The World Lebanese Cultural Union\u2019s World Council was held in its\u200f \u200fregular session in \u200ethe Marriott Hotel in New York City over two days at 21 and 22\u200e\u200f \u200fof March 2009 under the \u200epresidency of the World President Elie Hakme and in the presence of\u200f \u200frepresentatives of \u200eall Diaspora regions to talk and follow-up with the implementation of the decisions of \u200eprevious meetings, and issued at the end of its meeting the following recommendations:\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Support the national positions of the President of the Republic General Michel\u200f \u200fSleiman and his wise guidance and support his initiatives in the aim of activating\u200e\u200f \u200fthe role \u200eof national institutions and to support the demands of the Lebanese\u200f \u200fDiaspora in terms of \u200erestoration of nationality and the rights of full\u200f \u200fcitizenship, as well as to his sponsorship of \u200eall the processes of dialogue, including\u200f \u200fthe Diaspora.\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Celebrate the golden jubilee of the WLCU on the 24th of October 09 in Mexico, as \u200ea gesture of loyalty for the first founders of the WLCU project in Mexico in 1959. The \u200eholding of the 16th World Conference should be at the 24th of October maximum, to elect \u200ea new World Council according to the internal and basic regulations of the WLCU, with \u200ethe possibility of holding the 50th jubilee of the Union and the World Conference in \u200eLebanon if it was agreed to do so.\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Participation in the International Festival of the Lebanese Emigrant during the \u200esummer of 2009.\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Participation in Miss Lebanon Emigrant 2009 for the 2nd year, organized by the \u200eMiss Lebanon Committee.\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Activating the \u201cMy home is yours\u201d (Bayti Baytak) project organized by the WLCU \u200eWorld Council of Youth of Lebanese descent which aim to hosting mutually of the youth \u200ecoming from abroad in their homes to activate the communication with each other across \u200ethe countries and continents.\u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Launching for Campaigns to encourage the emigrants to invest in Lebanon to \u200eprovide work for the Lebanese who are leaving the countries affected by the economic \u200ecrisis returning to their home country. \u200e<\/p>\n
\u200e-\u200e\u00a0Invitation to attend a new world council in Vancouver at the end of May 2009 in the \u200eoccasion of the unveiling of the memorial monument of the 125 years birthday \u200eanniversary of Gibran Khalil Gibran.\u200e<\/p>\n
The meeting was attended by the WLCU former presidents Anwar Curi, Bechara \u200eBechara, Anis Karabet, the President of the WLCU Senate Michel Doueihi and members \u200eof the senate Michel Syriani and Antonio Chahine, the Dean of the WLCU Eid Chedrawi, \u200ethe Secretary General Georges Abi Raad and his deputy Dr. Nicolas Nakhl\u00e9 Kahwaji, the \u200eVice Presidents Edward Nahhas, Antoine Menassa and Dr. Toufic Sleiman, the President \u200eof the Regional Council of North America Elias Kassab and the former President of the \u200ecouncil George Murr, the President of the Lebanon Office Toni Kaddissi, the regional \u200esecretaries general: Ibrahim Dagher from North America, Alberto Shaker from Latin \u200eAmerica, Roger Hani from Europe and Pierre el Hage from Africa, in addition to the \u200epresidents of the national councils, of the states councils and of some chapters as \u200efollowing:\u200e<\/p>\n
Alejandro Kuri(Mexico), Michel Syriani (Brazil),Lally and Veronica Chaker (Uruguay), \u200eFadi El Rahi, Rita Helou, Saiid Yazbeck, William Barakat, Jack Habib and Maroun Abou \u200eGhosn (United Kingdom), Hanane Dagher, Roland Dick, Najib Asfar, Michel Kasouf and \u200eIbrahim Elias (Canada), Mahassen Hanna, David Abi Chaker, Mike Hilal, Qozhaya El \u200eRahi, Miled Sassine, Susan Nahhas, Farid Makarem, Aida Nicolao and Raymonda \u200eDallul(United States), in addition to the president of the hosting chapter John Abi Habib \u200eand his deputy Francois Abi Neeman and their assistants.\u200e<\/p>\n
The Secretary General read during the meeting several letters received from the officials \u200ewho were unable to travel, including the World Vice President for Africa Chakib \u200eRammal, the World Vice President for Australia Dani Geagea, the President of The \u200eCultural and Heritage Affairs Committee Antoine Ghanem, Naji Doumit from California \u200eand Guy Younes from Ireland .\u200e<\/p>\n
The attendees discussed during the meeting several subjects such as: follow up the \u200eWLCU campaigns to urge the emigrants to register their marriages and their children \u200eborn abroad to prevent the loss of the Lebanese nationality, follow up\u00a0 the Lebanese \u200eEmigrants who lost this nationality to help them in preparing their files for retrieval, \u200efollow up the Learning Arabic & Lebanese project to the Lebanese origins speaking other \u200elanguages, the establishment of a second campaign to vote for the Cave of Jeita in the \u200ecompetition of the most beautiful natural site in the world, the creation of new financial \u200eresources to cover the cost of the cultural & emigrant projects of the WLCU via the \u200egodfathers program and the preparation for ceremonies for this purpose. The attendees \u200ealso hosted the president of the International Festival of the Lebanese Emigrant\u2019s \u200eCommittee Fadi Bou Dagher who presented the details of the festival\u2019s program which \u200eruns from 9 to 19 July, 2009 in Lebanon.\u200e<\/p>\n
The hosting Chapter organized a gala dinner which was attended by more than 400 \u200epeople. This chapter invited the Lebanese Diaspora to meet the WLCU President and its \u200eworld council, where the President Hakme honored Monsignor Maroun Asmar and Mr. \u200eRaymond Safi by giving them the WLCU Platinum award in recognition for their efforts \u200eover the years in the service of the new emigrants and in the establishing of the WLCU \u200eChapter in the sixties.\u200e<\/p>\n
The WLCU World President made a speech in which he stated: \u200e
\nLebanon has started to emerge from the dark tunnel, bringing us to a President \u200esymbolizes the unity of the country, and the unity of the institutions. This verification is \u200eimportant even if it is evident in the life of the countries. We must support the President \u200eof the Republic, His Excellency General Michel Sleiman, this symbol President, and to \u200estand by him in all circumstances. The Republic Presidency is our main source and it is \u200ethe symbol of the unity of the country. And, the body without the head has no life. The \u200eposition of the presidency is sacred for us; it is the guardian of the unity of the earth, and \u200ethe unity of the people, because the country is the twin of the earth and the people.\u200e<\/p>\n
Therefore, we are invited to support the consensus Presidency which is the head of the \u200estate and its institutions and responsible of the Constitution and its application; and we \u200efirmly demand that all the decisions and choices be in its hand in times of peace as in \u200ewar.\u200e
\nAnd, with our support to the Lebanese Republic, its symbols and institutions, and after \u200ethe activities done by the WLCU in the past two years to collect the full rights of \u200eemigrants in terms of the nationality and the right of voting, the WLCU contacted many \u200epersons and used all possible means and ways to achieve these things. After all this, we \u200efirmly ask the Lebanese state to do all its duties towards its sons in the Diaspora \u200ecountries. Restoring the Lebanese Nationality is a sacred right to the Lebanese origin\u2019s \u200epersons. How could the nationality be granted to ten thousands of foreigners and \u200eforbidden to the Lebanese who deserve it? And how can some of those who have been \u200egranted the nationality falsely & illegally in the days of guardianship can participate in \u200ethe election and this right isn\u2019t given to the original Lebanese emigrants.\u200e<\/p>\n
Then, the Secretary General Georges Abi Raad made a speech in which he praised the \u200esignificant role of the mother in the Diaspora in maintaining the Lebanese language and \u200eculture; he also talked about the WLCU achievements in its first fifty years.\u200e<\/p>\n
Mr. John Abi-Habib stated the speech of the hosting chapter.\u200e<\/p>\n
The ceremony was attended by Consul of Lebanon Antoine Azzam, Bishop Gregory \u200eMansour, a U.S. senator and representatives of the Lebanese embassy.\u200e<\/p>\n
The ceremony included a signing of the book “Negotiate like a Phoenician” written by a \u200eLebanese descent.<\/p>\n
In addition, the Dabkeh group of the Boston\u2019s Chapter came especially to this ceremony \u200eand presented several folkloric dances. \u200e<\/p>\n
The World Council meeting was preceded by the North American regional meeting, \u200ewhich was held over two days in the host of the New York city chapter and in the \u200epresence of representatives of 20 chapters of the WLCU from the United States and \u200eCanada; during this meeting the subject discussed were the same as the world council \u200emeeting and how to activate them in the chapters of theses 2 countries in addition to the \u200eproject of this geographical area through all the cultural, social, heritage and charities \u200easpects in addition to internal organizational matters. \u200e
\nIn this meeting, a new Regional Council Board was also elected and it included the \u200efollowing: Elias Kassab as President, Roland Dick as Vice President for Canada, David \u200eAbi Chaker as Vice President for the United States, Sleiman Asmar as the WLCU \u200etreasurer and Ibrahim Dagher as the Regional Secretary General.\u200e<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The World Lebanese Cultural Union\u2019s World Council was held in its\u200f \u200fregular session in \u200ethe Marriott Hotel in New York City over two days at 21 and 22\u200e\u200f \u200fof March 2009 under the \u200epresidency of the World President Elie Hakme and in the presence of\u200f \u200frepresentatives of \u200eall Diaspora regions to talk and follow-up with …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wlcu"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1759","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1759"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1759\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wlcu.world\/ng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}