THE NATIONAL ACCORD DOCUMENT THE TAEF AGREEMENT First - General Principles and Reforms: I. General Principles A. Lebanon is a free independent country and a final homeland for all its citizens, one country in terms of the land, the people and the institutions, within the borders set out by the Lebanese Constitution and internationally recognized. B. Lebanon is Arab in identity and belonging. It is a founding and active member of the League of Arab States and is committed to the League's conventions. It is a founding and active member of the United Nations Organization and is committed to its Charter. Lebanon is a member of the Nonaligned Movement. The State of Lebanon shall embody these principles in all areas and spheres, without exception. C. Lebanon is a democratic parliamentary republic founded on respect for public freedoms, notably the freedom of opinion and belief, on social justice, and on equality in rights and duties among all citizens, without discrimination or preference. D. The people are the source of authorities. They are sovereign and they shall exercise their sovereignty through the constitutional institutions. E. The system relies on the principle of separation between the powers and the balance and cooperation between them. F. The economic system is a free system that guarantees individual initiative and private property. G. Culturally, socially, and economically-balanced development is a mainstay of the State's unity and the system's stability. H. Efforts will be made to achieve comprehensive social justice through fiscal, economic, and social reform. I. Lebanon's soil is united and belongs to all the Lebanese. Every Lebanese is entitled to live in any part of the country and enjoy it under the supremacy of the law. The people may not be categorized on the basis of any affiliation whatsoever and there shall be no fragmentation, no partition, and no settlement. I. No authority violating the co-existence pact shall be legitimate.