How much power does the president of Lebanon have?

[JackNewtown]

The president of Lebanon said yesterday that if Hezbollah were disarmed Lebanon would have no deterrent to Israel and Israel would be free to attack it anytime it wishes with no cost. The "analysts" on the cable news channels who were asked about his statement dodged his message and went after the messenger by saying he has no credibility because he is a stooge of Syria.

I have two questions. 1) How much power does the president of Lebanon have in the Lebanese political system? Is Lahoud a force or just a figurehead? 2) How accurate are claims of him being a Syrian puppet?

[The Magistrate]

1. Not Much, Sir

In any parliamentary system, a President is pretty much a figurehead, who does appropximately what the Queen of England does, rather than exert executive power, as in our system.

He is indeed one of the Lebanese political figures who hitched their star to Syria during the period of Lebanon's occupation by that country's army, at which time it essentially directed Lebanese political life.

[JackNewtown]

2. Taif agreement question

The Taif agreement requires the president to be a Christian. Why didn't Christians go for something else, such as a rotating prime ministership, if the presidency is a figurehead post?

[The Magistrate]

3. They Could Not Have Gotten A Rotating Premiership, Sir

The Maronites came out rather on the losing end of Lebanon's civil war, as they had earlier on the country's demographic trends, and the Taif agreement was in many ways a ratification of these developments. The country had originally been set up with boundaries drawn to ensure a Christian majority, and political mechanisms to ensure Christian dominance of the government, by the French. It is still gerry-mandered against the Shia of the country, which is one of the reasons Hezbollah enjoys the degree of support it does among them, and can maintain its "state within a state" status.

[JackNewtown]

4. Druze and Shia?

Thanks for your informative responses thus far!

How did the Druze fare in all this and the Shia get the post of parliament speaker. Is that post worth anything?

[The Magistrate]

5. We Are Getting, Sir, a Little Past The Detail At My Immediate Disposal

My guess would be that the Druse got nothing, and that the post is ceremonial, save for some immediate authority over the schedule of the chamber, but those are just guesses.

[JackNewtown]

6. Ok. Thanks for your responses, though

:yourock: