William H. Frist: “this Sunday the people of Lebanon will go to the polls to vote in their first truly free election in three decades.…”

“this Sunday the people of Lebanon will go to the polls to vote in their first truly free election in three decades. Since 1990, Lebanon has been occupied by Syrian forces, but this spring the people of Lebanon made history. On March 8, hundreds of thousands of people descended upon Martyrs Square in Beirut, Lebanon's capital, and inaugurated what has become known around the world by people who viewed it as the Cedar Revolution. For 2 weeks the word spread from city to city and to the countryside. It was clear that freedom was on the march. On March 18, 10 days later, a crowd of 1.5 million people, nearly half of the Lebanese population, gathered in that very square, Martyrs Square, to demand, to insist upon, the withdrawal of Syrian troops and its intelligence apparatus from Lebanon. These brave and proud citizens of all ages, religions, and ethnicities stood shoulder to shoulder waving their nation's flag in solidarity. Together, with the support of freedom-loving democracies everywhere, they brought an end to Syrian occupation. In less than 2 months, 20,000 Syrian troops pulled out of the country. It was an astonishing wave of events broadcast on television sets and computer screens around the globe. Lebanon now joins the list of fledgling democracies taking their first bold steps into the future. All of this could not have happened without tremendous courage on the part of the Lebanese people.…”