DIMAN, Lebanon: The prospect of voting by Lebanese abroad in the 2013 parliamentary polls was discussed Wednesday by the Maronite patriarch, amid conflicting views on whether the development will actually come to pass.

A visiting delegation of diaspora representatives who are lobbying government officials on the issue briefed Patriarch Beshara Rai on their efforts. The patriarch urged the group to keep him informed of progress on the matter and called on Lebanese abroad to register their children at Lebanese embassies in order to gain citizenship.

Rai, who received the group at his summer residence in Diman, said he supported seeing diaspora Lebanese take part in the next parliamentary elections, but his guest, Eid Shadrawi of the World Lebanese Cultural Union, commented after the meeting that due to the large number of vacancies in the country’s embassies, there was little hope of seeing Lebanese vote abroad in 2013.

The call for allowing Lebanese to vote in their country of residence has been championed by civil society groups and many politicians. However, the concerns over the repercussions of allowing thousands of Lebanese abroad to vote have ultimately derailed the initiative, since it would alter the current sectarian balance.

Separately, Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour said Wednesday that the government would “soon” make an announcement about the issue of voting by Lebanese abroad.