Members of the "Calibre," "Our Money is Ours," and the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) collectives outside the Palace of Justice before the arrival of Ghada Aoun, in Beirut, on March 22, 2024. (Credit: Raphaël Abdelnour/L'Orient Today.)
BEIRUT — "Wow, she's strong!" exclaimed lawyer Maya Geara. "She's using the judges' own weapons against them!"
Geara emerges from the Palace of Justice with a bright smile. She makes no attempt to hide her pride following the decision made by "the President," prosecutor Ghada Aoun: a motion to dismiss the president of the Higher Judicial Council (HJC), Souheil Abboud.
About 30 people braved the rain on Friday to support Aoun, the Attorney General of the Mount Lebanon Court of Appeal who, in recent years, has often found herself at the center of judicial controversies. Aoun herself arrived shortly before 10:00 a.m. for her summons to appear before the Higher Disciplinary Council, at the Palace of Justice in Beirut. She was an hour late, but that didn't matter to those gathered to greet her.
"Whether she comes or not, we support her!" yelled Aline Akl, a member of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM, Aounist) who arrived early in front of the Palace, umbrella in one hand, sign in the other.
Upon her arrival, Judge Ghada Aoun slips through the journalists and the crowd of supporters to enter the Palace of Justice. (Credit: Raphaël Abdelnour/L'Orient Today.)
When "the President" finally arrives, the moment is reminiscent of a celebrity pulling up to a red carpet event. "May God be with you, Ghada!" shouts one man, as he rushes toward the magistrate's car.
"You should be the ones judging them, they can't judge you!" cries another.
Judge Aoun gets out of the car, opens her umbrella, and recognizes the faces. She first accepts compliments with a quiet smile, before uttering a few words in a low voice and entering the Palace.
'Until the last breath'
Then comes the wait, with Julia Boutros' voice in the background, crackling out of a large speaker. "We are the revolution, we are the anger..." some hum along.
"She's the one imposing order on them, and now they want to discipline her," quips Aline Akl, mocking the Disciplinary Board. The fifty-year-old has been at every sit-in since the raids on the headquarters of the Mecattaf money transfer company three years ago.
Aoun's highly publicized visits in 2021, always on a wave of cheers from her 'supporters,' despite her having been removed from the case, led her to be summoned before judicial inspection.
"We were the first to revolt against Riad Salameh, to protest outside the Central Bank of Lebanon. They chased us away by throwing stones at us," Akl recalls.
The people who came to support Ghada Aoun hold up their signs while waiting for the magistrate, on March 22, 2024. (Credit: Raphaël Abdelnour/L'Orient Today).
Like her, several of those who came to the Palace greeted each other with a familiar sign: the upraised thumb and forefinger, symbol of the Free Patriotic Movement. Of the thirty or so people present, almost half claim to belong to the Aounist "Tayyar."
"If the Council ever prevents her from exercising, they don't know what's in store for them! They'll see how she responds!" laughs Alexis Malychef, an FPM sympathizer and staunch supporter of both Gebran Bassil and Ghada Aoun. "We'll be with her to the last breath," Aline Akl adds.
The mobilization's political association doesn't bother the other participants, some of whom belong to the association Calibre — "a collective for free justice" — or to the depositors' collective — "our money is ours."
Lawyer Maya Geara, a member of Calibre, doesn't feel at all close to the Free Patriotic Movement, "but we're with anyone who defends Ghada Aoun, no matter what."
"If they've followed her work, so much the better!" she asserts. "In any case, I no longer have any hope in this country. But we'll fight to the end!"
Judge Aoun has never concealed her closeness to the FPM, which is also unwavering in its support for the magistrate, particularly in relation to its crusade against former BDL governor Riad Salameh. The judge initiated proceedings against him and arrested his brother Raja in March 2022, in addition to targeting several Lebanese banks, banning their CEOs from traveling, and disposing of their assets.
After around 30 minutes of hearing, the gates of the Palais de Justice opened to let "the President's car" out. It sped off without the figure inside making any announcement or addressing a single word to those gathered in support.
"May God keep you, Ghada!" a man shouted again. At the next hearing, on April 15, most of them will be back. Rain or shine.
This article originally appeared in French on L'Orient-Le Jour. Translated into English by Amelia Hankins.
