Lebanese Ministry of Information
“Maharat” Foundation, in cooperation with the European Union, on Tuesday organized a symposium on “Media Coverage of Municipal Elections Process”, under the patronage and in presence of Caretaker Minister of Information, Ziad Makary, at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Beirut Verdun.
The symposium was also attended by the Executive Director of the Beirut based Maharat Foundation Roula Mikhail, media figure Walid Abboud, and scores of representatives of the press, media, legal, community and intellectual associations.
Caretaker Minister Makary said in his delivered word, “The role of the media is not limited only to the election day, but also preceding the elections, by encouraging participation and educating and familiarizing people with the election law, explicating the importance of municipal councils, and highlighting the importance of women’s participation in municipal elections by voting and candidacy, in addition to shedding light on the citizen’s right to vote and choose their representatives, and how to elect in a correct manner, through audio-visual and print media, as well as social media, which contribute effectively to influencing society.”
Makary added: “For our part, as state institutions, we would like to cover elections in an impartial manner by conveying the existing image to give people the option to choose and not to be directed, because in principle, people choose according to their opinions and not based on political directives as is the case; political conflict in Lebanon has become acute and the discourse is moving in a divisive, confessional and sectarian direction, and this is unfortunate. Frankly, I do not find a solution to this issue except by electing the President of the Republic, forming a new government, holding a founding conference, as well as implementing the Taif Agreement, so that matters can resume order.”
NNA
