Head of the Independence Movement Michel Moawad warned over the weekend that the possession of weapons in the hands of non-state actors and the failure to elect a new president risk destabilizing Lebanon amid escalating terrorist threats and sectarian conflicts engulfing the Middle East region.

Moawad made his remarks during the annual gala dinner of the Independence Movement in Australia. The dinner that was held in Sydney was attended by a large crowd of Lebanese-Australians as well as representatives of the Australian government and officials from across the political spectrum.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Services, Senator for New South Wales Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and Minister for Citizenship and Communities Victor Dominello attended the dinner,  representing respectively Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and New South Wales Premier Mike Baird.

Speaking on behalf of Abbot, Fierravanti-Wells expressed Australia’s commitment to support Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence and national unity.

“Last year, Foreign Affairs Minister Hon Julie Bishop visited Lebanon to express our support for the new government and to reaffirm our commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty, independence and national unity. Our nations have common interest and values, and Australia is committed to Lebanon’s ongoing stability and prosperity,” said Fierravanti-Wells.

The senator urged Lebanese political factions to adhere to former President Michel Sleiman’s disassociation policy vis a vis the Syrian conflict and praised the Independence Movement’s role in promoting the values of moderation in Lebanon.

“We urge more Lebanese parties to adhere to President Sleiman’s disassociation policy from the Syrian conflict and we welcome the role played by the independence Movement as a force for moderation in the Lebanese community,” she said.

Speaking on behalf of New South Wales Premier Mike Baird, Dominello also hailed the of the Independence Movement’s role in upholding the values of the Cedar Revolution.

“The cedar revolution in which the independence movement played such a prominent part sought to further democracy, independence and social justice. These values remain at the forefront of the Lebanese community in Australia,” he said.

Here Follows the full text of Independence Movement leader Michel Moawad’s speech .

Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

Good evening,

Once again, I join you in Australia, but this time it feels different. It feels different because I can perceive both your yearning for Lebanon and your concerns over its safety. You are right to fear for Lebanon. Our nation is today in grave danger. The danger of growing extremism that is engulfing the Middle East region. The danger of cross-border conflicts that are reshaping regional entities and blurring borders between Lebanon and Syria; Syria and Iraq; Iraq and Iran; Syria and Jordan; and Syria and Turkey.

Lebanon is in danger because terrorism has reached new heights. Lebanon is in danger because people are being dragged to slaughterhouses like lambs. Lebanon is in danger because terrorism threatens the values of pluralism and cultural diversity that our country stands for.

Lebanon is in danger because a supposedly Lebanese party has chosen to pledge allegiance to Iran instead of remaining loyal to its Lebanese identity. A party that has chosen to be a tool for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on the shores of the Eastern Mediterranean, transforming Lebanon into one of Iran’s regional battlefields at the expense of our national sovereignty and democratic regime.

Today, Hezbollah is resorting to all sort of excuses to justify its involvement in conflicts spanning Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Bahrain as well as covert operations stretching from Latin America to Australia; but it is Lebanon that is paying the price as a nation.

Lebanon is in danger because it is squeezed between two regimes that have long sought to dictate their agenda and impose their hegemony. On the one hand, Israel continues to violate our sovereignty, air space and territorial waters, meanwhile across the other border, we face an authoritarian and terrorist Syrian regime that has committed atrocities against our people and today, is doing the same to its own.

Lebanon is in danger because the state is weak. Lebanon is in danger because it lacks a Head of State and some Lebanese factions seem determined to prolong the presidential vacuum to abolish the Taif National Pact that guarantees Christian-Muslim parity in power sharing.

Lebanon is in danger because its government has failed to hold parliamentary elections and its lawmakers have extended their own term, threatening the very foundations of our democratic system.

Lebanon is in danger because our people are slowly losing faith in their country and its future as well as hope in our ability to implement reforms and achieve progress…Which probably represents the biggest danger!

Friends,

This is not the first time that our country is in danger. Yet, we never surrendered to despair before and we won’t yield to it today.

Yes, Lebanon is in danger today, but our country has survived greater challenges before and always emerged victorious.

Today, Lebanon is in danger but we will not stand idle.

This land that spans across 10,452 square kilometers is the foundation of our pride and our dignity. A land upon which our fathers gave their lives and paid with their blood to defend. We shall not let their sacrifices go in vain and we will remain steadfast.

But how can we do this, you ask?

By renewing our commitment to the founding principles of Lebanon. Principles that Lebanon would cease to exist without.

It is time we put an end to our divisions and hate-driven actions. It is time we leave our painful past behind us to build a better future for us and our children.

On this occasion, I recall the words of my father late President Moawad who said, 25 years ago: “Let us contemplate our state of affairs, reflect upon the causes of our misery and determine our responsibilities. Let us weigh the consequences of our divisions, power conflicts, sectarian struggles, extremist positions, hate-driven actions and the collapse of our institutions.”

Yes, it is time for us to reinstate the founding principles of Lebanon.

Renewing our commitment to Lebanon’s founding principles requires us to uphold our model of coexistence and Christian-Muslim partnership within the context of our democratic regime. Enough with sectarian adventures. History taught us that no sect can live in isolation, defeat other sects or deceitfully claim to protect them. Only Lebanon can protect us.

It is time for us to renew our commitment to the Lebanese state and its institutions. How is that 200 ethnicities live in peace and harmony in Australia and yet we cannot? It is because Australia has a strong state.

Renewing our loyalty to the Lebanese state means abiding exclusively by its Constitution and supporting its legitimate institutions and armed forces.

In other words, a true state, a viable and strong state, cannot coexist with a paramilitary group. We cannot subcontract the defense of South Lebanon, our potential oil and gas resources, and our fight against terrorism to non-state actors. Only Lebanon’s legitimate institutions are responsible for our security. Our armed forces have demonstrated that they are capable of protecting Beirut’s southern suburbs when self-security measures have failed. And today, I salute their efforts for defending our eastern border against extreme terrorist threats.

Renewing our commitment to the founding principles of Lebanon means to elect a president.

A state cannot exist without a head of state. Building a state starts with the election of a president who supervises the work of state institutions. Enough with political maneuvers! I urge our lawmakers to assume their responsibilities, make the effort to go to Parliament and elect a president.

Our failure to abide by constitutional deadlines and to hold parliamentary elections, opting instead for the extension of parliament’s term, will only lead to the collapse of our democratic regime.

Renewing our commitment to the founding principles of Lebanon requires us to strengthen the ties between the diaspora and their homeland by granting them the right to vote and participate in decision-making. Go to

It also requires us to encourage the diaspora to invest in Lebanon to support their countrymen who are struggling to preserve their land and pave the way for their success. A success that the diaspora achieved abroad.

Renewing our commitment to the founding principles of Lebanon requires us to uphold the Baabda Declaration, which isolates Lebanon from regional conflicts. Turning our backs on the Baadba Declaration transforms Lebanon into a battlefield for regional powers and invites terrorism to strike at the heart of our nation under the form of suicide bombings and attacks targeting our army whose soldiers have been kidnapped.

Renewing our commitment to the founding principles of Lebanon requires us to denounce and confront all forms of terrorism. Terrorism cannot be classified into a tolerable category and intolerable one.  Terrorism should not be tolerated in any form whether it originates from Sunni, Shiite or Christian extremist groups.

Beheading people and burning them alive is no different than committing mass murders with the use of chemical weapons or barrel bombs. Political assassinations also fall under the category of terrorism. The same applies for refusing to hand over assailants to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Impunity must not be tolerated.

The possession of weapons in the hand of non-state actors is also a form terrorism. Sending fighters to foreign countries is also a form of terrorism, which for instance, is punishable by law in Australia as well as in many other countries who confiscate the nationality of those who chose to fight abroad. Will the Lebanese state dare arrest those fighting abroad and confiscate their nationality regardless of their motives or affiliations?

Friends,

Christians in the Middle East and Africa, in Syria and Iraq, in Libya and Nigeria are victims of terrorism. We, as Lebanese Christians, have long suffered from terrorism but never once surrendered and will continue to represent the safety valve for Middle Eastern Christians.

It is true that Christians are being targeted by terrorists but it is equally true in the case of Muslims. For every Christian who is being killed, a thousand Muslims are being murdered.

Terrorism doesn’t differentiate between sects. It seeks to take away people’s right to live; to live freely; to live in prosperity. It seeks to takes away our right to freedom of belief. Sacred rights that God bestowed upon us and we won’t allow extremism to take away from us.

Those who want to confront terrorism cannot denounce ISIS crimes against Christians in Iraq and Syria while turning a blind eye to their crimes against Muslims as well as Bashar Assad’s crimes against its own people.

We cannot confront terrorism by rallying behind a sectarian force or by seeking to forge alliances between sectarian minorities. We cannot fight extremism with extremism just like we cannot fight fire with fire. Assad’s crimes have fueled the rise of ISIS and empowered it. Just like the existence of ISIS is being used to justify Assad’s grip on power.

Friends,

We should know better.

We cannot defeat extremism by resorting only to military action or air strikes or even limited ground operations. Military action is simply not enough. Military actions should be coupled with a cultural and intellectual strategy to eradicate the roots of extremism.

The ongoing battle against extremism is not a battle between sectarian majorities and minorities, Muslims and Christians or Sunnis and Shiites. It is a battle between extremism and terrorism on the one hand, and those who advocate freedom and embrace moderation on the other.

It is a battle between the state of law and state militias. A battle that can only be won by forging a solid partnership between Christians and Muslims. A battle that can only be won with the support of the international community that has also suffered from terrorism in Canada, the US, France and Australia. We wouldn’t be where we are today nor would ISIS exist if the international community had supported the Syrian people in the early stages of their peaceful revolution.

Today, both Christians and Muslims are threatened by extremism and thus are required to join hands to empower moderate movements across the Arab world.

Our freedom is at stake.

Either our will to live in peace and coexistence will prevail, or death and murder will prevail.

Either our values of pluralism and cultural diversity will prevail, or radicalism, intolerance and extremism will prevail.

It is either our cultural heritage that will prevail, as it has for centuries, or we will witness the destruction of thousands of years of civilizations similar to what recently happened in Iraq and Aleppo.

It is either our determination to defend human rights and women’s rights that will prevail, or we will witness the enslavement of women.

Friends,

Late Pope John Paul II described Lebanon as more than a country. “Lebanon is a message of freedom and an example of pluralism for East and West,” he said. Today, I fear that if Lebanon’s model of coexistence, cultural diversity and freedom of speech doesn’t prevail, the region will further plunge into chaos and cross-border sectarian conflicts, paving the way for a global clash of civilizations. We ought to remember that we, the moderates represent a clear majority. However, a moderate majority can be irrelevant if it remains passive and silent in the face of an active extremist minority. Let us act now!

Long Live Australia who has embraced you as cherished citizens.

Long Live Lebanon as a free, sovereign and Independent nation.