Defending free speech: Lawyers' struggle against Beirut Bar Association's restrictions

In "Mother of Laws," the Beirut Bar Association continues to restrict lawyers' freedom of expression. 

The latest episodes of this restriction include summoning three lawyers for investigation: Nizar Saghieh, Hussein Ramadan, and Youssef al-Khatib. 

Lawyers Hussein Ramadan and Youssef al-Khatib were orally summoned to attend a hearing with the Commissioner of Justice Palace, based on a request from the Bar Association President Nader Kaspar, sources told LBCI. 

Ramadan's summon is related to a social media post in which he criticized a member of the Bar Association, while al-Khatib's summon is related to a social media post in which he tackled financial issues related to the Lawyers' Retirement Fund.

However, the summon of lawyer Nizar Saghieh for a hearing before the Beirut Bar Association was different. 

The summon did not mention the reasons or basis for this request. 

Saghieh publicly announced his rejection of the Bar Association's decision. He is one of the 13 lawyers who filed a lawsuit challenging the Bar Association's decision before the Court of Appeals that examine bar-related cases, which has set May 4th as the date for the ruling. 

LBCI have repeatedly tried to contact Nader Kaspar, the President of the Beirut Bar Association, to understand the reasons behind these summons, but there has been no response.

How can a Bar Association, which is supposed to uphold the principle of freedom, summon lawyers? 

This contradicts the leading role that it must play in protecting freedom of speech and expression.