THE HINDU Editorial Vocabulary - May 14, 2018 - Topic 2

Hezbollah’s grip — On Lebanon's parliamentary election

Results of Lebanon’s May 6 parliamentary election point to the mounting frustration among voters with the government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri. In recent years, Lebanon has had a host of administrative and regional challenges while the government remained largely ineffective in tackling them. There were protests in Beirut and elsewhere over a breakdown of waste management; there is an acute power shortage; the economy is in a shambles; and the inward flight of Syrian refugees over the past seven years has put public infrastructure under further strain. 

Regional tensions are high as Hezbollah, Lebanon’s most powerful Shia movement that has been designated by the U.S. and Israel as a terrorist organisation, is involved in the Syrian civil war. In post-civil war Lebanon, the political class is largely divided into two blocs — the Iran-allied Shia bloc led by Hezbollah that has joined hands with Christian parties, and the Sunni bloc led by Mr. Hariri that has close ties with Saudi Arabia and the West. During the campaign, both sides whipped up this sectarian narrative — Mr. Hariri said Lebanon’s Arab identity was being threatened by Hezbollah’s Iran links, while the Hezbollah-allied parties targeted Saudi Arabia and the West besides attacking the government for its failures. In the event, Mr. Hariri’s Future Movement suffered a big setback. Its strength in the 128-member parliament shrank from 33 to 21. While Hezbollah will retain the 13 seats it had in the outgoing legislature, its allies have gained. President Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement gained six more, while the number of independent candidates linked to Hezbollah doubled to eight, making the alliance the largest parliamentary bloc.

Lebanon has a unique, confessional system in which the Prime Minister must be a Sunni, the President a Christian and the Parliament Speaker a Shia. Being the leader of the largest Sunni bloc, Mr. Hariri could retain his job as Prime Minister despite the electoral setback. But Hezbollah and its allies will have a greater say in government-formation. Hezbollah could also stall government measures that target its clout, a key demand from Mr. Hariri’s regional allies. Mr. Hariri is in a tight spot. The Saudis are not happy with his inability to rein in Hezbollah. Last year Mr. Hariri was summoned to Riyadh, where he announced his resignation. Though he withdrew the resignation later, his ties with his Saudi patrons appear to be far from mended. With the regional fault lines between Iran and its rivals set to sharpen further after the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and rising Tehran-Tel Aviv tensions, it is bound to reflect on Lebanese politics. Mr. Hariri has to find a balance between his domestic agenda and regional politics, provide basic services to the public, lift the economy and restore voters’ faith in him — a tall ask given Lebanon’s fractured polity and Mr. Hariri’s own record.

Vocabulary

Frustration: the feeling of being upset or annoyed, especially because of inability to change or achieve something.

Example: I sometimes feel like screaming with frustration

Synonyms: exasperation, annoyance, anger, vexation, irritation, disappointment

Ineffective: not producing any significant or desired effect.

Example: The legal sanctions against oil spills are virtually ineffective

Synonyms: unsuccessful, unproductive, fruitless, unprofitable, abortive

Elsewhere: in, at, or to some other place or other places

Example: He is seeking employment elsewhere

Synonyms: somewhere else, in/at/to another place, in/at/to a different place

Shamble: move with a slow, shuffling, awkward gait.

Example: He shambled off down the corridor

Synonyms: shuffle, drag one's feet, lumber, totter, dodder, hobble

Designate: appoint someone to a specified position.

Example: He was designated as prime minister

Synonyms: appoint, nominate, depute, delegate, select, choose, pick

Narrative: a spoken or written account of connected events; a story.

Example: The hero of his modest narrative

Synonyms: account, chronicle, history, description, record, report, story

Alliance: a union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations.

Example: A defensive alliance between Australia and New Zealand

Synonyms: association, union, league, confederation, federation, confederacy

Retain: continue to have (something); keep possession of.

Example: Built in 1830, the house retains many of its original features

Synonyms: keep, keep possession of, keep hold of, hold on to, hang on to

Inability: the state of being unable to do something.

Example: His inability to accept new ideas

Synonyms: lack of ability, incapability, incapacity, powerlessness, impotence

Patron: a person who gives financial or other support to a person, organization, cause, or activity.

Example: Charles became a patron of Rubens and van Dyck

Synonyms: sponsor, backer, financier, benefactor, benefactress, contributor

Restore: bring back a previous right, practice, custom, or situation.

Example: The government restored confidence in the housing market

Synonyms: reinstate, bring back, reinstitute, reimpose, reinstall, reestablish

Fracture: break or cause to break.

Example: The stone has fractured

Synonyms: break, crack, shatter, splinter, split, rupture, bust