Lebanese TV writer and director Charbel Khalil sits next to his puppet clone during an interview at a television studio in the Mediterranean town of Jounieh, north of Beirut, on September 18, 2008. Khalil is the main force behind a new satirical TV puppet show titled "Dumacratiyah" which makes fun of Lebanon's politicians. 'Duma' in Arabic means puppets and 'Dumacratiyah' is a play on words in reference to 'Democracy' Photo by: AFP

In a country where almost every major political party has its own television station, comedy shows satirising the political culture flood the small screen, with some stations airing three shows a day. The constant bickering and nervous tics of the country's top political leaders provide comedians with a wealth of material to help relieve the frustrations caused by Lebanon's often slow-moving political processes. "It's better to die laughing than to die altogether," said Lebanese comedian Andre Jadaa, who with partner Pierre Shammassian and their troupe of singers has performed musical theatrical shows for many years. "In 25 years, our troupe has changed, unlike the Lebanese political scene," Jadaa told AFP. "Even when a leader disappears, is killed or dies of natural causes, his brother, wife or son succeeds him," Jadaa said. "Laughing is a safety net. It's better to break into laughter than have a nervous breakdown." For about a year now Jadaa and Shammassian have had a show called "14 or 8" on the Lebanese Broadcasting Channel (LBC). The name of the show refers to the tensions between two main rival political factions, the Western-backed parliamentary majority known as "March 14" and the Iran- and Syria-backed coalition led by Hezbollah known as "March 8."

LBC is not alone. The OTV station belonging to Christian "March 8" leader Michel Aoun has a hidden camera show called "Maqlab Maratab" that targets politicians. New TV, close to the March 8 coalition, has "Erbet Tenhal" (The solution is near) while Future TV, owned by parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri has its "Al-Nashra," a parody news broadcast. The latest is a puppet show on LBC called "Duma Cratia," a play on the word "democracy," the first part of which means "doll." Its creator, Sharbel Khalil, is best known for a show he made for the same channel named "Basmat Watan," another play on words that means both "the smiles of the nation" or "when the nation died."