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From: ALIBOB
Date: 11 May 1999
Time: 00:23:58
Remote Name: 205.188.199.51
Remote User:
I will answer you first and third points because I don’t have enough knowledge about the second.
1.
In order to have NEUTRALITY and unbiased information, the question can be answered best by a jew!!! This excerpt I will provide you with is written by a Jewish American UNBIASED journalist whose name is Thomas Friedman who I suppose you have heard of. The book I am quoting from is called “From Beirut to Jerusalem” and the page being quoted from is 12.
“Following World War I and the collapse of the Turkish Ottoman Empire, which had controlled the Middle East for some four hundred years, the area that is now Syria and Lebanon fell to France. In 1920 the Maronite leadership managed to convince France to set up a Lebanese state which Maronites and the other small Christian sects allied to them would dominate. But in order to make this state economically viable, the Maronites appealed to France to include in it not only their traditional Mt. Lebanon enclave- which was about 80 percent Christian and 20 percent Druse- but also the predominantly Sunni Muslim cities of the coast- Beirut, Tripoli, Sidon, and Tyre- as well as the Shiite Muslim regions of south Lebanon, the Akkar, and the Bekaa Valley. In this “Greater Lebanon”, the Maronites and other Christian sects comprised only slightly more than 51 percent of the population, according to the 1932 census. The Sunni and Shiite Muslims roped into this new state of “Greater Lebanon” were not consulted, and many of them deeply resented it, since they would have preferred to become part of Syria- with its Arab-Muslim majority and orientation.”
I think this excerpt precisely explains your question!!! It also further emphasizes that this whole “levant” region is made up of the same land and people but a few factions think otherwise. The disastrous regimes don’t think so as well as some communities in lebanon who either fear this notion or simply hate syria too much to think objectively. I don’t know but this is how I see it!!!
2.
you say… “It seems that only Hizballah is acting against Israel while the SSNP is fighting Israel by stirring distrust and hate in East Beirut.”
This question I don’t think is very constructive because I would like to ask you: why isnt the phalange part helping to liberate “their” southern lebanon too?!?
3.
you say… “ Why is it difficult for EVERY Lebanese to be patriotic and nationalistic regardless of the religion of the president? Is it a necessary condition for Moslems to have a Moslem president in order for them to be Lebanese ?”
You COMPLETELY missed the point here. No one is telling you that we should have a muslim president. It doesn’t make a difference. Our structure is weak and this helps weaken nationalistic and patriotic movements. Do you think Hizbullah is fighting in the South because of the “Lebanon” entity? I don’t think so. I believe it is more religously and culturally entwined. Muslim persecution by israelis and israeli raids against “arab land” lebanon! We have a good president now and there is nothing wrong with him being a maronite. The problem is the weak foundations we are on! The taif is the kind of agreement that “differentiates” and helps put the spot light on every individual’s religion. The average citizen relates more to his “leader” than to a “lebanese loyalist” even if his leader is corrupt and against lebanon. Do you get the idea? This is what this system is doing. I don’t care if the president is maronite, but I care if the means by which he became president is totally contrary to secular and democratic views!!!!
You say… “and if the war had started simply because the president is Maronite, will we have another war in 10-15 years ? “
who knows. There might be a “probablility” of such a war but it is NOT “certain”. I emphasize “probability”. The weak foundations Lebanon is laid on can increase the chances of a war rather than decrease it! A sound structure will only help decrease the chances of war. Of-course there should also be a lot of “social work” done in order to make the people feel close to each other and think “lebanese” before thinking “religion”.
You say… “Here I have to admire the Palestinians for I have not met a Christian Palestinian opposed to Arafat or a Moslem Palestinian opposed to Habash, at least not yet.”
You know there are many sectarian strives between the muslim and christian palestinians but they are not very apparent. Also, I don’t understand the way you make a relation between the palestinian problem and the lebanese one but it is interesting. There are many different aspects that make both situations greatly differ. One important one is our civil war and the fact that we have this “taif” agreement that further emphasizes religion over nationality. Sectarianism is kind of “promoted” in lebanon while it doesn’t have much value for the palestinians I think! There problems are much larger than sectarianism. They have a “survival” problem as “one” entity! If anything, israel caused them to unite even closer!! BUT if they ever form a government that divides the rule based on religion then salemtak! They will experience what we did in our civil war!!! It is like we are from these different sects BUT we happen to live collectively in this land called “lebanon”!!! It doesn’t seem like we are “lebanese” who happen to be from different religions!
4.
you say… “ Perhaps you should explain to me WHO and WHY those who cooperated with Israel did so ? If you choose to be objective, you should mention Israel's support to the Druze PSP in 1981; the Golan Druze, who unlike Hizballah seem to be enjoying the Israeli presence; King Hussein who was saved by the Israelis from the Syrian invasion in 1968; The UAE, Dubai, and the rest of your ARAB BLOOD BROTHERS who hold normal relationships with Israel; need I say more ....”
These so called “arab blood brothers” do not hold “normal” relations with israel BUT who said they are truly arabs fighting to liberate their brothers??!?! These regimes need to be destroyed. If I had one wish it would be to kill every person in the ruling regimes (dictatorships as well as kingdoms) of the arab world!!!!!!!!!!! I guess that is the only solution. That is the way middle eastern politics are played I guess!!!
About blaming the maronites.
My perception is that the fault started with the maronite “LEADERSHIP” and it is not necessarily about the maronite “people”. BUT that also doesn’t credit all the other arab political factions in the region who were as disastrous in many different ways too!
p.s. I am a lebanese and am not an ssnp member BUT I do believe that this region needs some kind of unified shape up. Some kind of economic and defense union that respects current boundaries because that is the most achievable and acceptable idea. Of course we have to get rid of our beloved and current regimes!!!!! At least this can be a “first step” for the ssnp who I believe have HUUUUGE dreams that they hope to accomplish by wishing for a miracle from God!!!!!!! I mean come on people, CYPRUS TOO???? Objectives only make sense if they are achievable. This dream is tooo big!!!!
I would appreciate it if you would explain to me what you mean by these two statements:
“At least the Maronites do not subscribe to your ARABIC HERITAGE much like the SSNP rejects the ARABIC identity. “
and…
“while the SSNP is fighting Israel by stirring distrust and hate in East Beirut. “
thanks
ALIBOB