Internal Security Forces: Pursuant to Law 17/1990, a volunteer must
be a Lebanese national for at least ten years.63
Lebanese Public Security: One of the general conditions required to
volunteer in Lebanese public security is to be a Lebanese national
for at least ten years.64
Lebanese Army: One of the general conditions required to volunteer in
the Lebanese Army is to be a Lebanese national for at least ten years.
Labour unions and syndicates should open membership to the
children of and spouses married for one year to Lebanese women on
an equal basis with Lebanese citizens until Parliament amends the
Nationality Law, Human Rights Watch said.65
Running and voting in parliamentary elections
Article 3 of Election Law 44, issued on June 17, 2017, stipulates
that every resident or non-resident Lebanese citizen may exercise
their right to vote, provided that they have attained the legal age
specified in the Constitution, enjoy their civil and political rights
and are not in any of the non-eligibility situations set forth in the
present law.
Article 5 of this law also stipulates that naturalized Lebanese
citizens may only vote or run for office ten years after the execution
of their naturalization decree. The present article shall not apply to
non-Lebanese women who obtain Lebanese citizenship as a result
of marrying a Lebanese male.66
Healthcare
Foreign nationals (including the foreign husband and children of
Lebanese women) are largely excluded from healthcare benefits
subsidized by Lebanon’s National Social Security Fund and the
Ministry of Health.
As for Lebanese women married to a Palestinian, Palestinian
refugees are deprived of public hospital services and any other
health services provided by the Ministry of Health, except under
the agreements signed between the U.N. Relief and Works Agency
for Near East Refugees (UNRWA) and the Ministry of Health. On 24
August 2010, law 128 was enacted, amending paragraph 3 of Article
9, of the Social Security Law, which stipulates that a Palestinian
refugee worker residing in Lebanon and registered in the General
Directorate of Political Affairs and Refugees (DPAR) — Ministry of
the Interior and Municipalities — shall be subject to the provisions
of the Labour Law, both in terms of end-of-service indemnity
and work emergencies. The beneficiary of Palestinian refugee
workers is exempt from the reciprocity conditions stipulated in the
Labour and Social Security Law and benefits from end-of-service
compensation on par with Lebanese worker benefits. The National
Social Security Fund administration must set up a separate and
independent account for the subscriptions of Palestinian refugee
workers, provided that neither the Treasury nor the National Social
Security Fund is held accountable for any financial commitment
related thereto. Those covered by this Law are excluded from the
subscriptions of the Sickness and Maternity Insurance and Family
Allowance Fund benefits.
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The Lebanese Ministry of Health and the National Social Security
Fund must allow children of Lebanese women married to foreigners
to benefit from available public healthcare services on par with
Lebanese citizens. They should also promulgate laws similar to
the aforementioned Law No. 128 concerning foreign spouses and
children of Lebanese women, which enable them to benefit from the
Sickness and Maternity insurance Funds’ contributions.
Education
The noncitizen children of Lebanese women can attend Lebanese
public schools for free. However, because these children are
deemed foreign nationals, the Ministry of Education and Higher
Education (MEHE) issues annual enrolment decrees that prioritize
Lebanese students’ enrolment, making it harder for non-Lebanese
children to register. The Ministry is often aware of the matter and
gives special treatment to non-Lebanese children of Lebanese
mothers. Nonetheless, a permanent solution is needed to prevent
preferential treatment and ensure that they are treated on equal
footing with Lebanese students.
In some cases, children without the necessary identification
documents face complications that prevent them from enrolling in
school or taking national exams. Furthermore, noncitizen children
and spouses of Lebanese women applying to a university may not
be eligible for financial aid.
It should be noted here that Lebanese law does not prohibit
Palestinians from enrolling in public schools, vocational education
institutes and the Lebanese University, given that the responsibility
for educating Palestinian refugees in primary, middle and secondary
grades falls upon UNRWA. Nonetheless, there is close cooperation
between the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and UNRWA
as students attending UNRWA schools follow a curriculum that is in
line with the Lebanese educational curricula, a policy pursued by
UNRWA in all host countries and not a requirement imposed by the
Lebanese Government.
Palestinian refugees can enrol in Lebanese public and private
schools at all levels (primary, middle and secondary) without any
discrimination in terms of the required documents or fees charged,
and the entry of Palestinian refugees into Lebanese public schools
depends on the absorptive capacity of schools with the adoption of
a national preferential policy.
Furthermore, if a Palestinian student (especially an undocumented
person) is unable to present an Identity Card or a Civil Registration
extract, Article 108 of the rules of procedure for preschools and
primary education in public schools 1130/M/2001 allows the
adoption of any other identification document, with the approval of
the head of the educational district.67
Higher education
With regard to higher education, Palestinian students enrolled
in the Lebanese University are treated on par with Lebanese
students. On 18 June 2009, the Council of Ministers issued Decision
90 to cancel university tuition for Palestinian students from
Nahr el-Bared camp enrolled in the Lebanese University for the