The Arabs at the Olympics

By Joseph El-Khoury

The Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic Games famously commented that the Olympic Spirit was not about the winning but rather the taking part. This was certainly a noble comment from a noble man. But throughout their history the performance of national teams has become a way for nations to send a message to the international community or assert their economical or military might. Ever since the Berlin Olympics in 1936, the games have become intertwined with politics and ideology. The Nazis determined to prove the superiority of the Aryan race were stunned by the dazzling performance of Jesse Owen and the black members of the US Athletic team. From the 1950s the Soviet block turned its gymnasiums into Olympic medal factories, as the cold war turned steamy in the stadiums. With the communists crumbling, the Americans felt that their new status of only superpower in a unipolar world should be reflected in the medals table. This was short-lived and the quiet display of Chinese financial, organisational and presentational skills in the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics was an omen of the emergence of a new sporting superpower.

The Arabs did take part in the Olympics, with various degrees of dedications. Without taking anything away from those athletes who gave it their best shot, the outcome was a meagre tally of eight medals. This is for a combined population estimated at 340 million people. With the exception of Bahrain, the countries of the Mashreq appear to have adopted De Coubertin’s mantra literally, avoiding any noteworthy success. The countries of the Maghreb fared substantially better, specifically if we take into consideration their socio-economic context, showing a culturally inexplicable affinity for Judo. The medal standing at the closure of the 2008 games was as follows:

BAHRAIN

MEN ATHLETICS 1500m GOLD Rashid RAMZI

TUNISIA

MEN SWIMMING 1500m F/STYLE GOLD Oussama MELLOULI

ALGERIA

JUDO MEN<90kg SILVER Amar BENIKHLEF
JUDO WOMEN<52KG BRONZE Soraya HADDAD

MOROCCO

MEN’S MARATHON SILVER Jaouad GHARIB
ATHLETICS WOMEN’S 800M BRONZE Hasna BENHASSI

SUDAN

ATHLETICS MEN’S 800M SILVER Ismail Ahmed ISMAIL

EGYPT

JUDO MEN’S<90kg BRONZE Hesham MESBAH

In the final analysis that same socio-economic context cannot be solely responsible for the poor performance at the Olympics and other Sporting competitions when countries like Jamaica, Cuba and Mongolia outperform Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Libya. We have to come to terms with an underlying malaise running within Arab society, a lack of self belief and what can only be described as an ‘eternal loser’ mentality. The state, viewed mostly as an apparatus of oppression does not view sport as a priority. Nonetheless, small practical measures can be implemented at reasonable costs. Individual countries need to focus on sports at which their citizen traditionally excelled, while a broader strategic plan is required at the regional Arab level to improve the general quality of competition. And for once we cannot blame the Israelis for our misery. They managed a unique Bronze Medal in Sailing.

An Arab sporting ‘Nahda’ is required before 2012. Is there a Sport Psychologist in the house?

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Home Is Where The Heart Is

By Marwan Madi*

“A wise traveler never despises his home country”
William Hazlitt

To my loved ones, especially my mother and sister:

As the plane took off from Heathrow airport on that hot July day, I couldn’t stop thinking of what I might have left behind in Beirut . My DC pad keys? Heaven forbid my passport? Soon, Patti Griffin’s “Long Ride Home” playing on my ipod brought back memories of a part of me that got lost between business meetings and travels, and failed relationships. It was hard to push away the bittersweet thoughts of a land that helped shape who I am. Memories of war, shelters, hatred, disappointment, despair, and broken hearts came crawling back though strangely enough they were overshadowed by memories of laughter, love, family, and friends, weddings and baptisms, and funerals. The long ride to Washington opened the door for much thinking and an emotional walk down memory lane.

I remembered that accidental email I received ten years back from a now estranged friend informing me of the death of my uncle in a car accident. I reckon seeing my uncle a few months before I left Lebanon when he came to wish me a safe trip to the Lone Star State . A few years later, dad calls to tell me that my grandfather had died. By 2005, I hadn’t visited my family in almost five years. I was on the road all the time, so I had a lot of excuses. I wasn’t there when my brother and sister graduated. I wasn’t there when my close friends got married. I’ve missed many things in my life because of this self-centered belief that so many people depended on me to get the job done and done right.

Over the past decade, distance has always been a big thing for me. Not just physical distance, but emotional distance. And if you’re emotionally distant from people, especially those you’re romantically involved with, they eventually leave. I didn’t have time to argue against breaking-up back then and more so I didn’t care, I had me. That was enough.

Sometimes, it takes bad news to get real and that’s exactly what happened in 2006. It was the kind of non-fatal bad news that hits a family member; the kind that tells you:”wake up, you have another chance”. Suddenly you realize how much they mean to you and how much your life depends on them; strange feeling when you live so far away, yet so true.

The two weeks I spent in Lebanon this summer were not much different from what I expected them to be. It was the same old stories about politics, corruption, and sectarianism. Expect well, I was there for a reason. I came to Lebanon to attend my best friend’s wedding and meet my sister’s significant other. I came to listen to my father nag about cost of living; I came to see my brother’s new pad. I sat in my mother’s kitchen everyday for lunch and dinner talking about family. I came to debate politics with my sister’s boyfriend through the wee hours of the morning. I came to listen to the same old stories that made me laugh a decade ago, and well, they still do. I came to hit the club scene in Beirut so I could complain about the vanity of the happy few in Lebanon afterwards.

As the plane landed in Washington late into the night and was welcomed home away from home, I had already started to make travel plans for Christmas and I anticipate to be back home several times in 2009 for various event.

It never occurred to me to think once that life is here and now. But this is it, no return or exchange policies, and no second chances for the time wasted, but perhaps opportunities to learn.

So where do I go from here, well, I’m pretty sure there’s going to be more of the same business trips, maybe a serious relationship, and a whole lotta laughing and eating around that kitchen table up on the hills of Mount Lebanon overlooking the Mediterranean.


*Marwan Madi is Lebanese. He has lived in the US where he works in Consultancy for most of the past decade. He writes on Lebanese politics and the interface between various cultures from a personal perspective.

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Orientalism Reloaded

By Joseph El-Khoury

“I Preferred Damascus to Beirut… as I found Beirut was too Westernized”

European volunteer visiting the Region

We owe it to Edward Said to have brought forward the notion that there is an essential flaw in the way Western scholars over the centuries studied, observed and then reported the Orient back to their compatriots. Laden with prejudices and clichés, their ethnocentric attitude could only result in a deeply ingrained simplistic vision of a primitive people with an exotic culture living in rugged landscape. This conclusion applied as much in Central China as it did on the banks of the Nile and the Souks of Damascus.

This vision still persists today, despite the advent of the “global village” and the easy dissemination of information. Academics, volunteers from the NGO industry and professionals who come in contact deliberately or out of necessity with the Middle East seem reluctant to accept that many of the same basic psychosocial principles found in a modern Western Society would also readily apply elsewhere. This reluctance seems independent of the intentions towards the Arab world as very well meaning individual and organizations fall in the trap of glorifying behaviours and ideas that would be wholly unacceptable in their own societies.

After years of commercial exchanges, emigration, immigration and integration, the trend remains on emphasizing differences in the name of the “preservation of traditional culture in the face of imperialism”. The outcome is more misunderstanding and a divergence between those Arabs who dream of justice and prosperity and their supposed natural allies who are bent on living their Revolution by proxy from their comfy suburb in London and Berlin, while occasionally dipping their toes in the muddy alleys of Gaza and the backstreets of Baghdad.

This is a difficult conversation that I found myself having with different generations of European friends who have supported the Palestinian struggle, demonstrated against the Iraq war and fundraised for Sudanese children. Some of them dedicated years to learn the language of the natives and reveled in adopting their local customs but blinded by cultural relativism could still not accept the fact that ultimately the average native had basic universal aspirations similar to those found in the pubs of Glasgow and the tower blocks of Mantes-La-Jolie (Parisian suburb): caring relationships, decent housing, health, education, security and fewer restrictions on travel.

Unfortunately we have not yet ridden ourselves of the “exoticism” of the East and until that time comes sharing food with Bedouins on camel backs will still have more appeal then a genuine conversation with a young Middle Class Arab.

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The Valet Parking Republic

By Joseph El-Khoury

Picture: By Kate Brooks/Polaris for the New York Times

As the world economy sinks into recession one industry remains prosperous in the country of the Cedar. The recent controversy over the nightlife in the Beirut quarter of Gemmayze has highlighted how a horde of young men in dark uniforms and baseball caps can take over a neighborhood with the sole aim of … parking your car for you.

This phenomenon might seem completely alien to foreigners who would not dare to get behind the wheel of a car following a few drinks. But with the lack of public transport and the absence of consistent law enforcement drinking and driving on a night out is the norm. And when you consider that the average Lebanese youth is blessed with a car at the tender age of 17 providing easy access and parking facilities becomes a priority for any establishment in the competitive Beirut nightlife environment.

Enter the Valet! For a few dollars this young man (the fairer sex has not gotten on the job yet but given their recent track record it is only a matter of time) will bring you peace of mind and respectability while you get to enjoy the finer things in life, hopefully suitably accompanied. This service is offered outside nightclubs, bars, cafes, supermarkets, minimarkets, takeaway outlets and Kentucky Fried Chicken. The workforce is young, healthy and motivated but the advancement opportunities are not clear: Superintendant Valet? Head Valet? Interestingly their dress code has evolved over the years. The casual jeans and T-shirt look has been replaced by combat shoes, combat trousers and a matching top. The rumour has it that at least some networks of Valets are linked to political parties and sectarian militias who use the cover to train and organize recruits in preparation for the all but imminent confrontation.

Next time you hand him your keys be nice to your Valet. He is less likely to dent your car or put a bullet in your head.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/02/world/middleeast/02beirut.html

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Let's talk about Sex!

By Joseph El-Khoury

And why not? After all we are a bit fed up of politics. Lebanon is a mess, Iraq is a mess, Palestine is a mess, Sudan is a mess, and our discussions seems to lead nowhere. So why not turn our attention to an issue on which we can actually have an impact at least in our immediate surroundings.

About a year ago, a column written by a British Psychoanalyst for a National newspaper following the foiling of a terror plot targeted at nightclubs and young women in skimpy outfits caught my attention. Muslim and Arab men she claims are not having enough sex. This frustration fuels their hatred of the west and its sexually liberated society. This amazing statement was not backed up by any scientific evidence of any kind. In my humble and neutral opinion whether a typical Pakistani male has less frequent or less satisfying sexual interactions than your average white Caucasian Anglo-Saxon remains to be shown.

Whatever the case, we can now reassure this lady, that Arab men are getting a healthy dose of sexual activity. Or at least showing enough interest in the subject .The Arabdemocracy team noticed that, following our publishing of a story which included ‘Sex’ in its title (Sex Trade: Iraqi girls who become prostitutes in Syria) our Site meter recorded a surge in referrals to the site through Google using search terms with sexual connotations. These ranged from ‘Sex in Kuwait’ to ’9 years old girls in Iraq’ passing through ‘Syrian Lesbians’ and ‘Lebanon sex film’ but also included a number of more exotic queries that we will not reveal out of decency.

I find this strangely refreshing. Not that I am condoning the exploitation of men and women' sexuality for financial gain but because it is expected and contradicts the myth circulated in official and religious circles as well as on the blogosphere that the interest in sex is specific to western society. Some might still argue that, even if Arab men are looking for excitement through accessing pornographic material on the net, this phenomenon can be ascribed to the corruption of Arab society by these same imported western values. Abu Nuwas and other historical figures would disagree. There never was a pure Arab society, free of sin, and there will never be. Humans are humans after all and whatever the bigots say Sex is a natural human behaviour that we should be able to discuss without shame and fear.

I am hoping that next time someone enters ‘sex’ as a search term that Arabic Google will lead them to this post instead.

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النصر المبين على النساء والعلمانيين في شواطىء الاسكندرية

دلال البزري في رد على مقالة للكاتبة صافي ناز كاظم تمجد فيه الحجاب

الاحد 24 حزيران (يونيو) 2007

شرّ البلية ما يُضحك. العرب اليوم على شفير إنهيار عظيم. مظلومون وظالمون. يُقتلون ويَقتلون. اوراق اشجارهم، الوطنية والقومية والدينية، تتساقط الواحدة تلو الاخرى. ينكشفون على ذواتهم، فينتحرون...

ومع ذلك، الفئة الغالبة بينهم، الفئة الاصولية الدينية بتنوّعاتها، ترى في هذا المناح من التذابح والتقاتل والتناحر «إنتصاراً»: من «الانتصار» على اسرائيل، وعلى «المشروع الاميركي في المنطقة»، وحتى الانتصار على «العلمانيين» بفضل «سقوطهم المدوّي» في حزيران (يونيو) 1967. في الذكرى الاربعين لهذه الهزيمة تدفّقت الكتابات المكررة حزنها... ولكن معها ايضا، الاقلام «الاسلامية»، الأقوى الآن، والتي ترى في 1967 هزيمة لـ»العلمانية»، أي لـ»غيرها»، ونصرا لعقيدتها الاسلامية السياسية. قال مؤخرا احد «المفكرين» الاسلاميين عن 1967: «لحظة واحدة سوداء عربيا، تلتها لحظات إشراق...».

لكن البلية لا تتوقف عند هذا الحد. البلية طالت هذه المرة شواطىء الاسكندرية. نجمة من نجوم الاسلام الاصولي التلفزيوني «الثقافي» لا تغيب عن الشاشة الصغيرة الا قليلا. تكتب في يومية سياسية ايضاً، فتحشر شواطىء الاسكندرية في حربها المقدسة ضد اعداء الداخل «العلمانيين»: اصحاب النصيب الاوفر من الرجم الاصولي. وهذه النجمة، مساهمةً منها بالرجم، تحشر شواطىء الاسكندرية بمقال يضجّ بالتشفّي بهم؛ عنوانه «الاسباب التي تملأ العلمانيين بالأسى» (الشرق الأوسط، في 8- 6-2007). ماذا تقول في هذا المقال؟ تصف المسابح الشعبية الاسكندرانية بنشوة المنتصر وابتسامته: «إبتسم إبتسامة المنتصر» تقول. لِم؟ لأن هذه الشواطىء اصبحت الآن تحتشد بـ»فقراء بسيطين ومرحين» لا ترى بينهم «فتاة تخطّت الثانية عشرة تلبس المايوه». اما الامهات فجميعهن «يلبسن الثياب الشرعية ويجلسن على الشاطىء». فيما الشابات والفتيات «ينزلن البحر بالبنطلون والبلوزة أو جلباب سميك وطويل». الاناث على هذا الشاطىء بنظرها «يضحكن ويبدو ان البحر يضحك لهن». فتخلص النجمة الاسلامية من ذلك: «ينتصر الضمير الاسلامي في كنانة الله ويتفتح الوعي رويدا رويدا بالعقيدة الهوية (الاسلام) ويقر المصريون بأغلبيتهم الشعبية ان تعكس شواطئهم احكام دينهم». وتتابع بالمزيد من التشفي: «الحمد لله. قلتها وقلبي يقفز مع الامواج طرباً. الاسباب التي تملأ نفسي بالفرح هي التي تملأ العلمانيين بالأسى والغم». ثم تورد استشهادات لكتاب مثل احسان عبد القدوس وتوفيق الحكيم، مفكري «مطلع شبابي في الخمسينات والستينات» الذين ضلّلوها هي وابناء جيلها؛ فتحسد شباب «هذه الايام الذي وعى الفتنة الكبرى ونظر الى الزاعمين بانهم «اعمدة التنوير» وادرك انهم قد اعلنوا انتصاراتهم من مواقع هزائمهم...»، الى ما هنالك من وصف لهذه «الهزيمة العلمانية النكراء التي اخلت المكان لـ»العودة»، او بالاحرى لتصور العودة الى «الاسلام الاول»...

لكن الواقع اقل بعثا على الزهو: النصر الواضح، البديهي، الذي لا ادنى شك فيه، هو انتصار على اجساد النساء والشابات والبنات. وعكس المقصود ايضا لا يقل وضوحاً. فالشاطىء المسكون بالهوية كما تراها وتفرح بها نجمتنا، اضفى مزيداً من الجنس، والايروتيكية الجنسية على اجساد اللواتي تتردّدن عليه. فمن جربت «السباحة» بثيابها تعرف انها لا تسبح، بل تجرّ هذه الاقمشة بما تمكنت من جرّ؛ خاصة عندما تثقلها المياه فيتضاعف وزنها، وتصبح وزراً لدى خروج صاحبته منها. وهذه الثياب لا تجف الا ويكون التصق بجسد المرأة التي تلبسها مزيج قارص من الرمل والملح. فما بالك عندما يكون بديل المايوه «الفاضح» هو «الجلباب السميك والطويل»؟ ومع ذلك، فالجنس هو الحاضر الوحيد في هذه الحالة. فالشاباب حبيسات هندامهن، الممنوعات من الحركة والراحة يجرجرن بثيابهن المبللة الملتصقة بنتؤات اجسادهن ما يكفي لتفسيرها... هن في الواقع صاحبات «فتنة» اكبر من «فتنة» لابسات المايوه. فهذا الاخير يبدو بريئا طاهرا امام تموجات الجسد المستسلم والمبلل والمغطى بالف قماش... فلا ترى في هذه الشواطىء «المؤمنة» غير عيون زائغة هائجة، لا شيء طبيعي في سلوك اصحابها. وكأن العلاقة بين الجنسين على شواطىء البحر قصاص للجسد على «فتنة» لا تردعها غير الحصون. وقد لا تردعها!

كان الاجدى بالنجمة الاسلامية ان تتوسل المسابح غير المختلطة مثلا، وهي اقرب الى تصور «العصر النبوي» الذي تعتقد نفسها ذاهبة نحوه. هذا كي لا نقول بان «انتصارا» كهذا على حضارة الغرب بمشهد بحري كهذا امرٌ مثير للشفقة على اصحابه. فالكاتبة تجهل، او تتجاهل، ان وجود النساء على شواطىء المدينة، بالحجاب الشرعي او بالمايوه، هو نفسه نتاج الاحتكاك بالغرب والتأثر به. قبل هذا الاحتكاك كانت نساء المدن الحرّات لا يظهرن الا للقبر. النساء في الداخل فحسب، في المنازل، خلف الاسوار الحريمية. تلك كانت الوضعية. بعد الغرب والحداثة، لم يعد هناك امرأة في البيت. صرن في العمل، في التعليم، في التنزه... وعلى شواطىء الاسكندرية!

والارجح ان الغرب الآن ليس مهتما ان اعتمد المايوه على شواطىء الاسكندرية، ام الجلباب الشرعي. لا احد من الغرب يجادل. وقد يضحك في سريرته من هذه الدونكيشوتية السمِجة والخطيرة في آن.

المهم في الداخل. ماذا يحصل في الداخل. الاسلامية السياسية اطلقت ديناميكية صراع اهلي ضد «العلمانيين». فحيثما تحل وتغلب، بالقول او بالسلاح، تصوّب كل عداوتها ضد عدو «علماني»، لم يعرّف إلا تعريفا فضفاضاً (مقصودا على الارجح)... اما الذين يسمون انفسهم «علمانيين»، فيمارسون الآن اقصى «التقية». خوفا من الجزر والنهر والترهيب والتهديد والتكفير. يخافون على ارواحهم، على مكانتهم، لأن الشامتين بـ»هزيمتهم» تفصلهم خطوات بسيطة عن العنف الاقصى، أي القتل. «حماس» مؤخراً فرزت سجناءها بين «حمساوي مؤمن» و»فتحاوي كافر علماني». اطلقت سراح الاول، وابقت الثاني، «العلماني»، سجينا عندها... وقد تكون صفّتهم، بعدما صفّت رفاقهم «الفتحاويين الكفار» الآخرين وهم طلقاء.

نجمتنا الاسلامية كانت ذات يوم يسارية. تقول انها لم تسبح بالمايوه يوما. وقد تكون صادقة. ولكن ما لا تستطيع نكرانه انها طافت اوروبا بـ «الشورط الحامي» و»عبر الاتو ستوب». ما المشترك بين ماضيها «الايديولوجي» وبين هدايتها الدينية الجديدة؟ انها تصرخ بها صراخاً. انها تنسف ماضيها الشخصي الذي هو جزء لا يتجزأ من التاريخ وتستبدله بآخر... ليته هو نفسه الذي تدعي بانه يعود. تصرخ ولا تحاور بالتالي. انها اسيرة الغضب والمرارة. وصورة هذين الغضب والمرارة على الشاشة. لا تناقش، بل تتلو الدعاوى والعقائد. فقط «خلعت» اليسار، كما خلعت قبله «تقليدية» اهلها. لتعود الى تقاليد اخرى ليست تقليدية. فتخوض بذلك حربا ثقافية اهلية على انقاض يساريتها السابقة، التي تسميها «علمانية الخمسينات والستينات»... وكأنها ليست هي المسؤولة عن «إنحرافها» السابق عن دينها ايام يساريتها الغابرة. فتوقع على جثة العلمانية الهامدة المزيد من التمثيل، لعل حربا اهلية تندلع بنار المناكدة والشماتة والانتصار...

وشر البلية ما يُضحك: ان يسمى كل ذلك «إنتصاراً

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