Submitted by Karam Chakhtoura, Dec 13, 2006 13:52

I find a big contrast between the true US democracy that we have studied and read about in books and the one practiced in the Middle East by the Western World governments in Europe and the US. This has brought confusion and discouragement to the young generations in my Middle East region, especially Lebanon.

What we are experiencing is that the Western Government policies in Lebanon are not helping to properly represent the people's voice. The last 2005 elections were performed using the Pro-Syrian Law enforced in 2000 under the Syrian occupation and had lots of irregularities.

More than 2 million of our 3.5million population are now in the streets peacefully demonstrating against a failure government that is corrupt and most of its ministers were collaborators with the Syrian occupier for over 15 years of the late Hariri Regime (1990-1995).

Why cannot the Lebanese people have early elections that are free and fair under a modern Electoral Law? Why cannot the majority of the people be represented properly in the government? Lebanon is not a dictatorship and the Lebanese people have freedom and democracy as their way of living for tens of years.

Should the Western world be interested in developing the Middle East, then it is urged to make the Lebanese Democracy a live successful sample to be followed and not by enforcing corrupt leaders on the Lebanese and using the lousy media we have as a camouflage.

The easiest way forward is reelections properly supervised by the UN with a modern fair electoral law.

Why cannot the Lebanese people have early elections free and fair elections under a modern Electrol Law? Why cannot the majority of the people be represented properly in the government ? Lebanon is not a dictatorship and the Lebanese people have freedom and democracy as a way of living for tens of years.

Should the West be interested in developing the middle east, then they are to make the Lebanese democratic sample succeed and succeed in a "natural" way and not by enforcing corrupt leaders on the Lebanese.

The easiet way forward is relections properly supervised by the UN with a modern fair electroial law.

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