The head of the "Free Patriotic Movement," MP Gibran Basil, stated that "from the very first day of the displacement, we spoke about the important role of municipalities regarding the displaced. However, today their sole role is seen as providing partial and temporary solutions to alleviate the burden of displacement at the municipal level, in light of the increasing governmental, administrative, and security failures, along with the external conspiracy against us."
During the opening of the conference "Municipal Forum on Syrian Displacement: Social Stability: The Return of Displaced Persons through Law and Stimulating Municipalities," organized by the "Movement" at the "Meeting" center in Rabweh, he affirmed, "We are faced with international behavior that is closer to conspiracy against Lebanon and Syria, and has become a source of danger to Lebanon's existence."
Basil pointed out that "Western countries, through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, are working to stabilize the displaced in the territories they fled to, funding their continuation there. Unfortunately, these countries have shifted to utilizing some Lebanese security institutions as tools to implement their plans, by closing maritime borders to prevent the leakage of displaced persons and their transfer to Europe and the West, while opening land borders with Syria to allow more Syrians to flow into Lebanon."
He explained that "at the same time, these countries are economically besieging Syria and tightening the financial grip on it to cause further Syrian displacement abroad and towards Lebanon. This is part of a plan to dismantle the countries surrounding Israel and turn them into sectarian warring mini-states by destroying their social fabric. It also fits within preparing a destructive internal groundwork that can be used when needed for internal strife, coinciding with external aggression against Lebanon."
He considered that "what happened yesterday with the extension in the parliament is a continuation of the conspiracy that Lebanese politicians and successive governments have not confronted since we talked about it in 2011, and which they again succumbed to yesterday by extending the security policies applied on Lebanon’s land and sea borders."
Basil emphasized that "God help us" with what may be prepared later internally, in light of the negligence or the failure to act, or the silence or concealment of information... and October 17, 2019, is a glaring example in this respect."
He announced that "everyone besides us has surrendered without exception, with differences, of course, and with justifications and tricks that are not far from those presented to us since 2011, for not taking effective measures by the Lebanese state to prevent or to gradually and safely return the displaced to their homeland with dignity."
He focused on the fact that "the return of the displaced, in light of the outside world shutting its ears to the cries of the Lebanese, and only listening to the surrendering words of some officials, has become a necessity for us, especially since it does not violate international and national laws, and aligns with our respect for Lebanese sovereignty over our lands."
Basil declared, "We are in favor of implementing international and local law, which do not contradict each other, especially regarding the unlawful statuses that do not apply to their owners the labels of displaced, refugee, or even sometimes needy."
