Mohammed Shuqair launched the "We Are All for Beirut" gathering in an event held today, Saturday, at the Pavillon Hall in the Seaside Arena complex, attended by a large crowd of official, political figures, religious dignitaries, economic and social leaders, and activists from various Lebanese regions. The "We Are All for Beirut" gathering is a national political assembly, whose members have united around comprehensive national ideas and principles. It includes a broad spectrum of politicians, legal experts, economic and social figures, thinkers, businesspeople, and activists.
During the event, Shuqair delivered a speech stating, "The political developments and events that our country is grappling with have confirmed that the absence of a vital and effective role for the Sunni component has led to a deep imbalance in the political equation, which in turn has resulted in a lack of balance in the national political equation in Lebanon." He emphasized that "this issue was clearly evident in various national and constitutional milestones, and the demand for the Sunni component to play a bigger role has become not just a demand of the Sunnis but a national demand for all political and social components in Lebanon."
He added, "Our starting point is to reinforce the Sunni moderation and elevate its voice, to restore its dignity and revive it after all the significant harm and frustration it has suffered, based on our steadfast conviction that the recovery of the country first passes through the recovery of its components, all of its components without exception." Shuqair confirmed that "all proposals and ideas of the 'We Are All for Beirut' gathering are fundamentally based on the state and legitimacy in all its dimensions, as well as on the unity of the constitutional institutions from which all authorities emerge, and on freedom, democracy, and the sovereignty of the state over its entire territory. It also adheres firmly to the National Pact – the Taif Agreement, as the sole and irreplaceable basis for organizing political and constitutional life in Lebanon."
He continued, "The 'We Are All for Beirut' gathering believes in Lebanon's pioneering role as a prominent cultural, educational, health, economic, and tourism center in the region, and is well aware that Lebanon's broad space is the Arab homeland. Therefore, the gathering is certain that restoring balance to Lebanon and regaining its role, effectiveness, and health must necessarily pass through returning to the Arab embrace and correcting the imbalance in Lebanese-Gulf relations, particularly with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
He pointed out that "what the 'We Are All for Beirut' gathering seeks to achieve strongly is the transition from all this fragmentation and chaos that fuels various sectarian tensions and undermines the state, to establishing a state of law, leadership, competitiveness, and citizenship that embraces and supports all its citizens and their interests and future with justice and equality." Shuqair concluded, saying, "Today marks the moment of beginning, the beginning of work and struggle for the 'We Are All for Beirut' gathering, and the launch into the arms of the nation with openness and solid national partnership, to build a new Lebanon that lives up to the aspirations and hopes of every Lebanese."
