Why Sunni frustration is growing over Lebanon’s amnesty law
Parliament speaker Nabih Berri postponed a parliamentary session scheduled to vote on a draft general amnesty law following disagreements about who should benefit from the measure, including Islamist detainees.
BEIRUT — Lebanon's controversial general amnesty draft law has come to represent a microcosm of the country’s sectarian power struggles, reigniting divisions between Sunni, Shiite and Christian political factions and prompting parliament speaker Nabih Berri to indefinitely postpone a vote on the bill.
Legislative push and political delay
The draft legislation was initially introduced in April to ease prison overcrowding and prolonged pretrial detentions. The law would apply to crimes committed before March 1. Following weeks of debate and consultations, joint parliamentary committees approved an amended version of the law on Tuesday, and a voting session was set for Thursday.
Competing efforts by Lebanon’s sectarian blocs to shape the scope and application of the legislation soon turned the bill into a political flashpoint. Amid mounting tensions, Berri announced on Wednesday that parliament’s plenary session to vote on the draft law would be postponed “to a later date under the banner of consensus.”
