Qornet Shehwan to meet on dialogue with Baabda
The resumption of dialogue between President Emile Lahoud and the opposition will be on the agenda of a special meeting convened by the Qornet Shehwan Gathering.
The president of the Democratic Renewal Movement, Nassib Lahoud, called President Lahoud on Wednesday and told him that he informed the Gathering about the content of his recent visit to Baabda Palace on Friday, mainly the issue of resuming dialogue between the two sides.
According to the Metn MP, the Gathering’s members welcomed the idea and decided to set a date for a meeting to discuss the results of the Metn by-election and the upcoming visit of a delegation from the Gathering to the United States. Samir Franjieh, Maronite Bishop Youssef Beshara and National Liberal Party head Dory Chamoun will go to Los Angeles next week to participate in the congress of the International Maronite Foundation.

Lahoud to visit Slovakia and Czech Republic this month
President Emile Lahoud will travel to Central Europe later this month for two state visits, heading for Slovakia and the Czech Republic on June 25.
The first visit, to Bratislava, is at the official invitation of Lahoud’s Slovakian counterpart, Rudolph Shuster, who invited Lahoud to visit Slovakia during his visit to Beirut last April.
Slovakia is also due to take part in the Francophone summit in Beirut in October as an observer.

Hammoud calls for Japanese assistance in reconstruction
Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hammoud urged Japanese investors on Wednesday to help Lebanon recover from the economic devastation of the civil war.
Speaking to reporters following talks with Japanese envoy Tatsua Arima, who was accompanied by Japanese Ambassador Naoto Amaki, Hammoud praised Japanese assistance to Lebanon on the economic and diplomatic levels.
Arima and Amaki also visited with President Emile Lahoud at Baabda Palace and Prime Minister Rafik Hariri at the Grand Serail.
Arima told reporters that Japanese envoys were also visiting various states in the region to assess their positions with regard to the peace process.

Jumblatt warns against hasty change of government
Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt said Wednesday that any government change would have to take place “at the appropriate time” in order to preserve stability.
Speaking to reporters after receiving former Beirut MP Tammam Salam, Jumblatt said that an “important” Arab tourist season was expected.
“Accordingly, it is not permissible that we create a shakeup in the country and enter into the unknown,” he said. “Later, at the appropriate time, there may be a need for improving the government’s performance. A change is something else. It is a more delicate matter.”
Salam said his visit to Jumblatt was within the framework of consultations on the “uneasy situation” ­ a reference to the political wrangling over last week’s Metn by-election.

Fuleihan receives delegation to discuss copyright rules
Representatives of international music producers and distributors met with Economy Minister Basil Fuleihan Wednesday to discuss piracy.
The delegation complained about “the high rate of piracy in Lebanon, which is causing heavy damage to the interests of the companies and harming Lebanon’s reputation and economy.”
The delegation called for the implementation of a 1999 copyright law to encourage local and foreign companies to increase and vary their investment here.
Fuleihan said the government was willing to implement the law and proposed drawing up a mechanism for coordination between companies and his ministry. He said the ministry would send warnings to copyright violators and then launch an extensive investigations to find and refer them to the judiciary.

Mayors ask Hariri to help spruce up for tourists
Mayors from popular tourist destinations urged Prime Minister Rafik Hariri Wednesday not to withdraw his support for the government’s plan to ban diesel-powered vehicles.
In a meeting chaired by Hariri at the Grand Serail to discuss measures to improve tourism, a number of Aley officials called on the Interior Ministry to be strict in the implementation of the ban, particularly during the summer season.
Discussions also focused on providing tourist areas with basic utilities, such as drinking water, 24-hour electricity and street lighting. In addition, participants stressed the importance of expediting infrastructure projects.

3 of 7 Dinnieh suspects end hunger strike
Three suspects tied to the January 2000 Dinnieh clashes suspended their hunger strike Wednesday.
In a letter addressed to Roumieh Prison warden Ali Hamawi, Ahmad Abu Ghawsh and Mohammed Khaled said their decision to end the 25-day-old protest was “a gesture of good will to allow the Judicial Council to settle their release requests.”
Four others detained in connection with the clashes, where fighting between Islamic militants and the army left more than 30 people dead, are continuing with their hunger strike.
The suspects have been detained for over two years.

State charges Irani witness with false testimony
Beirut Chief Public Prosecutor Joseph Maamari on Wednesday charged a witness linked to the murder of Lebanese Forces activist Ramzi Irani with providing false facts to investigators.
Maamari referred Ahmad Bizri to Beirut Chief Investigating Magistrate Hatem Madi, who is expected to question him and issue a warrant for his arrest.
Last month, Irani, the LF student coordinator, was kidnapped and then found dead in the trunk of his car. Investigators have yet to identify his assailants.

Ministers fail to show up for House panel meeting
Parliament’s Finance and Budget Committee met on Wednesday to discuss a number of draft bills submitted by Cabinet for approval.
But the committee was unable to discuss the draft laws because neither the ministers concerned, nor any advocates of the bills showed up for the meeting, parliamentary sources said.
The committee chairman, Koura MP Fayez Ghosn, urged ministers “not to repeat this.”

Labor leader sounds alarm on effects of globalization
General Labor Confederation head Ghassan Ghosn said Wednesday that labor activists should continue to fight against the negative effects of globalization.
Speaking at the 90th session of the International Labor Organization in Geneva, Ghosn said: “Globalization threatens the middle class, poor classes, workers, farmers and craftsmen.”

Sfeir describes efforts to preserve dignity
Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir said Wednesday that the church was trying to help its followers live with dignity in their “stricken homeland” so that they would not have to emigrate in search of stable lives abroad.
In a speech from Bkirki opening the 14th general assembly of the Maronite Social Foundation, Sfeir said the church has sought to meet its followers’ needs, particularly at a time when many people are suffering from economic stagnation unprecedented financial difficulties.
“An honorable life is not possible unless officials seriously try to work only for the public good,”he said.
A statement said that the meeting focused on the foundation’s activities during 2001 and the first five months of 2002, and that some “valuable proposals” were adopted.

LU body to meet on persistent financial problems
The Lebanese University Council will meet next week to debate financial problems burdening the state-run institution, according to a statement issued on Wednesday.
Following consultations during a meeting on Tuesday, the statement said the group had decided to suspend the examination of all issues and keep its meetings open until the problems are resolved. The council highlighted the importance of endorsing the university’s budget, saying it was a fundamental issue.
According to the statement, the council also reviewed the negative handling by LU officials of financial issues, especially the piling up of debt.
The council decided to hold a conference early next week during which LU president Ibrahim Qobeisi will present solutions to some of these problems, the statement said.

Ex-US senator tours Khiam, decries performance of media
James Abourezk, a former US senator of Lebanese origin, toured the former Khiam detention center on Wednesday and declared that the United States was implementing Israeli policy in the region.
Speaking to reporters, the former senator for South Dakota said the US media “was concealing the truth about the Shebaa Farms” and has repeatedly “failed” to explain that the occupied territory was Lebanese and not Syrian. He also urged Lebanon and other Arab states to do their part in explaining the truth to the American public.
He said his visit was aimed at bringing back home the “truth” regarding Lebanon and Syria and to strengthen relations between all parties involved.
Abourezk then travelled to the town of Kfir, the town from which his family hails. He is scheduled to meet with the country’s top three leaders separately before leaving on Thursday for Damascus.

Doctor says beet plant is polluting Litani
A sugar beet processing plant in Anjar is polluting the waters of the Litani River, according to a physician tasked with preparing a report on the matter.
In a report submitted Wednesday to Western Bekaa Qaimaqam Maneh Miqdad and Ahmad Ahmad, who heads a local municipal union, Torbey said the plant was responsible for dark-colored water emitting a foul smell near the village of Rawda. The report said the plant “causes the pollution of the river and the environment and dangerous diseases for residents, and damages agricultural products.”
The report called for the intervention of security personnel to “put an end to this problem, which does not deserve any delay.”

New steps to improve agricultural sector
The Federation of Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture held meetings with the federation’s Agriculture Committee on Wednesday to discuss problems affecting the agricultural sector.
According to a federation statement, participants highlighted the importance of boosting individual initiatives and organizing training sessions in order to raise awareness among farmers about respecting international standards.
The federation also discussed the importance of producing new types of agricultural products for international markets and the necessity of only importing products that are free of contaminants.
Participants at Wednesday’s meeting urged the federation to coordinate efforts with the Agriculture Ministry in order to achieve optimal promotion.

Judiciary plans crackdown on illegal phone centers
The judiciary will move against more than 1,300 illegal telephone centers in the country, it was announced on Tuesday.
The pledge was made during a meeting chaired by State Prosecutor Adnan Addoum and grouping public prosecutors and other judicial officials to discuss plans to move against the illegal centers.
Participants in the meeting included the public prosecutor for financial fraud, Khalil Rahhal; the acting government delegate to the Military Tribunal, Maroun Zakhour; and Telecommunications Minister Jean-Louis Qordahi.
Participants discussed lists of illegal call centers prepared by security forces. The lists will be referred to Rahhal’s office and strict instructions were given to arrest all violators.
According to the list, 450 centers are in Beirut, 450 centers are located in Mount Lebanon, 115 in the Bekaa, 155 in the North and 175 in the South.

Alumni group supports IC to tune of $50,000
The International College Alumni Association has donated $50,000 to the International College in a step toward creating a permanent fund for scholarships at the school.
The school principal, Arthur Charles, held a ceremony on Wednesday in honor of the association members who donated the sum to the school. The donation is intended to help IC students facing financial difficulties.
Charles thanked the association’s president, Moufid Beydoun, and all its members for their support and praised their efforts to encourage alumni involvement in the school’s activities.

Firefighters team up to douse blaze near Sidon
Several teams of firefighters joined forces on Wednesday to extinguish a large blaze that engulfed a number of homes in the Sidon town of Ain Delb.
The fire erupted near residential buildings facing Ain Delb on the road leading from Sidon to Iqlim al-Tuffah. The high temperatures and fast winds contributed to the rapid expansion of the flames through the brush.
For about one hour, firefighters from the Civil Defense department and the Sidon-Zahrani Municipality Federation struggled to put out the flames using water hoses and extinguishers.
Separately, the Civil Defense said Wednesday it had been called into action against some 84 fires around the country.

State presses charges in Fattoush libel case
Beirut Chief Investigating Magistrate Hatem Madi on Wednesday charged Ad-Diyar newspaper and journalist George Bashir with the libel of Zahle MP Nicolas Fattoush.
According to Madi’s charges, Bashir wrote an article last year about violations committed by Fattoush when the latter was the minister of tourism. The alleged improprieties centered around the contracting of a company to undertake renovation works for the Jeita Grotto in Kesrouan.

Two Syrian youths found dead in Bint Jbeil pool
Civil Defense personnel have recovered the bodies of two young Syrian men from a pool in the Bint Jbeil village of Braachit, a police report said on Wednesday.
The two were identified as Jasem Mohammed Faraj, 18, and Riad Fayyad Mufarraj, believed to be around the same age, and their bodies were moved to the Nabatieh public hospital’s morgue at the request of Chief Public Prosecutor Ghassan Rabah.
Police said investigations into the case were under way. Initial reports suggested that the two drowned while swimming in the pool.

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