Berri signs parliamentary cooperation deal in Sudan
Maurice Kaldawi, The Daily Star
BEIRUT, Dec. 03, 2003 — Speaker Nabih Berri and an accompanying delegation returned Tuesday from a five-day official visit to Sudan that culminated in the signing of an agreement on cooperation between the two parliaments, and the issuing of a joint communique strongly deploring the recently passed US Congress Syria Accountability and Lebanon Sovereignty Restoration Act.
In a joint press conference with his Sudanese counterpart, Ahmad Ibrahim Taher, Berri also affirmed that “all people in Lebanon backed the national resistance movement which was the result of Israeli occupation of Lebanese territory.”
But it was after meeting with Sudanese President Omar Hassan Bashir on Monday, that Berri condemned the US Congress’ Act, saying Lebanon would have been divided and splintered had it not been for Syrian intervention. Addressing reporters, Berri called on Arab parliamentarians to protect every country from what he described as the US Congress’ “oppression.” He also accused the US of launching “proxy wars against the Arabs.”
The joint communique, which was read out in an official ceremony Tuesday, described Berri’s visit as historic, and said it was an “important step and a positive initiative” to develop relations between the two fraternal countries.
It also said that through the cooperation agreement they signed, the two sides have affirmed their shared views on regional and international issues, particularly on the Palestine cause and the Palestinian people’s right to “resist occupation by all means.”
The two sides expressed their total rejection of all plans aiming to “dump” the Palestine cause by imposing the resettlement of Palestinian refugees in their host countries, and affirmed Lebanon’s “legitimate right to recover its occupied territory in the Shebaa Farms by resisting Israeli occupation.”
After denouncing the US Congress’ Act, they expressed agreement on “taking all measures to support the brotherly Syrian people in their Zionist-American confrontation,” affirming Syria’s right to “resist any aggression it may face.”
Also, the two sides expressed solidarity with the Iraqi people under occupation, and underlined Iraq’s territorial integrity and the need to enable its people in recovering their sovereignty.
As to the agreement signed, it called among other things for the exchange of parliamentary and administrative expertise, cooperation with the aim of achieving a united stand at regional and international forums, encouragement of agreements to promote economic, social and cultural cooperation, and coordination of efforts to establish an Arab Parliament.
In another press conference, Berri told reporters that Hizbullah was a Lebanese resistance party still struggling to liberate Lebanon from Israeli occupation. He recalled the Israeli invasions of 1978 and 1982 and said the resistance was the outcome of these invasions.
“Accordingly, there is no problem and the whole Lebanese people support the national resistance with all its varied Islamic branches,” he told reporters.