Overdue is the Presidency of the Republic's reminder to all media outlets of the need to avoid insulting the leaders of friendly countries. The Presidency should have issued that reminder a long time ago. It is a fundamental provision stipulated in Legislative Decree 104/77 and all its amendments. The penalties it serves are among the most severe stipulated in this law.

Article 23 of this Legislative Decree states: "If a publication exposes the head of state in a manner deemed to be an attack on his dignity, or publishes anything that includes defamation, slander, or contempt against him or against the head of a foreign state, a public right lawsuit shall be initiated without the need to a complaint from the injured party."

Article 25 states: "If a publication publishes anything that denigrates any of the country's recognized religions, or that incites sectarian or confessional strife, or disturbs public peace, or jeopardizes the safety, sovereignty, unity, borders, or Lebanon's foreign relations, the Public Prosecutor has the right to confiscate the publication and refer it to the competent judiciary."

What is criticized about official state agencies is that they have only implemented this law selectively, in accordance with political balances and the whims of those responsible for directing prosecutions and courts, rather than refer to the available legal framework.

For decades, violations of the content of these two articles and others have been serious and recurring, while action against them has been a matter of moody opinion.

The Presidency of the Republic should have issued this reminder without hesitation, not delayed it, because every day these violations occur plays against Lebanon's interests and delays the return of normal relations between Lebanon and a large number of friendly countries. It is here necessary to wonder what prevented the issuance of such a reminder during previous presidential terms, since the end of President Amin Gemayel's term. The answer is clear: the presidents of the republic or the heads of governments who collectively held the powers of the president were under the pressure of a fait accompli and the tyranny of external political and military balances that encouraged violators to persist in their violations. Moreover, some leaders of those previous regimes did not themselves hesitate to commit such violations, depending on their political connections and the power of those who protected them.

We support strictness in confronting the easy dissemination of lies, insults, threats, and depictions, which constitute an insult not only to those targeted, but also to those who issue them and their media outlets.

We support strictness in dealing with those who force people to choose between two absolute options, and bad luck to those who reject what they do not like.

It is time to return to reason, logic, argumentation, sound judgment, and constructive and scientific criticism. A word is more impactful and painful, especially when it contains slander and when the person who says it knows that he is contributing to the destruction of a country, not to its construction.