UN's Williams calls for 'free and fair' municipal elections

 Lebanon should hold free and fair municipal elections, the country’s UN Special Coordinator Michael Williams said on Tuesday.

Speaking following a meeting with Prime Minister Saad Hariri at the Grand Serail in Beirut, Williams urged the Lebanese Cabinet to conduct the forthcoming vote in an equitable manner.

“I understand that Lebanon’s Parliament is in the process of discussing draft reforms for the municipal elections that may take place in the near future,” Williams told reporters.

“Whatever the Lebanese decide in this regard, we hope that the elections will take place in a free, fair and democratic atmosphere,” he added.

Williams added that the recently resumed National Dialogue committee was an indication of Lebanese politicians’ willingness to cooperate with each other.

The committee was “the reaffirmation of the commitment of Lebanese leaders to stability and calm rhetoric as municipal elections draw near,” he said.

Debate rumbles over the need for electoral reform and the constitutional requirement to hold a timely vote, with the Interior, Defense and Municipalities parliamentary committee submitting on Monday a report to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri which outlined the difficulties it faced in amending electoral law within its 15-day legal deadline.