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Lebanon allows expatriates to regain citizenship

Xinhua, May 4, 2017 Adjust font size:

Lebanon's President Michel Aoun and his Prime Minister Saad Hariri inked Thursday the first law allowing expatriates to regain the Lebanese nationality, the National News Agency (NNA) reported.

According to the report, the law was inked during the 4th Lebanese Diaspora Energy conference that was held at BIEL where Aoun stressed that "Lebanon's experience with immigration is painful. Our families are paying a new emotional tax," adding "although you have a duty to fulfill to the nations that embraced you, but you also have a duty of loyalty to your motherland."

Aoun added "migration is an emotional tax paid by our families since we changed into a country that exports its children instead of exporting its produce."

Lawmakers from the Lebanese Forces and the Free Patriotic Movement signed in 2015 the draft law on allowing expatriates to regain their Lebanese nationality and it was approved during a legislative session later that year.

At the conference opening, Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil said the political parties are fighting to "devise an electoral law that includes six parliament seats to represent the expatriates."

The Minister addressed the expats and urged them to return back to their homeland, as he assured that Lebanon during the term of President Michel Aoun abides by the National Pact. Endit