عودة الإبن الضال

خالد برّاج

هل هو عنوان الفيلم الشهير ليوسف شاهين ؟ وصف لحالة الإبن الذي يعود لذوييه بعد إفتراقٍ طويل ؟ عودة لاعب كرة القدم إلى النادي الذي إنطلق منه ؟

جملة أو عباراة تُستخدم منذ القدم لوصف حالة الرجوع أو عودة الشخص إلى نقطة البداية , فيها كثيراً من الندم و نقداً لمرحلةٍ ما تاه فيها الإبن عن "الخيار الصحيح", فالإبن شخصٌ ضال أي أنّه أضاع الطريق و زاح عن الدرب في مرحلةٍ هي الأخرى يراد لها أن تُمحى من ذاكرة الإبن و العائد إليهم.

و هي عبارة في محلِها إذا ما أحسنا وصف اليساري العائد إلى طائفته بعد صراعٍ مشهدي طويل مع طائفته و طوائفهم (أي الطوائف غير طائفته) و الطائفية.
هذا اليساري المنهمك منذ الإستقلال بالنقاش و النقد و تقديم مشاريع إصلاحية للنظام و المجتمع , يعود اليوم إلى طائفته غريباً عنها و غريباً عن نفسه.
هذا اليساري الذي أذلّته الحرب و ما بعد الحرب و دمرّت أحلامه حروب و سياسيو الطوائف و المذاهب , يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يكون جندياً عصِياً بوجه الطوائف الأخرى.
هذا اليساري الذي خزله اليسار من معتدليه إلى أقصاه , يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يطالب و يدافع عن لقمة عيشه من خلال ملهمه أو لينينه الجديد "زعيم الطائفة".
هذا اليساري الذي و جد نفسه متحالفاً مع طوائف الأحزاب و أحزاب الطوائف, يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يصبح الأصل و ليس الحليف.
هذا اليساري الذي فضح ممارسات الحكومات و الوزراء في شتّى العهود, يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يُمسي وزير طائفته يتحدّث بإسمها, يغار على مصالحها, يهلِل لإنتصاراتها الوهمية.
هذا اليساري الذي لم يحرِر فلسطين و لم يُسقِط الأنظمة الرجعية منها و التقدّمية , يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يدافع عن غزّة من خلال أإمة الجوامع و جمع تبرعّات الأنظمة.
هذا اليساري الحزين على إنهيار الإتحاد السوفياتي و تراجع الفكر الإنساني, يعود اليوم إلى طائفته كي يبحث عن إتحادٍ سوفياتي (طائفي) جديد في بلاد فارس أو الصحراء العربية.
هي عودة إلى الأساس و ليس إرتداداً , هي حالة اليأس و القرف من كل شيء و أي شيء, هي التفتيش عن المصلحة الشخصية بعد أعوامٍ و عقودٍ من "النضال من أجل الجماهير" هي ببساطة كما يصفها أحد الأصدقاء عند سؤاله عن أحد الأبناء الضالين العائدين إلى طوائفهم: " مبلى كان بالحزب بس إكتشف بعد كل هل السنين إنّو كلّو تفنيص, ففضّل يرجع إبن الطايفة و يعمل إرشين حلوين ".

مصر والجزائر

خالد برّاج

"كرة القدم هي صورة عن مجتمعنا، أنظروا جيِداً لتعبير أحد اللاعبين على أرض الملعب أو أحد المشجعِين في المدرجّات، هذه صورهم في الحياة اليومية ".
إيميه جاكيه - المدرِب السابق للمنتخب الفرنسي لكرة القدم

هستيريا جماعية أصابت المجتمعين المصري والجزائري والسبب كما يعلم الجميع المباراة الفاصلة المؤهلة لكأس العالم 2010 والتي سوف تجرى في العاصمة السودانية الخرطوم "الأرض المحايدة" مساء يوم الأربعاء 18/11/2009، ولكن، ما الذي أدّى إلى هذه الهستيريا؟
الأهمية تكمن في التأهل لكأس العالم لكرة القدم ممّا يضع منتخب البلد المتأهل في خانة أفضل 32 منتخباً عالمياً وتضع البلد المتأهل على خارطة الدول المتداول إسمها خلال فترة "المونديال" إضافةً للمردود المادي من الدعايات والشركات التي سوف تتسابق لعقد اتفاقيات رعاية مع المنتخب المتأهِل.
الحسّ الوطني أو الإحساس بالإنتماء عند معظم المصريين و الجزائريين و ضرورة مساندة منتخب بلادهم الذي أصبح يشكِل لهم (حسب رأيهم) من خلال وصوله إلى المونديال (إذا ما حصل) نموذج للتفوّق الوطني و العزّة والكرامة .
الشعور الدائم بالإحباط عند معظم فئات الشعب في كل من المجتمعين المصري والجزائري نتيجة الأوضاع السياسية والإجتماعية والإقتصادية الخاصة بكل بلد و محاولة "فش الخلق" أو "التنفيس" مثلاً من خلال حدث رياضي كالمبارة المذكورة*.
التجييش الذي مارسته السلطات الرسمية أو شبه الرسمية في كل من البلدين والمناكفات الإعلامية العلنية بين اتحادي كرة القدم في كل من البلدين وصولاً إلى اتهامات من قبل الإتحاد المصري للرسميين الجزائريين بتسميم بعض لاعبي المنتخب المصري و أعضاء الجهاز الفني خلال تواجد المنتخب المصري في الجزائر لخوض مباراة الذهاب لتصفيات كأس العالم، إضافةً إلى الإتهام الذي وجّهته الصحافة الجزائرية لقوى الأمن المصرية بإعتدائها المتكرِر والوحشي على الجماهير الجزائرية خلال تواجدها في مصر قبل بضعة أيام لمؤازرة منتخبها في مباراة الإياب ضد المنتخب المصري ضمن تصفيات كأس العالم.
الإعتداءات المتكرِرة (من تحطيم واجهات و حرق إلخ...) من قبل بعض الجماهير في كل من البلدين على الشركات والمصالح التابعة لكل بلد و صولاً إلى تعرّض موظّفي هذه الشركات لمضايقات و ضرب علني، ادت إلى موجة تضامن وطني وتعصّب أعمى تجاه البلد الأخر في كل من الجزائر و مصر.
الكره أو الإزدراء الذي تضمره الشعوب العربية لبعضها البعض هو أمر ينسحب على مجمل شعوب الأقطار العربية ويتجلّى بشكل واضح خلال المباريات الرياضية التي تجمع منتخباتهم.
خروج جميع المنتخبات العربية من التصفيات المؤهلة لكأس العالم ممّا يعني أنّ شرف تمثيل الكرة العربية في المونديال هو محصورٌ فقط في مصر و الجزائر.
التمّني الأول و الأخير أن تبقى الكرة العربية حضارية وأن تعود الجماهير إلى قواعدها سالمة ولنتجنّب، ولو أنّ التشبيه ليس دقيقاً، ما حصل بين الهندوراس و السلفادور عام 1969 حيث أنّ مباراة كرة قدم أدّت أنذاك إلى معارك عسكرية استمرّت أربع أيام قُتل فيها حوالي أربع آلاف شخص معظمهم من المدنيين، وعُرفَت هذه المعارك فيما بعد بـ "حرب كرة القدم" وقد كانت من الأسباب الرئيسية التي أدّت إلى تعزيز السيطرة السياسية للعسكريين في البلدين وتشديد الخناق أكثر من ذي قبل على جميع المعارضين وزجهّم في السجون إلى ما لا نهاية.


* وهو أمرٌ لامسناه في لبنان خلال أواخر التسعينيات و بداية الألفية الجديدة مع فريق نادي الحكمة لكرة السلة حيث أقدم مناصروا الأحزاب المسيحية الذين كانوا يتعرّضون للقمع الشبه اليومي على أيدي النظام الأمني المخابراتي اللبناني السوري المشترك على مؤازرة فريق الحكمة المتفوِق لبنانياً، عربيا،ً وآسيوياً بشكلٍ جنوني و إطلاق الشعارات السياسية خلال المبارايات وشكلّت تلك المباريات مساحة "فش خلق" للأحزاب المسيحية و ساحةً للإعتراض على الوضع الذي كان سائداً.

Joint Palestinian/Israeli Photo Exhibition in London

http://www.bewarethecostofwar.org/

To those interested in photojournalism but more generally in the visual depiction of the Arab-Israeli conflict this small exhibition in Old Street is an interesting reflection on human suffering in its plainest expression. The photographers are Israelis and Palestinians, so are the victims and the perpetrators of violence in the images displayed. Expect blood, tears, destruction at a scale that is unfortunately too common in parts of the Middle East. One could argue that blurring the boundaries between aggressor and victim, oppressor and oppressed undermines the cause of the Palestinians by equating their suffering with that of the occupiers. Others might see it as an honest expression of anti-war sentiment. Many of the images have little artistic value while others reflect the events in a perversely beautiful manner.

Whatever your views or inclination, it wont leave you indifferent. For me it raises one important question: Can the very personal and individual experience of human suffering be objectively measured and compared?

Man in the Cube: Climate change on the Corniche

http://themaninthecube.wordpress.com/

Meet Rami Eid. The Man in the Cube for 72 hours on the Beirut Corniche. His aim is to draw attention to the dangers of climate change.

It is no doubt a creative style of campaigning for the Middle East. I am not sure whether the majority of the Lebanese public will 'get it'. But well done anyway.

!!!جائزة نوبل للسلام

خالد برّاج

لا أعرف ما هي إنجازات الرئيس الأميركي باراك أوباما و لم ألحظها إلى حدّ الآن لكي أهلِل فرحاً لنيله جائزة نوبل للسلام.

صحيح أنّ الرجل يحاول في شتّى المجالات تحسين صورة الولايات المتحدّة في الخارج عبر العمل العلني (على الأقل) للحدّ من التسلّح النووي و الإستغناء عن الدرع الصاروخي في أوروبا (المقلق لروسيا) إضافةً إلى محاولة إبتداع طرق جديدة لطمأنة العالم العربي و الإسلامي من خلال تحريك ملف المفاوضات الفلسطينية - الإسرائيلية (ممّا أوقعه بخلافٍ مع إسرائيل ظهر إلى العلن بجدِية لأول مرَةٍ منذ نشوء دولة إسرائيل) و معارضته للإحتلال الاميريكي للعراق و صولاً إلى تعاطيه بشكل مغاير لإستمرار الحرب في أفغانستان إلاّ أنّ جميع تلك المحاولات هي ضمن ما يسمح به النظام "السيستم" و هو يتماشى مع المصلحة الحالية لسياسة الولايات المتّحدة الخارجية.

بالطبع العلاقات بين الولايات المتحدة و إسرائيل لن تشوبها شائبة بالرغم من بعض التوّترات التي تحدثها تصاريح من هنا أو هناك للرئيس الأميركي أو أحد معاونيه لأنّ المضمون لا و لن يشكّك بحق إسرائيل في الوجود أو دفاعها عن نفسها و هو يتبع نفس منهج الإدارات الأميركية المتعاقبة بتحميل الفلسطينيين و الإسرائيليين على السواء بفارقٍ كبير مسؤولية الأحداث و الصدامات التي تحصل بالأراضي المحتلّة, أمّا هامش التصريح أو الخطاب الرسمي (أو الغير الرسمي) الأميركي المنتقد لإسرائيل فهو مبني بشكلٍ أساسي على إنتقاد عمليّة الإستيطان في الأراضي المحتلّة و دعوة إسرائيل إلى إيقافها أو الحدّ منها و هي تأتي بإطار التمنّي و ليس الأمر.

في المسألة العراقية, يدفع الرجل ثمن أخطاء بوش الأب و الإبن في آنٍ , و هو و إن إنسحبت جيوش التحالف بقيادة المارينز من مدن العراق الرئيسية و معلومات شبه مؤكّدة عن الخطّة النهائية للإنسحاب النهائي من العراق إلاّ أنّ المسالة العراقية أصبحت تتعدّى وجود عسكري لقوى إحتلال في كلِ المدن أو بعضها إلى منحنى أخطر (أي الإقتتال الطائفي الشبه يومي) ساهمت فيه بشكل رئيسي سياسات الإدارات الأميركية المتوارثة منذ حرب الخليج الأولى بتشجيعها عن قصد أو غيره بالتضامن مع الأحلام الإيرانية بتصدير الثورة إلى محيط إيران العربي, أماّ التدخّل السوري فهو إن يأخذ طابع تسلّل تخريبي عن طريق بعض الجماعات الأصولية إلاّ أنّه يبقى محصوراً في إيطار ما يمكن أن يحصل عليه النظام السوري من مكاسب ضمن المفاوضات الشبه علنية التي يقودها الوسيط التركي بين إسرائيل و سوريا.

أمّا في أفغانستان فإنّ المعطيات تشير بشكلٍ لا لبس فيه أنّ الإتجاه لدى الرئيس الأميركي هو بالتجديد للقوات الأمريكية إضافةً إلى معلومات صحفية تؤكِد أنّ الرئيس الأميركي سيوافق على توصية قائد القوات الدولية في أفغانستان الجنرال ستانلي ماكريستال على توسيع رقعة الحرب و زيادة عديد القوات الأمريكية هناك.

إذاً أين هي الإنجازات ؟

هل الإستغناء عن الدرع الصاروخي في أوروبا و الذي أعطى حيوية إيجابية لكن محدودة للعلاقات الأميركية – الروسية يشكِل إنجازاً يكافأ عليه باراك أوباما بجائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

هل إيمان باراك أوباما بالحلول الدبلوماسية و السلمية لحلّ النزاعات في العالم يشكِل قاعدة قانونية و عمليّة لمنحه جائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

هل حلمه بضرورة وجود عالمٌ خالٍ من الأسلحة النوويّة يعتبر كافياً لمنحه جائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

هل إنتقاده و دعوته للتخفيف من حدّة الإستيطان الصهيوني في الأراضي الفلسطينية يؤرّخ كإنجازٍ يكافأ عليه بجائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

هل إنسحاب القوات الأميركية من المدن الرئيسية في العراق هو إنجازٌ كافٍ يمنحه بشكلٍ تلقائي جائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

هل إنتخاب رجل أمريكي من أصول أفريقية لأول مرةٍ كرئيس للولايات المتحدة الأمريكية يعطيه دفعاً و مصداقية لكي ينال جائزة نوبل للسلام ؟

حسب ما أذكر فإنّ الجائزة تمنح للأفعال و ليس الأقوال و التمنيّات, و أفعال الرئيس الأميركي ليست إلى الآن سوى أقوال و هي أحلام رجلٍ آتٍ من بيئة متشعِبة أظهرته وسائل الإعلام كمزيجٍ عصري من الرئيس الأميركي الراحل جون كينيدي و فتى الستينات الحالم بعالمٍ أفضل , إنّ منح باراك أوباما جائزة نوبل للسلام بناءاً على أحلامه و تمنيّاته هي هرطقة مضحكة لا تمتّ إلى الواقع بشيء , و هو يعلم تماماً و في قرارة نفسه أنّ منحه هذه الجائزة قد أتى قبل الأوان بكثير لأنّ هناك الكثير من العمل يجب إنجازه لكي ينال جائزة السلام الحقيقية التي سوف تمنحه إياها الشعوب المقهورة القابعة تحت وطأة الأنظمة التوتاليترية و دبّابات الجيش الأميركي.

The 2009 Nobel Peace Prize: A lapse in judgment

By Joseph El-Khoury

There used to be a time when the Nobel Peace Prize would recognise achievement. These days,possibly due to the dire state of affairs in many parts of the world, the committee behind the prize seems to satisfy itself of recognising endeavour towards peace.

How else would you explain that US president Barack Obama was chosen as the 2009 recipient only 9 months into his presidency, in the absence of any tangible progress on the Middle East, Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea not to mention the difficulties he faces in reforming the US healthcare.

Supposed to recognise his ability to instil hope across the world, the Nobel prize will raise expectations that his administration will revolutionise the way America approaches foreign affairs. Yet,so far beyond some symbolic gestures and a measured language it is business as usual in Washington.

It is maybe unfair to blame Obama the man for a deeply entrenched arrogance that colours the American view of the world (and in particularly the Third World). It is also unfair to bestow on him the honour of a Nobel Prize for merely not being George Bush.

Fadlallah's fatwa on Israel: An unhelpful addition to the debate

By Joseph El-Khoury

On Sunday 13^th September 2009, highly influential Shiaa Cleric Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah issues a fatwa from Beirut banning the normalisation of ties with Israel. For those who aren’t familiar with the concept, a ‘fatwa’ being a binding religious decree, similar in effect to the one issued by Ayatollah Khomeiny in the wake of the Salman Rushdie affair in the 1980s.

There is nothing new in the basic position adopted by Sayyed Fadlallah. The normalisation of ties with Israel is a highly charged issue at a time when there is no movement on the peace process front and the Palestinian state remains inaccessible. The problem lies with the premise he uses to justify his position. From what I read in the Arab speaking press The fatwa consists of 4 points which mostly reiterate the right of the Palestinian to the entirety of Palestinian land and the duty of every Muslim to resist the ‘rape’(Ightisab) of the land as the future of the entire Muslim nation depends on it. It also encourages other clerics to issue clear instructions to the believers and adopt a proactive approach in supporting the Palestinian cause. Point 2 is the one I found most controversial, especially when Sayyed Fadlallah is known for his measured words and open mindedness (in relative terms of course).

While most Lebanese and Foreign media only focused on the headline and the message of the fatwa, the Lebanese daily Assafir and the online media outlet El-Nashra gave a more detailed account of the actual statement. Assafir reports that in point 2 of the fatwa the Sayyed Fadlallah: “And it is the responsibility of the Arab and Muslim People, which day and night read in the Holy Koran, the history of these Zionists to realise that they did not have the acceptance of God, so how could they gain acceptance among people”. El-Nashra goes further: “Their history is only one of killing some prophets and rejecting others while obstructing their path, so that they have always been a problem in more than one historical period and a problem for people in more than one part of the world.” He goes on to justify that: “When we talk about the history of the Jews, we are not judging them on their past, for the Koranic message is one that the responsibility for history lies with those who committed it. Instead we point out that the attitude of their ancestors still continues to this day, and that there is a unity and consistency in the immorality and inhumanity of their stance, regardless of the modern change in discourse”.(Apologies for any inaccuracies in the translation)

I am honestly puzzled by the tone of the Fatwa, even if we consider that Fadlallah only intended for it to be head among his followers. Firstly, I am surprised by the casual use of Jews and Zionists interchangeably in the text, which seems to scupper decades of Palestinian efforts to re-centre their struggle as a political one against a colonial entity instead of an eternal ethnic-religious fight. Secondly, the lack of attention to Western sensitivities with regards to anything perceived as anti-Semitic discourse with National-Socialist overtones might also indicate a shift towards an overall aggressive stance that only relies on support in the Islamic and Islamist heartland to achieve victory over Israel. This aggressive stance can only reinforce the Zionist message that Jews in Palestine are threatened in their existence. Them who have been successful at stifling any criticism of Israel behind the cloak of anti-Semitism while convincing the West of some tenuous continuity between the Holocaust and their conflict with the Arabs. Fadlallah’s fatwa will soon join the image of the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Hajj Amin Al Husseini meeting Hitler in 1937 in the Zionist arsenal of propaganda.

Not being Muslim, I am neither the intended recipient of Sayyed Fadlallah’s message nor do I feel concerned by it. The position of Arab secularists towards the Palestinian issue should remain a principled yet pragmatic affair guided by the interest of the Palestinian people who have an inalienable right to auto-determination and the establishment of a fully independent state on the territories occupied in 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Other more creative solutions are up for discussion but this minimum is non-negotiable.

جبهة المقاومة الوطنية اللبنانية

خالد برّاج

التاريخ: 16 ايلول 1982 – المكان: منزل المعلِم الشهيد كمال جنبلاط

"يا أبناء بيروت البطلة، يا أبناء شعبنا اللبناني العظيم في الجنوب والجبل والبقاع والشمال، أيها المقاتلون الوطنيون الشجعان إن العدو الإسرائيلي المستمر في حربه الوحشية ضد لبنان منذ أكثر من مئة وأربعة أيام يبدأ اليوم تدنيس أرض بيروت الوطنية الطاهرة... فلتنتظم صفوف الوطنيين اللبنانيين كافة، وبغضّ النظر عن انتماءاتهم السابقة وعن الاختلافات الإيديولوجية والطائفية والطبقية، في جبهة المقاومة الوطنية اللبنانية ضد الاحتلال الإسرائيلي، كسراً للقيد الذي تحاول أن تفرضه اليوم أميركا وإسرائيل على عنق شعبنا الحر ورفعاً لراية التحرر الحقيقي لشعبنا العظيم".

جورح حاوي – محسن إبراهيم

لبّا الرفاق النداء و حملوا السلاح و أخرجوا جيوش صهيون من بيروت و طاردوهم في صيدا و البقاع و جنوبي الجنوب, لم ينتظروا مباركة إقليمية أو إحتضان دولة ممانعة أو حتى مالٍ شريفٍ طاهر, إلتحقوا في صفوف جبهة المقاومة الوطنية البنانية (جمَول) و قاوموا المحتل أينما كان غير آبهين بالموت أو الأسر...
فألف تحية إلى من أطلق الشرارة الأولى, ألف تحية إليك يا أبو أنيس شهيد الحرية و العدالة الإجتماعية و الإنسان و ألف تحية إليك يا أبا خالد يا من آثرت السكوت في هذا الزمن الرديء "زمن الفضيحة" كما يقول شاعرنا الكبير الراحل محمود درويش.
و ألف تحية إليكم يا شهداء جبهة المقاومة الوطنية اللبنانية, أنتم يا خيرة الرجال الآتون من كل قرية في لبنان , أنتم من آمن أنّ عدو الداخل من نظام طائفي و محاصصة مذهبية هو نفس العدو المغتصب لأرض فلسطين والجنوب, هو نفس العدو المتربِص في ظلال الأنظمة العربية التقدمية و الرجعية ...
و ألف تحية إلى تلك العائلات التي هُجِرت من أرض و قرى الجنوب على يدِ المحتل الصهيوني و عملائه و على يدِ قوى الأمر الواقع (و الغدر) من فاشيين/ظلاميين و عصابات الإجرام و القتل...
و ألف تحية إليكم يا أمهات شهداء جبهة المقاومة الوطنية البنانية , يا من صبرتم و ضحيّتم بأغلى ما عندكم كي تبقى راية الحق و التقدّم تغرز مجدها في صدر الصهيونية و الأنظمة العربية (وكلّ الأنظمة العربية) البالية...
و ألف تحية إليكم يا أسرى جبهة المقاومة الوطنية البنانية , أنتم من خرجتم من معتقل أنصار و الخيام و زفتا و سجون الداخل الفلسطيني , أنتم من خرجتم من هذا السجن الصغير إلى السجن العربي الكبير, أنتم من أهملتكم الدولة و الحكومات المتعاقبة و سياسيوا الطوائف و المناصب...
فترة مجيدة من تاريخ نضال الشعوب بوجه الإحتلال و الظلم و القهر, فترة مجيدة يحاول البعض اليوم تغييبها و التعتيم عليها عن قصد, لكن ما من أحد ليستطيع (في لبنان و غيره) أن يمحيها من ذاكرتنا و وجداننا, لا أحد يستطيع تزييف و تزوير التاريخ إلى الأبد, هي كما تقول كلمات الأغنية في مقطعها الأخير:

"بين أنصار و عتليت يا أمي
كتبتلك أشوائي
بترابات فلسطين يا أمي
أنا و رفاقي
ونحنا شفنا العذاب يا أمي
و دءنا حلاتو
و إلِي نِسي جمّول يا أمي
يعدم حياتو"

!ما بعد صلاح عزالدين

خالد برّاج

لكانت الضجّة التي أحدثتها إفلاس رجل الأعمال و المال صلاح عزالدين في الأسبوع المنصرم تمرّ مرور الكرام و تقتصر على خسائر مالية لأشخاصٍ ميسّري الحال و بعض رجال الاعمال و شركاتهم لولا التداول الإعلامي حول تعرّض بعض قياديي حزب الله النافذين و بعض مؤسسات الحزب الرسمية أو التي تدور في فلك الحزب إلى خسائر مالية من العيار الثقيل نتيجةً لتعاملهم المالي مع السيِد صلاح عزالدين, ثلاث تحديات أمام قيادة الحزب تجاه ما حصل أو ما قد ينتج عن ردّات فعل على الصعيد الداخلي للحزب:

أولاً : مصداقية قيادة الحزب تجاه الحزبيين و المناصرين الملتزمين عقيدة الحزب الدينية (و هم بالأساس ملتزمون العقيدة الدينية قبل إلتزامهم بمشروع المقاومة) , و من المعلوم أنّ تلك العقيدة المبنية أساساً على الترفّع عن ملذّات و مغريات الحياة و نكران الذات و الزهد في الآخرة هي من الركائز الأساسية عند التنظيمات الإسلامية و الحزب تنظيم إسلامي قبل أن يكون تنظيماً مقاوم يتّخذ من السيرة الكربلائية بما تمثِل من ترفّع عن ملذات الحياة من مالٍ و جاهٍ و صرخة حقٍ بوجه الطغيان و الظلم أساساً لرسالته السياسية و الإجتماعية في مجتمعنا اللبناني المتنوِع.

السؤال : كيف ستبرِر قيادة الحزب لشريحة كبيرة من الملتزمين العقائديين غرق بعض القياديين في وحولٍ دنيوية هي أبعد ما تكون عن رسالة الحزب الدينية و الدور الريادي الإسلامي الذي يلعبه الحزب ؟

ثانيا ً: الخسائر المالية و تأثيرها على إلتزامات الحزب الإجتماعية تجاه "مجتمع المقاومة" من عوائل شهداء و جرحى مروراً بمؤسسات الحزب التعليمية و التربوية و الثقافية إضافةً إلى مدى تأثير تلك الخسائر على البنى العسكرية الخاصة بالمقاومة و أفق و أطر تطويرها مستقبلاً.

السؤال : هل يستطيع الحزب الإعتماد فقط على المساعدات الإيرانية المالية و العينية ؟ علماً انّ بعض الإشاعات تتحدّث عن نوعٍ من تقنينٍ أو تخفيضٍ في المساعدات الإيرانية على إثر بروز أصوات عدّة في الجمهورية الإسلامية (حتّى ضمن فريق عمل المحافظين) تطالب بخفضها لما في ذلك من بداية تأثيرٍ سلبي على الإقتصاد الإيراني بشكلٍ عام.

ثالثاً : تأكيدات حول مساهمة و ضلوع اللوبي الصهيوني و إسرائيل بشكلٍ غير مباشر على الأقل بتلك الخسارة (الإفلاس) التي تعرّض لها رجل الأعمال صلاح عزالدين و هي كما يؤكِد بعض المحلّلين و الصحافيين حرب من نوع آخر تشنّها إسرائيل على الحزب مرادها الإقتصاص من الحزب بتوجيه ضربة إقتصادية/مالية له تأتي بثمارها من خلال إحداث حالات من النقص في الموارد المالية للحزب و تؤدي إلى خفض في مستوى التسلّح و التجهيزات اللوجستية مّما ينعكس سلباً على عمليّات الحزب العسكرية و الإستخباراتية إضافةً إلى تأثيرها المباشر على باقي مؤسسات الحزب.

السؤال : كيف سيكون ردّ فعل الحزب إذا صدقت الإشاعات حول ضلوع إسرائيل و لوبيها الصهيوني المنتشر في العالم في الإفلاس الذي تعرّض له رجل الأعمال صلاح عزالدين  ؟

أسئلة و تحدّيات من نوعٍ آخر تواجهها قيادة حزب الله للمرّة الأولى منذ نشأة الحزب في بداية الثمانينات, لا شكّ أنّ هناك حالة إرباك عند القيادة و المحازبين و ترقّب عند باقي اللبنانيين من المتعاطفين أو المنتقدين للحزب و أدائه  و المعطيات قليلة و الإشاعات أكثر لكن من الواضح و إن صدقت تلك الإشاعات أنّ حزب الله قد تلبنن أكثر من اللازم و إنّ إسرائيل قد بدأت بحربٍ تدميرية من نوع آخر يراد منها تحجيم و إضعاف مجال عمل الحزب السياسي, الإجتماعي و التربوي وصولاً إلى القضاء بشكلٍ كامل و نهائي على منظومة الحزب العسكرية و اللوجستية.

عن غزّة

خالد برّاج

لماذا هذا الإستغراب ؟ و لماذا تلك الضجة حول الإجراءات التي إتّخذتها حركة حماس في قطاع غزّة في الآونة الأخيرة ؟
هل كان من المؤكد إحترام حركة حماس لحرية التعبير و حرية الصحافة ؟
هل أعلنت حركة حماس رسمياً من خلال قيادتها عن إعطائها ضمانات لباقي التنظيمات (غير حركة فتح) بعدم التعرّض لها ؟
هل كنّا على يقينٍ تام أنّ حركة حماس ستفرج عن معتقلي حركة فتح ؟
هل كنّا مقتنعين تماماً أنّ حقوق المرأة ستبقى مصانة في ظلّ حكم حركة حماس ؟
هل كنّا واثقين إلى حدٍ كبير إلى عدم مساس حركة حماس بلباس المرأة ؟
هل كنّا من المنظرِين إلى إحترام حركة حماس لحرية العمل النقابي؟
هل أعلنت حركة حماس أكثر من مرّة إعجابها بالفن و الثقافة و تقديرها لمثّقفي فلسطين كالشاعر الراحل محمود درويش؟
هل و هل و هل...
بل على العكس ,
كنّا على يقينٍ كافٍ و لا نزال أنّ من نكّل بأهل غزّة و إغتصب ذاكرتها و داس على وحدتها و رمى مناضليها من على أسطح البنايات و شرفات المنازل ليس إلاّ فاشيٌ منمّق يشبه إلى حدٍ بعيد هذا الصهيوني المتعجرف الكامن لحرية فلسطين و أهلها.
كنّا واثقين ولا نزال من أنّ الأمور في ظل حكم و حكومة حركة حماس ستؤول إلى قمعٍ للحريات و إجراءات تعسّفية لا تمتّ إلى تاريخ نضال الشعب الفلسطيني بصلة...
كنّا من أكثر الناس إقتناعاً و لا نزال أنّ حركة حماس تمارس و تحرِض على التمييز الطائفي بين الفلسطنيين و هو أمر لم تشهده القضية و المقاومة الفلسطينية منذ نشأتها...
كنّا على علمٍ تام و لا نزال أنّ من نشأ على تعاليم الفكر التكفيري و الظلامي ليس من شيمه و أخلاقه صون حرية المرأة و حقوقها, ليس من خصائله تشجيع الثقافة و الفن, ليس من عاداته تقبلّ و مناقشة الفكر الأخر...هو يؤمن بالقمع و العنف فقط, لا يقبل الحوار أو النقاش.
و كنّا و ما زلنا...
فلماذا هذا الإستغراب و التعجّب إذاً ؟
هل هو دليل عن عجزٍ ما أم إحباطٍ داخلي نتيجة ما ألت الأوضاع إليه على الساحة الفلسطينية ؟ هل هو إشمئزازٌ من منظر هذا "الحمساوي" و هو يدوس على صورة "أبو عمّار" رافعاً راية النصر ؟ هل هو حنين إلى علمانية القضية الفلسطينية و فصائلها المنضوية تحت شرعية عباءة منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية ؟
أسئلة كثيرة يطرحها من عرف فلسطين منذ الصغر و عشقها و إعتبرها (و لا يزال) القضية الأولى , إنّها قضية فلسطيني يتمّ تهجيره و قتله منذ أوائل القرن العشرين على يد آلة إجرامٍ منظّمة إسمها الصهيونية , إنّها قضية فلسطيني خذلته جميع الأنظمة الشقيقة التقدمية منها و الرجعية, إنّها قضية فلسطيني أصبح الأن محاصراً بين كمّاشةٍ صهيونية و مطرقةٍ أصولية...
و بين إشتداد الكماشة و حدّة المطرقة شعبٌ يصيح من العذاب و الظلم و القتل و القمع, لا يزيده بؤساً سوى سماعه الخطب اليومية لزعماء و عظماء الأمة (من المحيط إلى الخليج) المزايدون على أهل غزّة من قصورهم العاجية و أنظمتهم المهترئة.

Al-Megrahi and the Swiss Bankers

By Joseph El-Khoury

The Al-Megrahi controversy illustrates one of the basic misunderstandings that poison East-West Relationships. The scenes of celebrations upon his return cannot have come as a shock to those who remember the history of Colonel Kaddafi(Gaddafi) and his consistent talent at irritating, insulting and keeping everyone on their toes. This is not about a clash of cultures or an Arab insensitivity to the suffering of others. Leaving aside whether Al-Megrahi is guilty of Lockerbie or whether the Libyan people feel his detention was a political one, the public display of jubilation are unlikely to have been spontaneous and can only have been blessed and orchestrated by a regime bent on sending messages as part of a conversation with London and Washington of which we know little. Capricious tyrant or Machiavellian visionary? The jury is still out on that one. What is clear is that the West is showing a great deal of tolerance in the name of pragmatic cooperation.

I remember a conversation with A Libyan doctor in self imposed exile who complained above all of the ‘unpredictability’ of a regime run by an unpredictable man. In a way Kaddafhi is not different from a Henry VIII changing wives like you would change socks, then creating a church to accommodate his personal needs. These, after all are the prerogatives of absolute Monarchs...and Rock stars. Kaddafi probably aspires to both status: omnipotent and dramatic. He is a figure as recognisable as Michael Jackson since the 1980s and will mostl likely become a pop-art icon for years to come. But the values of the 16th century are no longer in operation. This is 2009, supposedly dominated by liberalism, governance, accountability, fairness and...Democracy. Wars are being waged in the name of these values in Iraq and Afghanistan at a high cost for all those involved. Unfortunately, and since September 2001, Kaddafhi has been sold to Western public opinion as a repentant bad guy, turned anti-terrorist campaigner and business partner. Dropped were concerns over sustained human rights abuses, oppressive policies and lack of political freedom. Libya had become in 8 years the ideal investment spot, as longs as you managed to woo the ruling inner circle by accepting invitations to share food in the presidential tent or admiring the artwork of the heir to the throne Seif El Islam in a London Gallery. Britain, but also the US and others have only their governments to blame for marketing the regime as a model for the future Middle East.

Only a few days prior to Al Megrahi’s release on compassionate grounds -A decision that can only be praised if its premises are genuine- Switzerland was apologising to Kaddafi’s other son Hannibal for having smeared his image following allegations him and his wife had abused their staff while sojourning in the country. Libya had retaliated by withdrawing funds deposited in Swiss Banks and cancelling contracts. The sight of Swiss officials begging for forgiveness was more repulsive than the scenes in Tripoli. It was also more symbolic of the hypocrisy framing East-West relationships, a relationship of business and political powerhouses over which the average Arab has no influence.

'We Understand Islam'

By Joseph El-Khoury

Hamas spokesperson Ghazi Hamad’s desperate efforts to portray his movement as moderate and mainstream felt a tad rehearsed, triggering sniggers from other panel members during an Aljazeera English debate on the latest events in Gaza.

The heavy fighting over the weekend pitted Palestinian security forces, essentially under Hamas control, against a relative newcomer on the Islamist scene, known as the ‘Jund Ansar Allah’ or ‘Soldiers of the supporters of God’. This Salafi organisation of a few hundred members and apparently linked to the kidnapping of BBC Journalist Alan Johnston a few years ago, had been growing steadily and recruiting aggressively among the disaffected youth in the impoverished city of Rafah in Southern Gaza. As part of his diatribe Mr Hamad declared: ’These guys don’t understand Islam, We understand Islam’; an accusation that ironically had been levelled at them by Fatah in the past. Similarly he claims that his organisation never forces its beliefs on others, while the reality in Gaza reveals a systematic islamization of society organised by Hamas since it took over control of the district.

Only a few weeks earlier we read press releases indicating that Female lawyers were instructed to wear the veil while conducting official court business. Other reports suggest that Hamas is no longer content of focusing its task on fighting the Israelis but is determined to remodel Gazan life according to its religious and moral principles. Realistically, the movement doesn’t really have much choice, having dug itself into a hole by evicting Fatah to the West Bank and failed to emulate Hezbollah in the latest Gaza war, it is limited to capitalising on its religious platform.

Obviously they are not responsible for every brand of Islamism within Palestinian society, but on this account had so far only been rivalled by Islamic Jihad, a much more elitist organisation with no limited grass root support. In addition, any discerning observer with basic understanding of political Islam, will be aware of the radical differences between organisations such as Hamas (and Hezbollah) on one hand and the Global Jihadists of Al Qaeda. Their lumping together by the Western media only mirrors Israeli propaganda which equates between Palestinian resistance to occupation (regardless of how misguided and counterproductive) and the delusional behaviour of a group of religious fanatics. It is easy to forget that the West used military force in Iraq to bring to power political parties that would find themselves to the Right of Hamas ideologically, but what is ‘Kosher’ in Iraq is ‘Haram’ in Palestine.

Nonetheless, it is Hamas, aided by the Israeli blockade, which bears a large part of responsibility for creating an atmosphere where Islam could be used as a political tool in settling disputes and labelling opponents. A number of commentators have highlighted the rehabilitating benefit for the militants of having dealt a deadly blow to those who dared be more ‘Muslim’ than them. Others feel that this is not the last we will hear from the Salafis and that the appalling human situation in the strip has the potential to breed further unbridled fanaticism.

Down and Dirty in Jeddah

By Joseph El-Khoury

Sex is the ultimate taboo in any society. It is the subject that mesmerises audiences from Amsterdam to Tokyo passing through...Jeddah.

A storm has been brewing over the closure of the offices of the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) in Saudi Arabia following the personal on screen revelations of a Saudi citizen. Given the LBC’s obsession with ratings and the delivery of a competitive product in the murky world of Arab Satellite Broadcasting, it is no surprise that they chose to milk the subject of sex through their bold talk show ‘A7mar bel Khatt El 3areed’( Red in bold writing) fronted by a babyfaced rising star, Malek Maktabi. Having started as a propaganda tool for the Christian Lebanese militias in the mid-1980s, over the years, LBC has gradually shed any ambition of being a political messenger and has focused instead on winning the broader Arab market, where political debates (even in other countries) disturb and upset. The problem with that approach is that no debate on social issues can be apolitical, since the two are inextricably linked. Policies are dictated by society and in turn dictate social behaviour. The process is open and transparent in democratic societies but not in the Arab world. Debating sexual behaviour, domestic violence or religious beliefs is not only a challenge to patriarchal tradition and the moral authorities of the realm, but one step away from asking tough questions on the state of the economy, human rights and foreign policy. Individual liberties and political freedom go hand in hand; a fact that Arab regimes, may they be presidential dictatorships or religious monarchies, are very aware of and actively counteract. The means of control will vary from secular Damascus to conservative Khartoum and so far have proven successful. That said, it is no surprise that it was the Saudis who proved most sensitive to the sexual adventures of one of their compatriots. Religious dogma and politics are one in Saudi Arabia where the ruling family’s claim to power since their ascendance in the first part of the 20th century is inseparable from the domination of the militant group of Islamists known as the Wahhabis. Furthermore, the culprit is the LBC, a network with an ex-Christian identity now mostly owned by Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal, a Saud himself but not part of the ruling inner circle. Confronted with this explosive cocktail mix, the tenants of the moral order and political stability in the Kingdom had no choice but to act. The rhetoric on ‘negative cultural influences’ and ‘habits that are foreign to Saudi society’ were brought out for the benefit of the masses, who are unlikely to witness the excesses of their rulers in the clubs of London or the Casinos of Monte-Carlo.

Malek Maktabi will most likely be asked to down tune his program to less threatening topics, making it virtually unwatchable. May we suggest covering the Palestinian-Israeli for a change? At least we all agree we support the Palestinians, or is that denial as well?

The Politics of Recycling

By Joseph El-Khoury

Recycling is thriving in Lebanon...from the recycling of old tunes by the 4cats and other mediocre leather clad divas to the recycling of slogans, images and political discourse. As ever, the Palme D’Or goes to Lord Joumblat, the Darth Vader of the Druze Mountain who has been delivering a well choreographed performance over the past few weeks. The cherry on top came in the form a speech, more like a confession, full of reference to Arabism and Socialism. The flirtation with neo conservatism ends in a half baked Mea Culpa only two months after the historical electoral battle for the soul of Lebanon. I will not dwell on the Beyk’s socialist credentials, having covered them in a previous post. But I will point out that Arabism or Arab nationalist rhetoric has proven many times before to be the real opium of the secular people in Lebanon. In its name reform and revolution have been incited and scuppered. Joumblatt again proves that his behaviour is born out of tradition: Talk the talk and (in the absence of accountability) you won’t have to walk to walk. He leaves orphans behind as his conciliation tour covers the Iranian embassy and the headquarters of the Syrian Nationalists: The leftist idealists, fans of the late Samir Kassir and George Hawi, who are still unable to cut the umbilical cord inherited from the alliances of the 60s and 70s. Something tells me that they will fail to recognise that this final twist is an opportunity to grow up and mature as a political entity independent from the sponsorship of the Druze chieftain.

But recycling is not only a Druze hobby. The liberal economists of the clan in power have again sold us a summer of opportunities and rejuvenation. They are supported in their efforts by CNN, Paris Match and other foreign media reports excited over a Beirut soaking in sweat rather than blood. The realities of a divided, corrupt and impoverished country are set aside in favour of short clips revealing the hedonism of a Sky Bar or the opulence of a Baalbeck festival. What we are not reminded of is that Lebanon earned its reputation as the Switzerland of the east as the winds of civil strife were blowing from the countryside and that 1974 was an exceptional year for tourism. A year later, AK47s had replaced saxophones as a background symphony.

Not wanting to be left behind, the Kataeb are making a comeback. An essential player on the political scene until the 1980s, their rebranding as a measured yet militant defender of Christian interests under a Gemayel (Sami, not Nadim who is condemned to play a second hand role until he grows a personality) is a well timed move as the Aounist movement loses steam for lack of imagination.

And the mother of all recycling tunes is the ‘special relation with Syria’ to which all of the above adhere. The race is on to Damascus, literary funded by Saudi money, to kneel again at the emperor’s feet.

I wish we would all stick to glass, cardboard and paper. Recycling in politics is actually damaging to the environment.

The Thing About Ziad Baroud

By Joseph El-Khoury

I resisted the urge to join the Ziad Baroud’s fan club on Facebook as I generally believe in supporting ideas rather than individuals in position of authority; although I have to say I came close to praising him in private as the saviour of our otherwise decrepit republic.

Understandably at least 25000 of my compatriots appreciate the interior minister. In excess of 20 Facebook groups are dedicated to showing appreciation to his performance and his policies, with one group of 40 members from both sexes declaring him’ very cute!!’

The thing about Ziad Baroud is that he is unremarkable in so many ways. He is not particularly charismatic; he speaks in a funny accent and is rather technical in his approach. I suspect that these unthreatening ‘qualities’ were at least partly behind him getting the job in the first place, sponsored by President Suleiman. While the Maronite scene is buzzing with young aspiring scions of political families, this young minister from Kesrwan went about his business, delivering an exceptionally well organised election process in the most challenging of conditions. Navigating carefully between a sceptical majority and a suspicious opposition, he kept his public interventions succinct and to the point. Nevertheless, judging from his long history of activism within civil society, the man is not lacking in opinions and has made his views clear on a number of issues relating to citizenship and human rights.

His term in office can be described as the highlight of the previous government, dwarfing the gesticulations of a Gebran Bassil and the posturing of a Mohammad Shatah. Unfortunately the bipolarity that the Lebanese revel in leaves little space for conscientious ministers like him. We hear rumours that he will not be returned to his post or to another one, amidst competition for the interior ministry between the Future movement of Hariri and Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement.

In the absence of a civil and political movement to embrace these secular upright characters, we remain in a situation where fan clubs are created and poems recited to this rare phenomenon in post-Taef Lebanon. I fear a time where Ziad Baroud keyholders become fashion accessories and a dedicated museum is attracting crowds to his hometown of Jeita.

Beyond the irony, I pity a country that idolises a civil servant for doing his job.

The Moody Beyk

By Joseph El-Khoury

Walid Joumblatt is the archetypal Lebanese politician. Born in an illustrious feudal dynasty, he also inherited a political mantle following the assassination of his father in 1977 in the form of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP). As is frequently the case in this scenario, the son of the ‘Mouallem’ had little to prove to his followers to gain their loyalty, which he has since retained. In addition, Joumblatt’s recognition has an international dimension, since his formation is an integral member of the Socialist International. The fact that socialism and progressive ideals are as alien to him as vodka to a Mollah do not seem to bother his International friends, who are happy to accept that the Druze sect is THE progressive element within Lebanon. Clearly Papandreou (Greek President of the Socialist International) and co are yet to visit Moukhtara, where the Beyk will have to work hard to convince them of the Lebanese flavour of socialism. But all the above confusion can be forgiven in the ill defined ideological spectrum of the Levant where brands and labels are often mere excuses to create a political party when one is needed. What is more worrying is the trend for the Beyk to change his mind again, and again....and again.

Walid Joumblatt changes him mind over crucial and essential matters. He does it unexpectedly, publicly and frequently offends. The task of damage limitation is then carried out by one his side-kicks (most recently Mr Rami Rayess), who will explain, justify and sometimes go as far as apologise. The Beyk’s status will remain undiminshed among his people, since Lebanon does not operate in an age of modern accountability. Objections to style or content will remain contained within the Druze family. The ‘cool’, liberal and cultured lord of the mountain can certainly engage you in stimulating debates, but in politics his behaviour is a reminder of the times when the fate of entire nations where decided according to the whims of Emperors and the mood swings of Monarchs. Mr Joumblatt might be an astute reader of regional and international shifts in the balance of power but his accumulation of faux pas over the past few months is quickly becoming indefensible. This might be a unusual opportunity to request from a politician that he refrains from speaking his mind.

Building on months of conflicting signals to his revolutionary partners (in reference to the so-called Cedar Revolution),his latest suggestion to revive the 2005 Sunni-Shiite-Druze alliance (also known as quadripartite alliance) has infuriated Christian politicians, who have basically been asked to tone down their infantile bickering while the grownups do business. The message could not have been heard louder within a Christian community paranoid over its fate and vulnerable to radicalisation. The sad fact is that Jumblatt is correct: In an ultra-sectarian Lebanon, the weakened Christians have a choice to either remain quiet or become pawns in a conflict opposing the Sunnis and Shiites, and in regional terms the Saudi-Egyptian axis vs. the Syro-Iranian one. Their prominence in the electoral period has quickly subsided since the nomination of Hariri to the post of prime Minister. In an interesting twist of events, and probably at the behest of his seasoned advisors, the latter is seeking to recreate the conditions that surrounded the golden age of his father’s reign on the Lebanese scene in the late 1990s. In this context a rapprochement with the Syrian regime is inevitable at the cost of breaking up the March 14th Alliance, which remains to be consumed in full. The Beyk finding himself in an uncomfortable position has found no better option than to recycle old tunes of Arab Nationalism and anti-Imperialism. His less than convincing turn-around has less to do with the Palestinian cause than to deflect attention from his own flirtations with pro-Americanism. Nonetheless his statements will offend and tempt the Christians into further isolationism.

At a time of an emerging Sami Gemayel, a steadfast Michel Aoun and a resurgent Samir Geagea, Walid Jumblatt can be credited with ensuring that the future of Maronite politics is anything but progressive.

Dalia Khamissy: Social Arab Lens

By Joseph El-Khoury

Through a random succession of events I ended up at Dalia Khamissy’s presentation of her work in a Central London basement Last Thursday. Dalia’s talk was part of photo-forum, a monthly meeting of London based photographers. The setup was informal and the atmosphere generally friendly and supportive. Dalia was last to speak, preceded by Two British photographers whose personal work revolved around the theme of England and the English. Their work was inspiring and though provoking. The contrast between their romanticised views of a peaceful England could not contrast more sharply with what followed. It felt like the equivalent of switching your TV dial from BBC4 to Al-Jazeera without blinking. Dalia suitably prepared the crowd for the switch, apologising in advance for dampening the mood. And in fact carried out by emotion, she went on to apologise again at a later stage, when it was probably unwarranted. All in all, she presented 3 sets of pictures related to 2 past series and an ongoing project.

Her first series consisted of pictures taken in the year that followed the 30 day war that swept through South Lebanon in July 2006. For a second, Dalia struggled in introducing the theme to an unknown Western audience comfortably eating crisps in the dark. Was that an Israeli aggression, a Lebanese-Israeli war or a conflict between Hezbollah and the IDF on Lebanese soil? Ultimately, she stuck to basics and introduced the facts: 2 soldiers kidnapped on the border, Israeli bombardments and I shot the result. Dalia focused on a narrow but essential aspect of the devastation by shooting pictures of the inside of village dwellings that sustained significant destruction. Now open air exhibits and mostly gutted out these living rooms nonetheless retain some elements (sofas, chairs, phones, carpets)that remind us of their previous function as someone’s living space, intensely private and personal. The sometimes uncomfortable sensation of voyeurism is offset by an excellent use of lighting and colours with predominance for the Green walls so common across Lebanese villages.

Voyeurism, unavoidable in decent photojournalism, is also present in her second, and in my opinion, most personal series. As she explained to the audience, in 2004 Dalia spent a number of weeks within a refugee camps set up on the Iraqi-Jordanian borders. This self funded initiative allowed her to spend the time necessary to make herself as inconspicuous as possible, connecting at every level with the refugees; a group of Iraqis, Palestinians and Kurds displaced by the events in Iraq. Her Black and White pictures are high contrast, reflecting the scorching conditions in one of the hottest places on earth. Interestingly, it is not so much sadness that is projected in her portraits, rather a mixture of resignation and disappointment.

Her final 3 photos, part of an ongoing project is original both in its concept and in its design. She managed to explain in a few sentences the complexities of Lebanese citizenship law, which denies women from passing on their nationality to their foreign husbands and their common children. Having passed that hurdle, she wowed them with 3 separate portraits of 3 women dominating a living room, with husbands and children thrown in out of focus. The universality of the theme is emphasised by the choice of households from a range of social and religious background. The discussion overran and the chair forced us to wrap up but I am hopeful that Dalia’s conceptual creativity and technical ability were well received by this tough to please London crowd.

Are we Obsessed with Michel Aoun?

By Joseph El-Khoury

The idea for this piece came to me following a number of accusations levelled at writers on this blog but also more generally at anyone who criticises or opposes the general. At the risk of sounding pedantic I will remind our readers that obsession, clinically, is not a term to be used lightly. In fact it is a very specific type of thought characterised by discomfort, involuntary recurrence and the generation of anxiety if resisted. So, apart from exceptional clinical cases, I suspect that neither supporters nor opponents of the general are ‘obsessed’ with him; a better word would be ‘preoccupied’. This preoccupation is built around the notion that he is central to events currently shaping the country’s future.

Indeed Aoun has worked hard to place himself at the centre of political developments between 1988 and 1990 then again since his return from exile in 2005. Love him or loathe him, the general has already reserved his place in Lebanese history. This over personalisation, not uncommon in Lebanese politics (Bachir Gemayel, Moussa El Sadr and more recently Rafik Hariri and Hassan Nasrallah) has become the norm over the past few years. In my discussions with his supporters I am left with the impression that they regard him as a guiding light and a father figure. Poems addressed or dedicated to him on the Tayyar’s website also reveal a messianic adoration among a hardcore group of believers. But these facts tell us more about sections of the Christian community than it does about Aoun, although interestingly he has not attempted to discourage this type of behaviour. To the contrary, his interaction with his subordinates reveals an omnipotent chieftain who prefers to surround himself with courtesans rather than cultivate an atmosphere of critical accountability within his own party. The Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) seems to operate democratically among the lower and middle echelons with Aoun’s leadership immune from normal organisational processes. In adopting, by choice or otherwise, this model of absolute enlightened leadership for himself he should also readily accept the drawbacks; for every personal praise will be mirrored by a personal attack.

Among the March 14th Media, the online NowLebanon has proved itself particularly virulent in its personal attacks, despite a veneer of editorial sophistication. Concerned by the general’s appeal among large sections of the population, particularly women and the youth, the unashamedly pro-American website launched a systematic campaign aimed at damaging Aoun’s image. In January of this year they released a lengthy report rich in facts and figures, illustrated with fancy charts and colourful photography that claimed to inform the public about the Free Patriotic Movement and its leader. The report had a limited distribution and more importantly did not reach its intended audience, those who were least likely to turn to NowLebanon for information. Objectively the report was a departure from the usual cheap rhetoric and an attempt at providing quantifiable evidence of one’s argument. If true, the revelations clearly established that Michel Aoun and his inner circle were no different from those they sought to overthrow. Alas, the trend was short-lived. Soon after, a number of writers from various related publications resorted again to the lyrical use of expressions such as ‘madness’ and ‘mental instability’ to describe the general’s behaviour. Not satisfied with lay local opinions on the subject matter they recently enlisted the help of a certain French psychoanalyst who writes for a commercial publication in Nice (France) and is sold to us as an ‘expert’ on Lebanon. In an exclusive, the analyst Jean Luc Vannier was asked to comment on a video clip released by the FPM following the latest Lebanese elections. Through the skilled use of Psychoanalytical Jargon, Vannier masks what is essentially a misleading political opinion rather than a scientific one. Aoun is described as bordering on the ‘psychotic’ and suffering from a ‘megalomaniac delusion’. While I question its use to explain Aoun the man, the video itself is worth commenting on. It draws absurd and simplistic parallels between various historical figures (Marie Curie, Mahatma Ghandi) that, misunderstood for many years, made exceptional contributions to the human experience. Among this already random mix emerges a Michel Aoun opposed by the small minded and the ignorant. The makers of the film could be suspected of ‘psychosis’ only if Robert Fisk had not drawn similar parallels between Aoun, Ahmadinajjad and Kaddafi in an Independent article during the Iranian election crisis. Scale and proportionality are lacking in both examples.

Personally, I might object to the general’s behaviour, positions and discourse but I am radically against the cheap use of mental illness and irrationality to make up for weak political arguments. Whether Michel Aoun is mad or irrational is irrelevant when he commands the respect and loyalty of millions. Indeed if he was to be proven mad one day, his opponents should bury their heads in shame for having failed, in their rationality, to defeat the general in the hearts and minds of many Lebanese.

Aisha Bakkar 2009: The Warning Signs

By Joseph El-Khoury

The recent street battles in the district of Aisha Bakkar followed a series of celebratory display of fire power by the fans of the speaker of Parliament Nabeeh Berri and the supporters of newly appointed Prime Minister Saad Hariri. Both factions had been at it in the past but these clashes had a special flavour. Not only did they come after a period of pre-electoral truce but they also resulted in the death of an innocent 30 year old mother of five. The casualty, Zeina el Miri, was a Lebanese national of Kurdish background and a Haret Hreyk resident. In the chaos that gripped this crowded Beirut neighbourhood it is unclear who shot her and how. Nonetheless, the late Zeina being Sunni her death was obviously capitalised on by the Sunni faction involved in these clashes. Less than 24 hours later, her body was being carried by young men through the streets of Beirut wrapped in an Islamic Flag, incidentally also the flag of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The symbolism in the choice of flag was not lost on everyone; the sectarian conflict is well underway in Lebanon and has stopped surprising. I mentioned a few months ago that the Sunni-Shia confrontation has in fact been relentless, but reinvents itself by taking a variety of forms that prevent it from degenerating into all-out-war just yet. The internal bickering among Christian political forces has so far served as a buffer, allowing a proxy political debate of some sorts, which culminated in the recent parliamentary elections.

Now that these have re-generated almost identical conditions, plus or minus a few MPs here and there, the tight balance between the communities is only maintained by regional consensus. As is common in the Middle East, this consensus is volatile and has the potential to disintegrate at any point in time. The Christian ‘buffer’ is unlikely to be a permanent fixture. While there is little risk of them being dragged into direct armed confrontation, isolating themselves from the consequences is not an option either. Despite years of civil war, Lebanon’s sects still reside in interwoven networks of neighbourhoods and villages. The separation was never complete given the size and the landscape of the country. This proximity is a source of hope for a more integrated future but in the current climate also a powder keg. In that Walid Joumblat’s astute efforts to neutralise the impact on his own sect, the Druze, might prove futile.

The sectarian leadership has proven once again that it is neither willing nor able to dampen the tension on the streets. In a scenario reminiscent of 1974-75, he army finds itself a ‘peacekeeping’ force with limited mandate and only intervenes after blood has been shed. Bab El Tebbaneh-Jabal Mohsen, Tareek El jdeede and now Aisha Bakkar. The flashpoints multiply within a stone throw from the more affluent areas where business continues as normal.The behaviour of Nabih Berri and Saad Hariri following the events was laden with hypocrisy. Akin to tribal chieftains they made a few phone calls to re-establish order and pacify the hearts. The profiles of the two leaders couldn’t be more different. One a veteran self made warlord, the other the 39 year old heir of a politico-financial dynasty. At first glance, Berry has the experience of backstreet politics but might be reluctant to engage his ally Hezbollah in another tactical suicide in Beirut. Hariri on the other hand, having no doubt learned the lessons of May 7th 2008, when his supporters suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of the Amal-Hezbollah, is likely to surround himself with advisors with ‘civil war’ qudos. This mentality on both sides is in direct contradiction to the ‘spirit of the statehood’ that they invoke in their speeches.

All is not well in the country of the Cedars. The taboos are falling, slowly but convincingly and a generation of militiamen is being bred under our eyes. The path to war is not yet irreversible but to ignore the warning signs amounts to criminal negligence.

جاد المالح ومأساة مسرحية مناهضة التطبيع

خالد برّاج

لست على دراية كافية بخلفية جاد المالح الفكرية والسياسية ولست واثقاً من الروايات المتعلِقة بدعمه المطلق أو المشروط لجيش الدفاع الإسرائيلي ومشاركته ببرامج ترويجية خاصة بوزارة الدفاع الإسرائيلية، لكني تابعت ما حصل في الآونة الأخيرة من خلال الحملات الإعلامية اللبنانية المنتقدة (وخصوصاً تلفزيون المنار) لاستضافة هذا الفكاهي الفرنسي "المغربي اليهودي" الأصل خلال ثلاث حفلات ضمن فعاليات مهرجانات بيت الدين المقرّرة خلال صيف 2009، وهذا الأمر استوقفني أو أعادني إلى الماضي من خلال عدّة محطات أو حوادث شبيهة هي بالأصل ذو علاقة وثيقة بموضوع اليهود واليهودية وإسرائيل والصهيونية ومكافحتها...
الحادثة الأولى حصلت عام 1998، تاريخ الذكرى الخمسين لنكبة فلسطين، وكانت مجموعة من المثقفين اللبنانيين قد حدّدت نشاطات متفرِقة متعلِقة بالنكبة ودعت إليها مجموعة كبيرة من المثقفين من مختلف أرجاء العالم ومن ضمنهم بعض الكتاب والمفكرين اليهود المعروفين بعدائهم للصهيونية ودولة إسرائيل، إلاَ أنّ بعض الأحزاب في لبنان ومن ضمنها حزبٌ علماني عريق يجاهر بعلمانيته في شتّى المناسبات شنّ حملةٍ عشواء على منظّمي فعاليات ذكرى نكبة 48 ووصفهم بالصهاينة ومضلَلي الرأي العام حتى وصل الأمر ببعض "الرفاق" في الحزب العلماني بتوجيه تهديدات مباشرة بالقتل إلى المنظّمين وصولاً إلى الوعد علناً وعلى مسمع من الصحافة والإعلام بتفجير مقر إقامة النشاطات في حال حضور هؤلاء الكتاب والمفكّرين... طبعاً انتهى الموضوع بعدم حضورهم إلى بيروت خوفاً من أن ينفِذ "العلمانيون" ما وعدوا به لكنّ سمير قصير بقلمه وجرأته المعهودة أبى أن يسكت عن هكذا أمر ووصف ما حدث في مقالٍ شهير في جريدة النهار عنوَنه : "مدّعو قوميةٍ ما".
الحادثة الثانية حصلت في نفس العام ولا دخل لها لا من قريب ولا من بعيد بالموضوع الفلسطيني وذكرى النكبة ومسرحها كان كافيتريا المبنى الموحّد للجامعة اللبنانية حيث أصدر مجلس الطلاب المكوّن بغالبيته من محازبي ومناصري حزب الله قراراً بمنع بثّ أغاني فيروز في الكافيتريا، وعندما قام بعض الطلاب بالاستفسار عن الموضوع فوجئوا بردٍ واضح من قبل مجلس الطلاب مفاده أنّ أغاني فيروز تثير الغرائز الجنسية عند الطلبة! لكن الطلاب أعادوا مرةً ثانية استيضاح مجلس الطلاب حول هذا الموضوع غير مصدِقين ما سمعوه في المرة الأولى، إنّما الردّ جاء هذه المرّة عنيفاً وعلى لسان أحد مسؤولي الحزب في الجامعة متّهماً الطلاب بعدم الالتفات إلى دراستهم وتحصيلهم العلمي والانهماك والانشغال عوضاً عن ذلك بالأمور التي يحرِمها الدين إضافةً إلى الاستماع إلى ألحانٍ موسيقية هي أساساً غربية يهودية!
الحادثة الثالثة وقعت عام 2006 وعلى أثر انتهاء العدوان الإسرائيلي على لبنان، بدأت الوفود العربية وغيرها بزيارة لبنان والاطّلاع على الدمار و الخراب الذي خلّفته الهمجية الإسرائيلية في معظم المناطق اللبنانية، و كانت المحطّة الأساسية (إضافةً إلى بلدات الجنوب) هي الضاحية الجنوبية لمدينة بيروت حيث نالت النصيب الأوفر من الصواريخ والقذائف الإسرائيلية حيث ظنّت القيادة الإسرائيلية أنّها ومن خلال تكثيفها لحدّة القصف تستطيع اغتيال السيِد حسن نصرالله والقضاء بشكلٍ أساسي على البنى الداخلية الخاصة بالحزب... إلاّ أنّ النتيجة أثبتت عكس ذلك و جاءت الوفود العربية لمعاينة الضاحية الجنوبية ومن ضمنها وفدٌ قطري رفيع المستوى ضمّ رئيس الوزراء وشخصيات أخرى، وتمّ استقبال الوفد من قبل قيادة حزب الله بالترحيب والتهليل ودخل الوفد إلى الضاحية الجنوبية كدخول صلاح الدين الأيوبي إلى مدينة القدس على أثر هزيمة ريكاردوس قلب الأسد وتناسى الجميع أنّ أبنية وطرقات الضاحية الجنوبية قد دمّرتها الصواريخ الذكية وغيرها من القذائف والصواريخ التّي قامت الولايات المتحدة بتزويدها بشكلٍ يومي إلى جيش الدفاع الإسرائيلي عن طريق قاعدتها في دولة قطر!!!
الحادثة الرابعة حديثة العهد وهي من العام الماضي حيث منعت السلطات اللبنانية عرض الفيلم الإسرائيلي "فالس مع بشير" إضافةً إلى منع استيراد أقراص الـ"دي في دي" الخاصة بالفيلم وذلك وفقاً للأنظمة والقوانين اللبنانية المتعلِقة بمكافحة ومنع دخول البضائع الإسرائيلية إلى الأراضي اللبنانية، إلاّ أنّ المستغرب هو الكميّة الهائلة من أقراص الـ "دي في دي" المقرصنة الخاصة بهذا الفيلم والتي بيعت في السوق وكان مصدرها واحد يقع ضمن مناطق سيطرة حزب الله ... وحيث أنّ الفيلم يسلِط الضوء على مجزرة صبرا و شاتيلا والمنفِذ أيّ الطرف اللبناني (القوات اللبنانية)، و بما أنّ هذا الطرف اللبناني على نقيض وصراع سياسي واضح مع حزب الله ومن المجدي سياسياً التذكير الدائم بماضيه "الإجرامي و العميل" فلا مانع من نسخ الفيلم وبيع نسخ مقرصنة عنه غير آبهين بالإنتاج الإسرائيلي لهذا الفيلم مغلِبين منطق مكيافيلي الشهير: "الغاية تبرِر الوسيلة"!ختاماً أعود و أكرِر ما قلته في بداية المقال، إنّني لست على دراية كافية بخلفية جاد المالح الفكرية والسياسية ولست واثقاً من الروايات المتعلِقة بدعمه المطلق.. لكن بالتأكيد فإنّ برنامج جاد المالح و"قفشاته" الفكاهية في مهرجانات بيت الدين لكانت أقلّ ضرراً ودماراً وقتلاً من الصواريخ الذكية الآتية عن طريق دولة قطر أو أكثر إنسانية من العصبيات العنصرية والفاشية الصادرة عن هؤلاء "مدّعي قوميةٍ ما" الممانعين في أزقّة وخبايا شارع الحمراء.

Swine Flu: The Egyptian Method

By Joseph El-Khoury

I was not surprised by the last April decision of the Egyptian government to slaughter 300.000 pigs in response to the Swine Flu epidemics (now officially branded a pandemic). What else would you expect from a government that uses religious zeal when it suits its interests and denounces it when brandished by its opponents. Let us not forget that it was the ‘secular’ regime of Mubarak and not the radical Muslim Brotherhood that imprisoned the blogger Abdel Kareem Nabil Suleiman for anti-religious comments.

The move was clearly motivated by religious prejudice and possibly, according to some commentators, by ulterior motives of a social and financial nature. There was no scientific justification for it and no other country, including those with Muslim majorities, followed suit. The United Nations condemned the move as a ‘mistake’ and even went through the effort of relabeling the virus as A(H1NI) to prevent confusion as to the mode of transmission. But no one in Cairo was listening. A few weeks later the UK media were outraged at the treatment of a British family holidaying in Egypt. Mum, dad and the children were quarantined under armed guard for merely having Mexican stamps on their passport from a recent holiday. The Egyptian public, reassured by the highly visible measures put in place by their authorities, were led into a false sense of security. That is until earlier this month the Health Minister, Hatem El-Gabali, confirmed that the first case of H1N1 was diagnosed in an American girl of Egyptian origin. A few days later other cases were confirmed at the American University Hall of Residence in Cairo as well as in the coastal city of Alexandria. The Minister did not mention pigs, local or foreign, and seemed to emphasise that his government was working in line with the WHO and introducing monitoring measures similar to ones already tested on an international level. Finally some reasonable behaviour; but how do you reverse a myth when you are responsible for spreading it in the first place? Reading excerpts from GlobalVoicesonline it seems that the mindset of some in the Egyptian Blogosphere has not shifted. Talk of cleanliness (again in a religious context) and ‘Terror and Panic’ is rife, mixing information on the discovery of cases of Bubonic Plague in nearby Libya (A bacterial disease communicated through flea bites associated with rodents) with the spread of Influenza A (H1N1) which is an Airborne virus transmitted in the Air by coughs and sneezes in addition to other human bodily secretions.

Obviously the pandemic is to be taken seriously as the winter months will reveal its full extent and severity. In addition, the Egyptian reaction can be understood in the context of the effect of ‘Bird Flu’ in 2006 which they struggled to contain and which caused the death of around 70 in the country. But what the Egyptian people deserve is a response driven by International scientific consensus, not by superstition and a political agenda. One would expect the educated blogosphere to be pressing for such an approach instead of dowsing off to the ‘Opium of the People’.

The Peasant and the Student: Iran in the eyes of the West

By Jihad Bitar

Media Analyst

http://arabmediareview.blogspot.com

Just wondering…

“Iran’s Revolution” or “Iran’s Summer Breeze”? This debate has been going on in the western press for the last week. Is Iran heading towards a change of regime or is it just a “very unusual” event that will “eventually die down”.

I will publish later in the week a detailed report with numbers and data on how the Western and Arab media are viewing this “Revolutionary/Summer Breeze”; but first results suggest that the western press is actually divided on another matter:

Is the Iranian split between Ahmadinejad and Moussavi’s supporters, social or religious based?

It seems that US press is focusing on the religious divide between “fundamentalists” (Ahmadinejad supporters) and “reformists” (Moussavi), whereas European media prefers to talk about the clashes between “students” (Moussavi) vs. “rural” Iranians (Ahmadinejad), thus hinting at a socio/economic divide.

Some sources are mixing both visions, assuming that if you are a “student”, you must be a “reformist”, whereas “rural peasants” are surely fundamentalists…

If the western media is right, then if you ever meet a fundamentalist bearded student fighting it out with a clean-shaved reformist peasant; then you’d better either buy a new pair of glasses, or call your psychiatrist.

Persian Riddle

By Joseph El-Khoury

The Iranian theocracy is a regime ‘against nature’; one that defies the basic aspirations of human beings for freedom and emancipation. In a way, it is no different from the Soviet illusion, which seemed unshakable for decades only to collapse overnight like a pack of cards. These regimes shared a similar path, from popular revolutions against a Western backed Monarch they turned into authoritarian leviathans promoting the interests of a small group of self reproducing autocrats. The Soviet Union survived 70 years, despite its gross internal contradictions, buoyed by the International struggle against capitalism and its excesses. The US, The Pope or Radio Free Europe might be credited with its accelerating its demise but the reality is that it was the ordinary citizens of Russia, Romania and Poland who brought the rotten carcass to its knees, once it became obvious that the propaganda would never deliver happiness, wealth and the promised ‘new socialist man’. The 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran might have changed the world and introduced a new dimension to International politics but it has failed on one essential account: Changing the character of the Iranian beyond recognition. From under the veils and behind the Beards, has emerged that same Iranian who still asks tough questions and expect reasonable intelligent answers from a regime he has supported against all odds since its inception. The future will depend on the ability of the institutions to answers these questions without shaking the foundations of the ‘Wilayat Al Faqih’.

Taking the comparison between the Soviets and the Mullahs further, one could argue that the grievances against Ahmadi-najad are the tip of an iceberg of objections against the principles of the Islamic Revolution itself and the restrictions it imposes on personal freedom. From there to concluding that a counter-revolution is imminent is a giant leap. The result if the elections might just be an excuse for initiating this movement , the fruit of years of frustration among a section of the youth, specifically the educated lot that resides in the comfortable suburbs of Teheran and is wired to the world wide web through Twitter and Facebook. This is a vibrant section of the country that should certainly be reckoned with, but they are probably a visible and noisy minority. This is a repetition of the heavily mediatised anti-Chavez rallies in Caracas a few years ago. Organised by the discredited elite and attended by the cosmopolitan middle class, they showed a selective but hardly representative image of Venezuela. It is interesting that in their coverage of the recent events, few foreign correspondents mentioned the fact that pre-elections polls had predicted a win for Ahamdinajjad (even the Washington Post had predicted a 2:1 defeat for Mousavi)(Read the BBC’S Jim Muir. Even fewer ventured outside of the capital, possibly due to security concerns. The fact remains that high turnout could have easily been a further reaction to what many considered blatant interference in internal Iranian affairs by a biased International press. And so far besides vague accusations of a ‘charade’, the opposition has failed to publicly denounce any specific instances of fraud that could explain the 63% figure claimed by the incumbent. In a typical display of ‘Persian pride’ an Iranian expat in New Zealand contacted the BBC to explain the reasons behind her casting her vote for the vilified president: The economical program and Iran’s security. Plain and simple: No pressure, no intimidation... just misguided support for a controversial figure.

The demonstrations are inevitably the start of something, an awakening perhaps that will hopefully be followed by a process of political maturation. But talk of a pro-American ‘democratic’ Iran is wishful thinking limited to western powerhouses and their media outlets...these same outlets who brought us the ‘liberation’ of Iraq and the ‘pacification’ of Afghanistan.

Lebanon: Back to Reality

By Joseph El-Khoury

Day+5 for the much hyped Lebanese elections and it is probably time to move on to more important things: The Iranian elections, the swine flu epidemic looming on us and the Formula 1 racing championship. 5 days were sufficient to dampen the euphoria of the winners, who rejoiced at having burst the (orange) bubble for the losers. It is now sinking in the minds of everyone that we have again a problem on our hand. We still have a majority that will be unable to rule faced with a militant and armed ‘virtual minority’ that pretty much encompasses 90% of the Shiite community and roughly half the Christians. Nabih Berri is due to be returned in post while questions are being asked about the make-up of the future government and its margin of manoeuvre. In an attempt to set the tone for the months to come, numbers are being crunched and manipulated as if part of a sick game of ‘Twister’:

- If you don’t count the Armenians, relegated to pariah status, solely for behaving like every other sect (I.e. like a pack of wolves gathering under one leadership), the 14th March alliance represents 58% of those Christians who voted.

-This is irrelevant to Mr Hassan Fadlallah, Hezbollah MP, who was quick to smugly remark that opposition to his party was virtually inexistent within his own sect. What the Christians get up to is ultimately a side show in the party’s argument with the revitalised Sunnis.

-Obsessed with pan-Arabism for decades, these seem to have turned into the ‘active arm of the American/Zionist plan in the near east’, settling the Palestinians and undermining the Resistance. How else could you explain the defeat of all time long Arab Nationalist, Mr Osama Saad in favour of Mr Siniora in Saida?

-This is at least according to Michel Aoun, who while thanking the 300.000 who voted for his side, found it appropriate to draw a comparison between the Shiaa scarf, apparently easier on the eye, and the Sunni hijab. The General went on to accuse everyone who hadn’t voted for him of having succumbed to money, intimidation and paranoia. It never crossed his mind that maybe his patronising and aggressive attitude is repulsive to tens of thousands of decent citizens, who do not deserve to be insulted for merely supporting other parties.

-Dr Fares Souaid, who started his career as the rational heir to a well know political family, has since forgotten the analytical flair supposedly provided by his medical training. While blaming his defeat on the Shiaa in his district of Jbeil, he failed to draw a comparison with Zahle, where his allies were helped to victory by a consistent strong Sunni vote. What goes around comes around I’m afraid.

And the list goes on... mixing flawed scientific analysis with populist propaganda. The fact is that everyone got together in Doha and set the rules of the games, knowing very well that their choice of electoral law was unlikely to generate reform (true reform, not the variety embodied by the alliance of the same name). In theory everyone should now accept the results of what was a free and organised electoral process by third world standards. But this is forgetting the sectarian framework regulating the balance of power in the country, which unless tackled head on will reproduce itself like a hydra. Last Sunday’s results should be a wake-up call to a generation that is discovering the power of numbers. Voting might be a first step but is not sufficient in a struggling country like Lebanon. Change will only come at the expense of new blood coming into the political sphere, participating, challenging and asking tough questions within political parties and in other spheres of activism. Otherwise we should shut up and accept that the future of Lebanese politics lies with Nayla Tueini and Nadim Gemayel.