Inhad Means Stand-up, Rise and Become Aware!
Lebanese Students and Human Rights Activists Call for the Next Step: Democracy under the Constitution and the Rule of Law

Beirut, March 29, 2005: A moving document is circulating in Beirut by hand and through the Internet. It is an appeal to the Lebanese people under the heading of: Do Not Allow this Regime to Succeed Itself. It emphasizes that sovereignty belongs to the people and that the people are the "real opposition." The document carries the title of "Inhad", which in Arabic means stand-up, rise, and become aware. It is a result of change that has been taking place in Lebanon, and a prelude to more change.

Young protestors in Beirut are turning their attention in large numbers to what they consider the next logical step, how to steer Lebanon into true democracy. Prompted by human rights activists, many Lebanese are becoming increasingly aware that the Syrian withdrawal, now assured and irreversible, is not the end of the road, and that the real goal is freedom under the rule of law that only a democracy can assure.

Small meetings are being held every day. Some of the meetings are connected. Other meetings are not. Many of the meetings have been held at Liberty House, a civil society resources center in Ras El Nabaa, Beirut, run by MIRSAD, a human rights activist organization. One such meeting was recently held at the Civil Society Current's offices in Badaro. Many drafts have been prepared, circulated and heavily discussed.

The Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law (CDRL) took the initiative in tabling a number of initiatives, which were then debated and jointly approved in final form by young activists and representatives of several NGOs. One such document is a draft proposal for the reform and modernization of the Lebanese elections law. A second document identifies ten main points of an agenda for democracy having the goal of achieving the democratic transformation of the Lebanese Republic. The third: Inhad.

Tens of thousands of Inhad leaflets carrying the appeal on one side and the agenda for democracy on the other have been hand-distributed and continue to be duplicated and distributed throughout the country. The Inhad theme and drive are attracting mounting attention among the people and more particularly the younger generation.

Will Inhad provide the spark for real democratic change?

To read the full text of the Inhad appeal and other documents press Inhad on this homepage or go to: www.Inhad.org To contact Inhad by email use: info@inhad.org.

This press release and background information is available online at http://www.cdrl.org/