Rock star, fisherman bid for Lebanon election

BEIRUT (AFP, AlArabiya.net)

A rock star, a fisherman and an unemployed bachelor have thrown their hats in the ring for Lebanon's legislative election hoping to make a change in a country run by political dynasties.

The trio, among 587 candidates standing in the June 7 vote, realize that theirs is a David and Goliath struggle but insist that they will see the fight through right to the end.

Rock star candidate

Candidate Ghassan Rahbani

"We saw what politicians made of this country in the past 40 years," rocker Ghassan Rahbani told AFP in an interview. "Lebanon cannot always be enclosed in and represented by corruption and mafiosi."

The election will pit the Sunni-led Western-backed parliamentary majority against a Hezbollah-led Shia-Christian alliance supported by Syria and Iran.

Most of the candidates hail from political dynasties or are seasoned politicians, but a small number like Rahbani are entering the political ring for the first time.

Rocker Ghassan Rahbani is running for parliament (Courtesy of his official website)

Rahbani, son of renowned musician Elias Rahbani and the nephew of Lebanese diva Fairuz, is backed by Christian leader Michel Aoun, who is allied with the militant group Hezbollah.

He admits being more comfortable on stage than on the campaign trail.

"I don't own a suit, I got married in jeans and I bought my first tie for my nomination as a candidate," he said, sporting a Harley Davidson T-shirt.

"I'm a believer in the American dream, and I don't have a problem dealing with my Shiite brothers in Lebanon," he said. "All I ask is that my voice be heard."

Paying for votes

Charles Chartouni, professor

One of Rahbani's songs encourages voters to "take their money and vote against them," a reference to claims that some political parties are doling out money, plane tickets and services to win votes.

"I haven't been home in 10 years and I am so looking forward to coming back to Lebanon and the friends that I miss," said Natasha Tavoukdjian , a 35-year-old Lebanese who lives in Europe.

She said an Armenian party in the Hezbollah-led opposition had contacted her six months ago to secure her vote with an all-expenses-paid trip home.

"They've asked me to vote for their candidate, whose name I don't even know," Tavoukdjian told AFP by telephone. "I don't care about politics but I'll do it because I just want to see my family and friends.

Candidate posters paper the streets of Beirut

School tuition, medical aid, fuel, airline tickets and cash: it's all fair game in Lebanon when it comes to winning votes.

"Money is a key factor in this country because the rule of law does not exist," said Charles Chartouni, political science professor at the Lebanese University.

"In the West, such practices would automatically invalidate the entire election process."

A Western diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity he had received reports that 5,000 Lebanese living in Australia were being flown in to take part in the vote.

Many Lebanese expats are also flying in from other countries as legislation bars them from casting absentee ballots.

Legal loopholes

Information Minister Tarek Mitri on buying votes

Although political parties categorically deny doling out money and services in exchange for votes, the practice of hiring middle men to win over voters is well-rooted in Lebanon and rampant at each election.

Regulatory laws are also loosely drafted allowing for such practices.

"I have no reason to believe that this long-standing tradition has changed this year," said Information Minister Tarek Mitri.

"These people are active and visible, and realistically I would not expect radical change in the behavior of both candidates and electors."

Boulos, a 42-year-old voter in the northern district of Akkar, told AFP he was grateful for leaders such as parliamentary majority head Saad Hariri, son and political heir of slain billionaire ex-PM Rafiq Hariri.

"Thank God for Hariri!" said Boulos, who did not want his last name used. "One of his MPs sends us a monthly allowance for food."

Poorest of the poor

Campaign slogan of Mahmoud Khaled

For fisherman Mahmoud Khaled, known as Abu Karam, it is all about standing up for Lebanon's poor and downtrodden.

"I have no offices and no money," the mustachioed 47-year-old father of 15 told AFP.

Khaled admitted that he has little chance of making it into parliament but hopes his campaign will nonetheless force politicians to pay attention to residents of northern Lebanon, many of whom live below the poverty line.

"I am the candidate of the poor and also the poorest of the candidates," his campaign ads proclaim.

Pierre Hashash, the 37-year-old bachelor who has no regular job, sings a similar tune.

Posters in the Bab al-Tabbaneh neighborhood in Tripoli for the June 7 parliamentary elections

"I'm sending a message to the ruling class that the sons of the poor too have the right to run and express their points of view," said Hashash, who spends most of his free time at a seaside cafe in his hometown of Batroun, north of Beirut, chatting with the local folk.

He has already made three failed bids for parliament and gained nationwide notoriety for his unorthodox campaign slogans and pictures.

One slogan sarcastically warns voters that they will be up to their knees in tar, in reference to a frenzy of road repairs undertaken by local politicians throughout the country ahead of election day.

Whether Lebanese voters will be won over by Rahbani, Khaled or Hashash and cast ballots in their favor is anyone's guess.

Many Lebanese say they have at least livened the electoral scene.

"I would vote for the fisherman because he's the antithesis of everything else available, which hasn't done us any good for years now," said Hiba Sahyouni, a 28-year-old anthropologist.

"He's kind of speaking back and he deserves a chance."