Hussein el-Husseini
Encyclopedia
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
statesman
Statesman
A statesman is usually a politician or other notable public figure who has had a long and respected career in politics or government at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term...
and former speaker of the Lebanese parliament, who brought the end of the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
in 1990, followed by the disarmament of sectarian militias. As co-founder of the Amal Movement
Amal Movement
Amal Movement is short for the Lebanese Resistance Detachments the acronym for which, in Arabic, is "amal", meaning "hope."Amal was founded in 1975 as the militia wing of the Movement of the Disinherited, a Shi'a political movement founded by Musa...
, el-Husseini, along with Musa al-Sadr
Musa al-Sadr
For the Twelver Shī‘ah Imām, see Mūsá al-KāżimMūsá aṣ-Ṣadr , also Musā-ye Sader and Moussa Sadr), was an Iranian-Lebanese philosopher and Shī‘ah religious leader who disappeared in August 1978...
, is regarded as one of the founders of the Lebanese resistance.
Early life
Born on the 15 April 1937 in ZahléZahlé
Zahlé is the capital and largest city of Beqaa Governorate, Lebanon. With around 50,000 inhabitants, it is the fourth largest city in Lebanon, after Beirut, Tripoli and Jounieh...
, deputy of Baalbek
Baalbek
Baalbek is a town in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon, altitude , situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman period, when Baalbek, then known as Heliopolis, was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire...
and Hermel
Hermel District
The Hermel District is a district in the Beqaa Governorate of Lebanon. Population estimated at 39,000The capital of the Hermel District is Hermel.-References:*...
since 1972, Hussein el-Husseini is one of the founders of the Movement of the Deprived, that later gave birth to Amal
Amal Movement
Amal Movement is short for the Lebanese Resistance Detachments the acronym for which, in Arabic, is "amal", meaning "hope."Amal was founded in 1975 as the militia wing of the Movement of the Disinherited, a Shi'a political movement founded by Musa...
, of which he, along with Imam Musa al-Sadr
Musa al-Sadr
For the Twelver Shī‘ah Imām, see Mūsá al-KāżimMūsá aṣ-Ṣadr , also Musā-ye Sader and Moussa Sadr), was an Iranian-Lebanese philosopher and Shī‘ah religious leader who disappeared in August 1978...
, is the co-founder. He was one of the closest collaborators of Imam Musa al-Sadr at the head of Amal, as well as in the Supreme Shiite Council, of which he became a founding member in 1972.
In 1978, he became Amal's Secretary General. He resigned from this post on the 17 June 1980, as he refused to drench Amal in blood and fight alongside the PLO or any other faction. His resignation was followed by Amal
Amal Movement
Amal Movement is short for the Lebanese Resistance Detachments the acronym for which, in Arabic, is "amal", meaning "hope."Amal was founded in 1975 as the militia wing of the Movement of the Disinherited, a Shi'a political movement founded by Musa...
's entry in the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
.
Political career
El-Husseini was elected member of parliamentParliament of Lebanon
The Parliament of Lebanon is the national parliament of Lebanon. There are 128 members elected to a four-year terms in multi-member constituencies, apportioned among Lebanon's diverse Christian and Muslim denominations. Lebanon has universal adult suffrage...
in 1972, at the age of 35, after being mayor of his hometown Shmustar
Shmustar
Shmustar, also spelled Shmistar is a Lebanese town located between Baalbeck and Zahleh at .It is part of the Bekaa province in eastern Lebanon. From 1955 until 1995, the former speaker of the parliament Hussein el-Husseini was the mayor of Shmistar....
at 18.
From 1972 to 1974, he headed the parliamentary commission of public works and hydroelectric resources. He became, since 1972, member of the parliamentary financial and budgetary commission.
In 1984, he was elected Speaker by members of parliament and remained in this post until 1992, after serving 4 consecutive two-year terms. In 1989, while in office, el-Husseini orchestrated and presided over the Taif Agreement
Taif Agreement
The Taif Agreement was an agreement reached to provide "the basis for the ending of the civil war and the return to political normalcy in Lebanon." Negotiated in Taif, Saudi Arabia, it was designed to end the decades-long Lebanese civil war, politically accommodate the demographic...
, held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, which led to the end of the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990). He is considered to be the father of the agreement. Husseini is also credited with revoking both the Cairo Agreement
Cairo agreement
The Cairo agreement or Cairo accord was an agreement reached on 2 November 1969 during talks between Yassir Arafat and the Lebanese army commander General Emile Bustani...
and the May 17 Agreement
May 17 Agreement
The May 17 Agreement of 1983 was a failed U.S.-backed attempt to create peace between Lebanon and Israel during the Lebanese Civil War, after Israel invaded Lebanon and besieged Beirut in 1982...
.
In 1992, Nabih Berri
Nabih Berri
Nabih Berri is the Speaker of the Parliament of Lebanon. He heads the mostly Shi'a Amal Movement.-Biography:He was born in Bo, Sierra Leone to Lebanese parents. He went to school in Tebnine and Ain Ebel in southern Lebanon and later studied at the Makassed and the Ecole de la Sagesse in Beirut...
was backed by the Syrians during their military presence in Lebanon
Syrian presence in Lebanon
The Syrian occupation of Lebanon began in 1976 as a result of the civil war and ended in April 2005 in response to domestic and international pressure after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri.-Background:...
to replace Husseini as Speaker, as Husseini had refused, despite enormous pressure, to pass a law that would allow Rafik Hariri
Rafik Hariri
Rafic Baha El Deen Al-Hariri , was a business tycoon and the Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1992 to 1998 and again from 2000 until his resignation, 20 October 2004.He headed five cabinets during his tenure...
(and later Solidere
Solidere
Solidere s.a.l. is a Lebanese joint-stock company in charge of planning and redeveloping Beirut Central District following the conclusion, in 1990, of the country’s devastating civil war...
) to expropriate land and property in the Beirut Central District
Beirut Central District
The Beirut Central District or Centre Ville is the name given to Beirut’s historical and geographical core, the “vibrant financial, commercial, and administrative hub of the country.” At the heart of Lebanon’s capital, Beirut Central District is an area thousands of years old, traditionally a...
and compensate owners with shares in the company worth as little as 15% of the property's value.
On August 12, 2008, in a speech during the vote of confidence for the new government
Lebanese government of July 2008
This is the list of the Lebanese government that was formed by Mr Fouad Siniora on July 11, 2008...
, Husseini announced his resignation from parliament, expressing his fury at how the constitution was being torn.
He remains a strong advocate of democracy, civil society and transparency
Transparency (humanities)
Transparency, as used in science, engineering, business, the humanities and in a social context more generally, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Transparency is operating in such a way that it is easy for others to see what actions are performed...
in his community. Husseini's Civil Center for National Initiative
Civil Center for National Initiative
The Civil Center for National Initiative is a Lebanese think-tank which aims to promote secularism and the role of civil society in Lebanese politics, as well as establish a civil and secular state in Lebanon....
succeeded in persuading the Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Interior and Municipalities (Lebanon)
The Ministry of Interior and Municipalities in Lebanon is responsible for governorate, caza, municipalities, federation of municipalities and village matters, in addition to political parties and organizations....
to allow Lebanese citizens to remove mentions of their sectarian affiliation from civil records.