The Association of “Families of the Victims of the August 4 Explosion” renewed its adherence to the demand of revealing the truth and achieving justice, stressing that obstructing the judiciary and preventing accountability not only harms the rights of the families of the victims, but also attacks the right of all Lebanese to live within a state that protects its people and applies the law.
During the monthly vigil it organized in front of the statue of the expatriate, the association considered in a statement that “whoever obstructs the judiciary, prevents accountability, and seeks refuge with influence or immunities is not only attacking the families of the victims, but is attacking the right of every Lebanese to live in a state that protects its people.”
She stressed that six years have passed since the Beirut Port explosion, while justice remains “captive,” considering that the explosion did not only lead to the destruction of the port, but to the collapse of the Lebanese people’s confidence in their state, in light of the continued obstruction and pressure, and the absence of any judicial ruling that does justice to the victims and their families.
The association stressed that the issue of the port explosion is not the issue of the families of the victims alone, but rather the issue of a nation in which the meaning of justice and the rule of law is being tested, considering that attempts to exhaust the people and extinguish their voice will not succeed, because those who lost a loved one will not give up demanding the truth.
She sent a message to everyone who bets on the passage of time, stressing that the crime will not be covered by time, and that the truth will not be buried, while responsibilities will not be dropped, no matter how long the wait.
It also called for expediting the completion of judicial procedures, enabling the judicial investigating judge to issue his decision, calling on all officials to remove their hands from the judiciary and enable it to carry out its work freely and independently, stressing that justice is a constitutional, human and moral right, and not a political option.
The association called on the Lebanese people not to treat the issue of the port explosion as passing news or an annual anniversary, considering it to be the issue of every Lebanese home, because impunity threatens the nation’s present and future.
At the conclusion of its statement, the association affirmed its adherence to the rights of the victims, the wounded, and their families, pledging to continue demanding truth and justice, until all officials are held accountable, regardless of their positions, considering that nations are not built with impunity, but rather with truth and justice.
