Lebanon: Signs Of Hope Amid Immense Challenges, Says Türk At End Of Visit To Beirut

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk
Beirut, Lebanon 16 January 2025

Masa al-khair, thank you for coming.

I would like to thank the Government of Lebanon for hosting my visit.

As you know, I returned from Syria yesterday. I came to this part of the Levant in solidarity with the people of Lebanon and of Syria. I arrived, I have to say, with a heavy heart, given the compounded traumas over decades in both countries, but I see signs of new beginnings.

In Lebanon, despite the immense challenges, I feel there is hope for what lies ahead. 

The critically important ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel continues broadly to hold, albeit with worrying reports of continued demolitions by Israeli forces in towns and villages in southern Lebanon. The country’s resilient and courageous population is slowly starting to rebuild their lives.

In recent days, a line was drawn under the two-year long political stalemate, with the election of a new President and Prime Minister, opening the door for reforms which will enable a better future for all Lebanese, who have endured years of socio-economic misery.

With the election of this new leadership, there is momentum  for political stability, economic recovery, and long-overdue implementation of critical reforms to address the multiple socio-economic crises and gaping inequalities facing Lebanon. Human rights offer a tool of governance. This was a very strong message that I conveyed.

The country’s active and diverse civil society highlighted the importance of full respect for freedom of expression and association; for combatting discrimination on all grounds; for improving participation and representation of women, for guaranteeing full gender equality; for recognition and inclusion of people with disabilities; and for ensuring human rights protections for those most marginalised and at risk.

Respect for human rights requires specific and continuing investment in the rule of law. Lebanon has a proud and storied history when it comes to the law and was once home to a law school that taught and educated legal students from all over the world. It is said that one-third of Roman laws came from Beirut.  And in fact, the designated prime minister was the president of the highest court in the world – the ICJ.

In my discussions with the new President and Prime Minister-designate, I offered my Office’s assistance in support of their commitments on the key reforms needed to strengthen the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, and transparency of its work. Equally important will be justice and prison reform to address, not least, the overcrowding and the dire conditions.

I welcome the President’s public commitment to ensure equality; justice and protection for all; and respecting liberties, free press, and expression.

I also took the opportunity to call for a resumption of an independent investigation into the explosion at the Beirut port in August 2020, which killed more than 218 people, wounded 7,000 others, including 1,000 children, and rendered hundreds of thousands homeless. I repeat that those responsible for that tragedy must be held to account and offer the support of my Office in this regard.

 Lebanon remains in one of the worst economic declines in modern history with a severe currency devaluation and triple-digit inflation affecting basic necessities all across the country. According to the World Bank, 44 per cent of the population are living below poverty line. Some 2.5 million people are in need food assistance, and of whom 1.26 million are facing acute hunger.

Many public sector services have been halted, access to healthcare and education has deteriorated, and electricity supply has been significantly reduced. These deprivations have played havoc with the lives of ordinary citizens, who no longer have confidence in the ability of the State to deliver on its commitments.

There is a need for a renewal of the social contract that rebuilds the social fabric, that restores confidence in the institutions of the State but also offers pathways for a dignified future that can harness the potential and capabilities of the Lebanese people and deliver on their aspirations. And I myself have always felt the richness and creativity of the Lebanese people. Notably the young women and men who played an important role in pressing for reform and will continue to play a vital role going forward.

The rights of all Lebanese, most importantly the vulnerable, must be at the heart of economic, fiscal, and financial policies. That is what a human rights economy is all about. Budget and investment decisions must prioritise access to education, to health care, and social protection.

I deeply feel for the immense suffering of the population in Lebanon on account of the recent conflict. Israeli military action in Lebanon has caused wide-scale loss of civilian life – including the killing of entire families, widespread displacement, and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, raising serious concerns about respect for the principles of proportionality, distinction, and precautions.

More than 4,000 lives were lost, including more than 1,100 women and children, and over 200 healthcare workers and some journalists, while more than 16,000 have been injured. Over one million were displaced at the height of the conflict here, with more than 160,000 people still in a state of displacement.  The ceasefire in Lebanon must transition into a durable peace, and civilians must be able to return safely.

My Office stands ready to strengthen our human rights work and to accompany the country as it moves forward.

Shukran.

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