Prisoners to Oblivion I

Posted on May 16, 2012 by

To talk about them is to keep them alive.

While they live in each of their mothers’ bitter tears and in every beat of their fathers’ weary hearts, we must utter their names to keep them alive.

While they live through their pictures, hugged and kissed by those they left behind, we must tell their stories to keep them alive.

And while they live in freedom and dignity in our memories, those they barely had time to build before they left, we must remember them as our own children, brothers, sisters, husbands and friends, just to keep them alive.

To fail is to let them slip away, again. These prisoners of conscience, political prisoners, arbitrarily detained and unjustly apprehended, abandoned by a world that once called them its own. To fail is to let them fall deeper into yet another darker and bleaker prison, worse than death itself, as prisoners to our forgetfulness, prisoners to oblivion…

In the Middle East, the names are many, the stories abound and the memories are sometimes blurred by the dust of time.

In Lebanon, most of the tragedy revolves around those arbitrarily detained in Syrian prisons. It is a tragedy dating back to the beginning of Lebanon’s war in 1975 until this very day. It is a story of arbitrary arrests for political or confessional affiliation, for being at the wrong place at the wrong time or for no reason whatsoever. Where the start of each person’s journey differed – arrested at a checkpoint, abducted from their own houses, or on their way to work; arrested by local militias or occupying forces; or taken to any of the local detention centers in Tripoli, Beirut, North Beirut or the Bekaa – but always ended across the border, in one of many infamous Syrian prisons without charge or trial sometimes for years on end.

The disappeared suffered from the anxiety and indescribable physical and psychological torture they were subjected to, and many still do until this day. The loved ones suffered from the pain of not knowing where their children were, and many still do until this day. For years, their only hope rested in their own efforts to find a trace or hear a word of the loved one lost. After the end of the war in 1990, the Lebanese government remained in complete and utter denial towards the fate of its citizens, seldom confirming and mainly denying the existence of its own citizens in Syrian jails. Maybe they were right, as many had been stripped of their identity, given new names, taught new dialect, and transformed into unrecognizable beings, sometimes made to believe they were mere creatures, with nothing to live for. To be fair, and by the graces of the regime in command, a very lucky few made it back home alive, while others made it in small wooden boxes.

The race to rescue the disappeared from their second involuntary prison, that of oblivion by their own government and countrymen, recorded a modest victory in 2005, with the withdrawal of Syrian armed forces from Lebanon. The fear of broaching the topic evaporated and a steadfast tent was erected, a sit-in ongoing until the truth behind the fate of those disappeared is uncovered. Not much progress has been witnessed ever since, however. Who knows, maybe some of those disappeared are really here amongst us, resting in peace in one of the mass graves said to exist in the country…

Many disappeared are also detained in Israeli prisons, suffering similar tragedies, albeit through different journeys. The Lebanese government hasn’t taken any better care of them and their plight, but they have found local political parties (namely Hezballah) that has embraced their loss and helped them in the process of getting answers. But then again, in the foolish rules of war, it is understandable for one’s enemy to hold its adversaries hostage, expose them to the most sophisticated torture methods and deny them the rights they deserve simply as human beings. But for neighbors, for ‘brothers’[1] to do that to each other is not understandable.

Bringing up the issue of Lebanese political prisoners, illegally detained in the prisons of others, never has a time and place. There is never a wrong or right time to do so, so long as each and every one of them is accounted for, whether dead or alive.

Thus a war continues to be fought, not with weapons but through the hearts and souls of the disappeared, whose fate remains unknown. Here, the battle on the front lines is fought with tears that continue to be shed, lives poisoned by uncertainty, disillusioned by hope. We can only remain true to our humanity by giving them and their families a voice and telling their stories as their journey for answers continues.

The plight of Arabic political prisoners throughout the region must also be told and will be told. But today, we cannot but salute the courageousness of thousands of Palestinian prisoners whose mass hunger strike resulted in some improvement in their conditions and brought their plight increasingly to the forefront. So long as your names are not forgotten, your stories told and the memory of you shines in the minds of those outside your prison walls, your cause shall stay alive…

[1] In official jargon, Syria is sometimes referred to as Lebanon’s “neighborly brother.”

Posted in Arab World, Israel, Lebanon, Political Prisoners, Syria | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

صرخة من المكسيك: احرقوها – A Cry From Mexico: Burn It!

Posted on April 20, 2012 by

Update Note: Eye on the East has the pleasure to introduce its first guest writer Jorge Seeman, a Mexican-Lebanese residing in Mexico City, who contributed the following post. You will find an English translation at the end. After initial refusal to publish Jorge’s article, Lebanese daily An Nahar published an edited version in its May 14, 2012 issue, almost a month after it was posted in its unedited version on Eyeontheeast.org . Some truths are still too much for the local Lebanese media to handle…

انتفاضة شعبية مكسيكية أوصلت الجنرال Porfirio Diaz الى رئاسة المكسيك اواسط القرن التاسع عشر. مطلب جوهري واحد وقفت وراءه الامة كان الباعث على هذه الانتفاضة هو أن “لا تجديد” للرئيس بعد اليوم, ايا كان هذا الرئيس. اما هذا الجنرال – الدكتاتور فقد أغوتة السلطة – و السلطة تفسد: تنكَّر لهذا المطلب الشعبي الجازم فحكم بلاده على امتداد خمسة و ثلاثين عاما.

هذه الانتفاضة الفاشلة التي كرَّست – بدل ان تطيح بهذه الخطيئة التاريخية – ولَّدت ثورة حقيقية عام 1910 قادها Pancho Villa و Emiliano Zapata. طالبا بالارض و الحرية و بنهاية الديكتاتوريات. بوصول الثوار الى مكسيكو العاصمة توجه Zapata الى مكتب رئيس الدولة , فصبَّ نار غضبه و ثورة الناس على… كرسي الرئاسة “فاحرقها” و احرق معها مقولة “من العرش الى القبر”. اعتبرها مكمن الداء وعلة العلل, جرَّت الويلات على البلاد و العباد: استبداد الحاكم الاوحد, فساد الحاشية, خنق الحريات و ما استتبع من اضطرابات سياسية و اجتماعية و اعمال عنف, بعثرت الامة و قضت على خيراتها.

من ثمار هذه الثورة دستور جديد يحدد الولاية الرئاسية بسنوات ست غير قابلة للتجديد ابدا, لا للرئيس فحسب بل لكافة المسئوولين الكبار و من معه في الدولة. في اختامهم الرسمية كلمتان بارزتان دوماً امام نواظرهم تذكرَّهم بالمبدأ الصارم “لا تجديد”.

و بعدئذ عرفت المكسيك استقرارا سياسيا و ازدهارا اقتصاديا: ينتهي عهد الرئيس فيغادر الحكم هو و كافة كبار المسئوولين فلا زعامة الى الابد و لا توريث السلطة للابناء و الاحفاد, و لا لانشاء عائلات سياسية على طريقة: “اذا مات منا سيّد قام سيّد”. حتى اذا عاود الرئيسَ حنينٌ الى السلطة, يدرك تمام الادراك ان امامه طريقان لا ثالث لهما: المنفى او القبر. و في الازمنة الحديثة تجسَّد المنفى الذهبي لرئيسين سابقين في سفارتي المكسيك لدى اسبانيا و اوسترليا.

في هذا الزمن الذي يواجه العالم العربي تحديات مصيرية: تهتز عروش و تتهاوى جمهوريات ملكية و دكتاتوريات و تسقط انظمة, و لا تعرف الشعوب ما يخبئ لها الغد, حَرِيُّ بها ان تتطلع الى تجارب غير أمم. للفرنسيين ثورتهم- لاسبانيا حربها الاهلية و للاوروبيين ربيعهم ولنا في المكسيك ثورة 1910 و هي بداية ثورات القرن العشرين.

و علَّمتنا المكسيك الزامية الفصل بين السلطتين: سلطة الحكم و سلطة المال. كم هو صعب التعايش بين هاتين السلطتين. و على رغم علاقاتنا المعقدة و المتناقضة التي تجمع الود و الكراهية مع جيراننا الاميركيين, فقد تعلَّمنا منهم “خلقية العمل” و مبدا فهه الكثير من السموّ و التعالي يدعو الى تحاشي “صراع المصالح” (conflict of interest) فلا تتضارب المصالح الشخصية المالية لمن هم في الحكم مع مصالح الامة و خزينة الدولة و دافعي الضرائب. عندما سئل رئيس جمهورية تشيلي الحالي (Sebastian Piñera) عما اذا كان ثمة حكاما, وزراء, نوابا او سياسيين يدافعون بلا تردد عن الخير العام بوجه مصالحهم التجارية, اجاب: “فئتان فقط من الحكام يفعلان: القديسون او الاموات”.

و نحن: المكسيكيون من اصل لبناني نتباهى – كما اباؤنا و الجدود – بجذورنا اللبنانية و بما زرع فينا وطن الارز من تراث و قيم, يغبطنا و نطمح بان يتمتع حكام لبنان و سياسيوه بهذه “الفضائل السياسية” ,ان يجعلوا من “البلاد” (كما ندعو لبنان هنا) قدوة يستوحي منها العالم العربي…حدثنا اباؤنا و الجدود عن اسماء تولت السلطة في ايامهم, ثم نعود الى البلاد فنراهم مستمرين عبر اولادهم و احفادهم.

كم تتلعثم ألسنتنا و يتعثر تعاطينا مع المسؤولين اللبنانيين اثناء زيارتنا الى لبنان او اثناء زيارات قام بها وزراء سابقون للمغتربين الى الاميركتين. في المكسيك رئيس جمهوريتنا ندعوه “السيد الرئيس”. وزراؤنا ندعوهم “السيد الوزير”, هذا اذا ما زالوا في الحكم و بعده تنتزع عنهم الألقاب..ولما فاجأئتنا في لبنان تعابير: الفخامة و الدولة و المعالي و البيك و غيرها , اخبرنا العارفون انها من مخلفات الاتراك العثمانيين. لدى وصول ابائنا الى الاميركتين دعوهم Turcos تصغيرا و ازدراء. هذه التسمية كانت عبئا علينا, ثم نعود الى “البلاد” فنرى هذه الالقاب “التركية” لحكامنا يرفضون التخلي عن بهرجاتها.

كم آلمنا و يؤلمنا مشهد لبنان الذي يتراءى لنا اليوم من البعيد البعيد: يفتقد لبنى تحتية مؤمَّنة حتى في المجتمعات الفقيرة و المتخلفة. كهرباء غير ميسَّرة باستمرار في بلد هو عندنا بلد اعطى الابجدية و هو في الشرق منارة.

في حقبة من التاريخ المظلم للمكسيك اعتبرالعديد من اهل السياسة ان الفساد – و كأنهم يتكلمون عن اعلان عالمي لحقوق السياسيين – هو حق من حقوقهم, حق مكتسب. كم يؤلمنا اليوم سماع مقولة تتردد في اوساط لبنانية عديدة: ” كان الفساد عارا فاصبح اليوم شعارا.”

لطالما آمنا بان اللبنانيين المنتشرين في العالم هم صوت المقيمين الداعمين لهم و المدافعين عن قضاياهم. و تساءلنا كيف السبيل لتقوية التواصل بين الجناحين؟ خير ما يفعل لبنان المقيم: حكامه و سياسيوه و اصحاب القرار و الشأن هو ان يجعلوا هذا الوطن – الذي نحب و نقدر – وطنا صحيحا معافى, دولة شفافة, قادرة و عادلة و دمقراطية حقيقية فيتباهى به ابناؤه في العالم امام الشعوب التي احتضنت اباءهم و الجدود.

امنياتنا ان ترتفع اوضاع بلادنا المترَّدية الى اعالي ما نصبو اليه, فلا نصل – نحن محبوه و مقدروه – الى حد القول مع كبيرنا جبران خليل جبران: “لكم لبنانكم و لنا لبناننا”.

***

A Mexican popular revolt brought General Porfirio Diaz to power in the mid-19th century. The single most important demand that fueled the revolt was people’s calls for no more renewals of presidential terms, no matter who the incumbent may be. Our general however, turned out to be a dictator that was seduced and corrupted by power- and power corrupts- ignoring this clear cut popular demand and ruling Mexico for the next 35 years.

This failed revolt, which further entrenched presidential renewals instead of leading to its demise, gave birth to a real revolution led by Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa in 1910. They called for land rights, freedom and the end of dictatorship. When the revolt reached the capital city, Zapata headed to the president’s office and poured his anger and that of the people supporting him unto… the president’s throne, a chair. He burned the president’s chair, and with it the expression “from the throne to the grave.” Zapata considered this chair to represent the source of all ills leading to nothing but tragedy unto the country and its people: the tyranny of the dictator, corruption of the entourage, suppression of freedom, political and social instability, violence, fragmentation of a nation, and the plundering of its wealth.

The revolution bore fruit to a new constitution limiting presidential terms to six years not subject to renewal. This did not only apply to the president, but also to high-level government officials and their senior staff. The phrase “no renewal” was even engraved in official stamps, as a constant and strict reminder for all of this basic principle.

What followed was an era of noted political stability and economic prosperity: presidents and high-level officials leaving office after six years. In other words, no life-time leadership, no inheritance of political power to sons and grandsons, and no establishment of political dynasties along the lines of “The King is dead, long live the King.” If the nostalgia of power and authority ever came back to them, presidents were well aware this meant only one of two things: exile or the grave. Indeed, in recent times, two former presidents were given the option of “golden exiles” in Mexico’s embassies in Spain and Australia lest they tried meddling in local politics.

At a time when the Arab world faces monumental challenges- thrones shaken, kingdoms and dictatorships falling apart, regimes collapsing- and its people uncertain of what the future holds, it may well consider the experience of other nations in this regard. For the French had their revolution, the Spanish their civil war, the Europeans their spring, and we Mexicans our own revolution in 1910, which set the ground for the revolutions of the 20th century.

Mexico taught us the necessary division between two powers: political power and the power of money. The coexistence between both powers is anything but easy. Despite our complicated and contradictory relationship, more of a love and hate relationship, we share with our American neighbor, we have learned from them the importance of their “work ethic” and the noble goal of avoiding “conflict of interest.” In other words, keeping a clear division between officials’ financial interests and those of the nation, the public treasury and that of taxpayers. Chile’s current president Sebastian Piñera was once asked whether any ruler, minister, member of parliament, or politician would preserve public finances and wealth at the expense of their personal financial interests, he said “only two types of people would do so, saints and the dead.”

As for us, Mexicans of Lebanese descent, we are as proud as our fathers and forefathers were, of our Lebanese roots, and what we inherited of its values and traditions. We take pride and aspire for a Lebanon with a government and politicians that have some of these “political values,” to be able to transform “al blad”[1] (as we call Lebanon here) into a model for other Arab countries to follow. Our fathers and forefathers often tell us of those who ruled in Lebanon (officials and politicians) back in the days, only to discover when we visit al blad that these same families are still ruling through their sons and grandsons.

We are at a loss for words and falter in our engagement with Lebanese officials either when we visit Lebanon or when incumbent and former officials visit emigrants in the Americas. In Mexico, we call our president “Señor Presidente” or Mr. President and our ministers “Señor Ministro” or Mr. Minister so long as they are in power, after which all titles disappear. We are thus surprised to hear bizarre terms used to call people in power: fakhame, dawle, ma’aale, beyk and others.[2] We were soon told these titles were the remnants of the Ottoman Turks, bringing back memories of when our forefathers, upon arriving to the Americas, were pejoratively called “Turcos” to express scorn and contempt. A Turkish term that constituted a genuine burden on us, is sadly met by other terms, still used in al blad to address our leaders, vain enough to refuse to give them up.

As we look from afar, it hurts us to see Lebanon lacking the basic infrastructure available even in the poorest and most underdeveloped communities in the world. Electricity is not even available on a regular basis in a country that gave the alphabet to the world and which we consider a beacon of light in the Orient.

In the dark era of Mexican history, political figures considered corruption as their acquired right, as if it were part of a universal declaration of political rights. It hurts us to see that until this day, many in Lebanon note that “corruption used to be a shame, but is now a slogan.”

As long as we believe that Lebanese throughout the world will remain the voice and supporters of those residing in Lebanon, we will always work on ways to strengthen the relationship between the two. The best that Lebanese residents can do, be it those in government, politicians and those in positions of authority, is to transform the country we love and admire into a prosperous country, with a transparent, working and just government. A true democracy that people of Lebanese descent across the world may take pride in.

Our hope is for Lebanon’s deteriorating conditions to improve and for the country to achieve its true potential. Our hope is that we never reach the time when, in talking about the country we love and admire, reiterate what our great Gebran Khalil Gebran once said: “You have your Lebanon and I have my Lebanon.”

[1] Note by the translator: Al blad is Arabic for ‘the homeland’, often used in Arabic by Lebanese expatriates regardless of whether they speak the language.

[2] Titles given to Lebanese political leaders, fakhame (your luxury), dawle (your state), ma’aale (your highness) and beyk (a title of Turkish origin traditionally given to leaders of tribal groups).

Posted in Corruption, Lebanon, Mexico | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What Is Left of History

Posted on April 13, 2012 by

It is said that one doesn’t fully appreciate what one has until it is gone.  But what happens if that priced possession is history itself?

A story reread throughout the ages. A memory inherited to younger generations.  A piece of solid rock defying the ruthlessness of nature.  Traditions withstanding the test of time.  These are the building blocks of our past, our history, which interwoven with the history of others, blends into becoming the history of humankind.  A story not only to be passed along, but a tale used as a guide for the future. 

But when the stories are no longer to be found in books, memories slowly fading away, structures brought crumbling down and traditions forgotten, what is left of history?

When our past is altered and disfigured, torn apart beyond recognition, prevented from living on in our books and thus dying with the people who took part in its making, no matter how beautiful, how shameful, how disturbing it may be.  When our history becomes a canvas on which anyone may paint and repaint over to their heart’s content, ignoring the sanctity of those who first took the brush of sacrifices to paint their hopes and dreams.  When our history becomes a tale gossiped around coffee tables, where poetic license allows each story-teller to add along to the tale as they please.  Then, nothing is left of our history.

There was a time when the world was divided into the Old World and the New World.  An Old World whose history was already set in stone, jealous of the discovery of a New World whose story was only then being written. What was then the New World has been and will always be jealous of that Old World whose long and entrenched history the New World will never be able to make for itself.  Yet today, parts of that ancient Old World sometimes seems on a mission to reinvent itself into the newer, forged and artificial world that some, for a variety of reasons, want it to be. 

I see this when I revisit the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan in 2001. Altering history by destroying one of the oldest examples of Buddhist art, pretending they were never there, erasing their existence.  The Taleban destroying traces of pre-Islamic heritage they believe is of no value to further their narrow and anachronistic goals, representing an inconvenient reminder that their country’s history is more tolerant than they make it to be.  As if history is a matter of convenience. What is left of history if the only history they have is the one the fundamentalists allow to survive?

I see this when I walk the streets of Beirut.  Altering history by physically rebuilding a battered capital but destroying its very essence, a city losing its character as a melting pot of people, of sights, sounds, smells and tastes, only to cater to the rich and the famous [1]. The political class, often colluding with the business class, exploiting the city’s treasures to further their own narrow interests, the riches of the Old World of no added value to their already ill-gotten wealth.  As if it weren’t enough that Lebanon is unable to write a history book, where at least some of its past mistakes would be recorded to avoid committing them again.  What is left of history if the only history they have is the one the wild capitalist greed and corrupt and murderous politicians allow to survive?

 

I feel this when reading anecdotal evidence of events in Saudi Arabia and Iran. Altering history by destroying pre-Islamic Christian vestiges and churches in Iran and suppressing history by denying the existence of any such ruins or prohibiting their investigation in Saudi Arabia. The interests of those in power attempting to erase heritage belonging to the heritage of humanity, regardless of what creed it belongs to, that is of no value to further their narrow and anachronistic goals, representing an inconvenient reminder that their country’s history is more diverse than they make it to be.  As if history is a matter of convenience. What is left of their history if the only history they have is the one the fundamentalists allow to survive?

Forging individual histories leads to the altering of the history of the world itself. And there are many reasons to do so, ranging from the political, financial, religious, or a lethal mix of all three, condoned by those who have the means to enforce and see the forging through.

It is those who do not understand that history is more than a story but a bond amongst people…or maybe they do not want to keep this bond alive.  Those who fail to realize that a country with no history is sad, but a country with an altered history is nothing but a stage for an impending battle…or they are indifferent to the illusive peace they are living in so long as their worldly interests are met.  Those who haven’t learned from history and the lessons it imparts…or they simply refuse to learn and acknowledge that there can be a history different to their own.  Those who think that their actions will prevent history from judging them because there will be no other history than their own, which may sadly happen if they carry on with what they are doing.    

Whether appreciated or not, when part of history is gone, part of it replaced, part of it destroyed, there is no use in crying over its loss; because it is gone never to be replaced again. Once they, we, learn to live with our history, embrace it as part of our own, use it as a lesson to be learned, not an excuse to cause further damage, then we will truly be worth our history and our place in the chronicle of human existence.  Otherwise, it may well be just forgotten, kept under ground for someone else to unearth and appreciate, or better yet, simply destroyed, for those who destroy are not worthy of learning the lessons that history has left behind for them…

[1] Solidere, a private company founded by late PM Rafik Hariri, was officially tasked to rebuild downtown Beirut after the 1975-1990 war. Solidere’s political backing provided it with the ability to evict owners without proper compensation, encroach on public property and destroy or build over archaeological ruins dating thousands of years.   

Posted in Arab World, History, World History | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

And Yet Again, Bigger Isn’t Always Better

Posted on March 6, 2012 by

It wasn’t long ago when Lebanon seemed absolutely obsessed with setting world records. We had the biggest hummous dish, the biggest tabboule, the longest kebab and largest glass of wine. There also was the largest ceramic plate, largest dabke and largest national flag.  I remember seeing a young bride desperately trying to surround her entire village with her dress to set the world record for the longest bridal train, but I’m not sure if that made it to the book…

Now really, how many world records would a country want to set for itself? What is the point? Why does it matter?  I am sure there is a sophisticated sociological, perhaps deep psychological explanation for this phenomenon.  But for the simple observer, it is yet another example of how we, as a country, just can’t seem to get our priorities straight. And I am talking about more important things here, as important as hummous is to me and my existence. 

We have no problem wasting, I’m sorry, spending our collective time and energy attempting or talking about the bigger and grander, but believe that taking care of the smaller isn’t worth our intelligence. We may stand behind such a façade to hide the fact that we either can’t nor want to do anything at all, and thus remain in complete and utter stagnation.  Of course, this applies as much to the individual as to the private and public sectors.  But let’s talk about the government…

…our daily suffering is made more severe because, while the government promises long-term and grand solutions, it doesn’t take care of the status quo to ease the pain. Take the case of electricity for example. Public authorities could very well control electricity waste by making sure public light poles aren’t on during the day, enforce price controls on private generator providers (moteur) and impose electricity cuts equally throughout the entire country, thus reducing cuts overall.

Now let’s take a closer look at our roads.

We spend half our day on them, and the other half complaining about them.  We hear about grand traffic and public transportation plans to deal with congestion and safety, while our mental and physical health literally melts away as we wait for them to see the light.  Although there is no substitute to implementing a comprehensive long-term plan, which is currently rotting in a steel drawer in a public office in an undisclosed location, small inexpensive measures may be easily taken to ease people’s pain.  This is not rocket science, but the science of common sense. (Note: this should not, in principle, portray any politician in a negative light in the run up to the 2013 elections, nor should it deprive the former of any lucrative deals it is making on the people’s expense.)

Signs: in case of a closed road or diversion, putting extra signs as a warning, at least 500 meters in advance or close enough to find an alternative route, will avoid causing useless choke points as drivers hit the same wall and simultaneously try to get away from it.  Signs should be sturdy enough to stand some wind and maybe one or two drivers crashing into them.  To save money, old signs can be recycled, as long as the arrows are pointing in the right direction. 

Speed bumps: are meant to slow down drivers in inner roads, not main roads for which there are speed limits and the use of which causes traffic. Reconsidering location of speed bumps will save public funds not waste them.  Erecting speed bumps the height and shape of pyramids, causing car malfunction and immediate garage attention, thus removing cars from circulation for a couple of days, is not a valid system of traffic management.

Parking: Although they sometimes look like parking lots, an autostrade and main thoroughfares aren’t a parking. The same police traffic officers officiously guarding crossings and traffic lights could be rotated to make sure people at least park in lots and not lanes. Just think about how many times you had to change lanes, escaping blocked ones mistaken for a prime parking location by customers, unable to walk the extra 3 meters to park their cars properly.      

Traffic Advisory Frequency: This may be more complicated, but far from impossible. People living in Europe, among other areas, will know how annoying those interruptions to radio programming with traffic updates are, which you can’t opt out of. It is only here in Lebanon that I’ve learned their true value.  Lebanon already has various departments within the police and Civil Defense monitoring road activity.  Channeling this to one center to be broadcast throughout the country will help people plan accordingly for their trips.  Whenever traffic is smooth, airtime could be filled with weather updates, public service announcements or Ziad Rahbani plays for laughs if they get it all wrong and we are stuck in traffic.

I don’t know about you, but a pleasant ride with minimal, or at least predictable traffic, can make or break my day. Granted, drivers are as responsible for the madness, but it is going to be much harder to reeducate almost 4 million people on the basics of driving, than ensuring some orderliness with a simple sign.  Governments the world-around aren’t known to be the most efficient service/solution providers, let alone the Lebanese one.  Couple that with our love of grandeur, we are in big trouble, have been and will be.  Therefore, it is time for us to realize that yet again, bigger isn’t always better. With minimal political will and without reorganizing its list of “priorities”, the relevant authorities can offer small solutions that will make a big difference.  Why can’t we wish to carry our lives in a bit more organized, calm and predictable fashion? Of course, if that happens anytime soon, I’ll be the first to call the Guinness Book.   

[This piece was initially posted on LBC Blogs]

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Words of Defiance: The Courage to Say Them, The Challenge to See them Through

Posted on February 29, 2012 by

If acts of defiance are what spark a revolution, then words of defiance are the fuel that keep it going.

"Irhal Irhal Moubarak"

For it was the words of the Arab Revolutions, expressions long-buried under the heaviness of oppression and the cloak of fear, that triggered the unthinkable. These words of defiance that have made heroes of the unknown, armed with nothing but hope and newly-found courage. And so they chanted:

“The People Want to Bring Down the Regime…” when regimes thought people existed only to clap along and chant their praises and no other regime was viable except their own

“One One One, the People of [Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain or Syria] are One…” when regimes sought to exploit demographic fault lines to divide and conquer the opposition solely for their own survival

“ Freedom…” when regimes sought to portray it as an alien aspiration, invented in a faraway land, unfit for their own people, or simply

“Irhal…” to dictators who had propagated the myth that their country’s destiny was inextricably linked to their own, a country without them was almost no country at all. 

Irhal, Arabic for leave, was a cry for mercy by those who had never dreamt the day would come to utter such words.  Irhal was irrefutable evidence that the bullets of the dying regimes could no longer kill their people. Irhal was proof that the people had already made a decision about their country’s future.

First and foremost, Irhal was for dictators and their cronies’ physical departure, to ensure they no longer passed down the throne to their sons as a prized family possession. But it also was a call for what the regime embodied – the oppression, injustice and corruption – and what it had led to – the humiliation, poverty and hopelessness – to go away too.

The physical removal has been achieved in some countries, and has yet to happen in others. But purging what the regime stood for and what it led to, will require more than just taking over squares and punching fists into the air.  It is a challenge exacerbated by the length of time these regimes survived, which made their political and societal structures the only ones many had known to exist and had grown accustomed to. It is also a challenge because the same people that helped, whether willingly or unwillingly, to establish such regimes, are the same ones that are left to see the revolution through.

These are the people who were not at the forefront of the revolution, nor the ones taking over the reins of power, now basking in the opportunity of instituting meaningful change. These are the people who terrorized, supported and profited, who were forced to become part of the fallen regime or who truly believed in it.  These are the people who fled and cut all ties to the homeland, transforming it into a washed-out memory of a long-forgotten dream, and are only now coming back to ride the wave of change.      

The way regimes deal with those left behind will determine their sustainability and viability into the future. It will determine whether they have learned from past suffering and oppression and are truly determined not to make the same mistakes of those they helped topple.     

Arab experience in dealing with remnants of deposed regimes, of those left behind, is a mixed bag of failures and successes.  From the foolishness of de-Baathification[1] to post-revolution Tunisia carefully dealing with and trying former high-ranking officials directly involved in corruption, embezzlement and torture.

It remains that new governments will be faced with a delicate balancing act of quenching people’s thirst for justice without spreading seeds of bitterness that may grow into new sources of division and tension.  A delicate balancing act of integrating those involved in the fallen regimes without integrating their former ways and behaviors through the back door.  For the revolution not to go in vain, it will be necessary for governments to ensure the above without themselves being drawn into the obscure political maneuvering that kept previous regimes afloat.

No viable political transition, let alone a full-blown revolution, can be credible without drawing the line between those that must be held accountable and those who were previously made to paid the price of submission in return for their livelihoods. The success of the revolution will be determined in terms of its ability to have implemented the fundamental political and social change it aspired, without alienating a weaken yet determined populace after years of hardship. 

The ownership of the future belongs to those who had the courage to fight for change in the face of extreme adversity, those in whose hands change can now be attained, and to everyone else in between. And now is the time to see it through…

[This piece was initially posted on Comment Middle East]

[1] De-Baathification refers to the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority’s policy of removing Baath party members from Iraqi government positions after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.  The Iraqi government later reversed this policy.

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Living Like There’s a Tomorrow

Posted on January 31, 2012 by

If we can rarely enjoy a day in Lebanon without countless and extensive electricity cuts, can we ever expect to see the light at the end of the tunnel?

A day in a life of a Lebanese is a dichotomy between everything that is wrong in our small little world and every way to make it better. The light at the end of the tunnel is our hope for the better life we aspire, our dream of the better place we deserve, our faith in the good will of everyone else to make it happen.

But imagine how our lives have evolved in this long and rusting tunnel:

For longer than we care to remember, the excuse for being in this interminable tunnel has been the war. But the war ended 22 years ago!

For years, solutions to our many problems, such as basic infrastructure in the hands of the government, or shameless attitudes towards one another or foreigners, in the hands of every individual, is to run around in circles to avoid a solution. And our current system does nothing to break this vicious circle.

For too long, we have induced breaks in our tunnel to get to see some of the light we long for: Our shimmering Downtown gives the illusion of prosperity. Our political system gives the illusion of democracy. Our shared Lebanese citizenship gives the illusion of unity. Our humor and joie de vivre gives the illusion of peace of mind and feeling of overall security.

But pointing the blame at others has not bore us any fruit, and complaining has not lead us anywhere near what we desire. Instead, maybe it is time to point the blame at ourselves. Instead of complaining from dusk till dawn, maybe it is time to raise our voices and make everyone else hear. We have waited too long for things to get better, thrown our hopes unto people and a system that has failed us far too many times. It is time to change our tactics.

Many have realized that it is time to take matters in their own hands, where change is something to be fought for and apathy no longer excusable.

And many have already picked their battles. From women’s rights to workers’ rights. From the fight to combat human discrimination to the fight for a healthy tobacco-free environment, and the fight for a secular society in between. These battles and more to come, initiated by a small group, joined by many more to come, are the small acts of resistance that will “make the invincible crack, the unchangeable change.” Because resistance isn’t always about force, and doesn’t have to be…

If the Arab Revolutions have taught us anything it is that change from the bottom is possible. Change isn’t easy, change isn’t fast, and if we think it is impossible, it will be just that, impossible. And if we are to take away just one thing from these revolutions, it is that we never had our own revolution. If only considering the most basic definition of a revolution: “sudden, radical, or complete change,” a “fundamental change in political organization; especially: the overthrow or renunciation of one government or ruler and the substitution of another by the governed.” Where is our “complete change”? Where is our “fundamental change”? Where is the “renunciation”? Where is the “substitution”?

If the Occupy Wall Street movement was inspired by the Arab Revolutions, with its tactics and conviction in the power of active change, there is no reason why we cannot do the same thing too. The only prerequisite is to believe in this change and realize that the time has come to act.

For whatever cause, whatever reason, sign that petition, go down to the streets, scream it out loud, spread the word on Facebook, write to raise awareness, retweet that plea on Twitter. Occupy Your Mind. The Revolution Begins Within.

For too long, we have lived in this country like there is no tomorrow, yet have seen that no matter what we do, that tomorrow keeps coming back at us again and again. Let us start living and acting so that our tomorrow is a one we want to look forward to.

Without fighting a battle, we can never claim victory. So tell me, what battle have you chosen to fight for?

[This piece was initially posted on LBC Blogs]

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No River to Put Out the Flames

Posted on January 10, 2012 by

During the past year, the Arab Revolutions have seized our news headlines and captured our imaginations. We have been taken aback by the unprecedented tempo of change, entangled with the human toll that paved the way for the downfall of dictators.

The revolutions haven’t been the only ones painting the Arab region’s landscape with blood, too much to be washed away by the tears of those left behind. But the revolutions have derailed our attention from another conflict raging in the midst of our world.

A conflict, almost a war, or on the verge of a civil war? Do terms really matter anymore? Characterized by a recurring pattern of senseless violence, market explosions, killing rampages and booby-trapped cars. That people can hardly follow, unable to keep count of lives lost and solutions failed. Whose “shock and awe” shocked a nation with the sweetness of freedom disregarding what may come as a result, awed a region with the blatant intervention more common of bygone ages.

Where Hammurabi’s[1] heritage doesn’t provide the stability but the harsh punishment. Where the flow of the two rivers[2] are not enough to put out the flames. This, is Iraq.

For paying the price for one of the most daring acts of terrorism in contemporary history. For failing to set a successful precedent in adventures of regime change and imported democratization. For proving that ill-managed diversity has repercussions that can be sometimes irreversible.

Almost nobody in 2003 would have imagined that Arab dictators would one day fall at the hands of their people and not the hands of fate. Regardless, intervention in Iraq was essentially not about freedom nor democracy, since had that been the case, many other countries deserved to be as high on the list or at least would have provided easier victories to emulate. Regardless, it is not about comparing the pre and post Saddam Hussein eras; in the long-run, Iraq is certainly better without him, but not at a time and method of the people’s choosing.

The past year has taught us that revolutions aren’t alien, even to the Arab world. Iraq would have had its revolution. Iraq would have bled but would have fought its murderous tyrant. Iraq may have been under threat of division, but this threat would have come by its own will or maybe avoided, we don’t know. Iraq may have sought foreign intervention, but not had intervention to blame for its war with no end in sight.

Given its similarities to Syria, whether in the type of regime and ideology that reigned over it for decades, or the composition of its population, Iraq’s revolution may have been as bloody as Syria’s. Yet these are the revolutions that are sometimes needed, as baptisms of fire, for nations to evolve. Revolutions imposed are wars, and revolutions suppressed become civil wars. Standing in the way of the natural course of societies brings nothing but greater misery.

Given all the parallels that can be drawn between Beirut in the 70s an 80s and Baghdad today, I cannot but wonder, never hope, if it will face a similar fate as the former. Lebanon, a country whose name also became synonymous with war itself, a shattered country with little to keep it standing but the strength of its people. Beirut had wars to be fought, and civil wars to be settled. It had no one to blame but itself and everything to blame on the war of others. But it was also forgotten, let to slip in the archives of history, until someone discovered it dusty and almost beyond repair. The Arab world cannot afford and should not allow Iraq to become that second Lebanon, burning longer that we will care to remember. Alive in our memories, alive in our consciousness, we should not let Iraq become the story we disregard for being repetitive. We owe it to our region, we owe it to our humanity.

Alive as a cause held up high, alive so that one day, its rivers will put out its burning flames…

[1] The Code of Hammurabi is thought to be the first code of law in recorded history. Set punishments for not abiding by the code were generally harsh, one of which is the concept of an “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.”

[2]Two major rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, run through the center of Iraq. In ancient times, most of modern-day Iraq was known as Mesopotamia or the land between the two rivers.

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