Lebanon boasts a reputation in the Arab world that its years of deep crises have not erased. An Arab politician and friend telephoned me a few days ago to express his delight with how Lebanon is making its way back to its sons and supporters after long painful years. My friend had in recent years been keen to avoid surrendering to the impression that Lebanon had lost the way to the future and become mired in the rubble of the past.
Now, he told me: “Lebanon does not deserve the punishment inflicted by its own people and others in recent decades. Yes, Lebanon is not a major player in the region. And yes, it does not boast natural resources that attract major countries. But Lebanon’s failure will not be blamed on Lebanon alone, but on the entire Arab family that failed in saving this child, who was never a source of danger to others, but rather an advocate of progress and coexistence.”
“There still remains a need for Lebanon and for the diversity that is a part of its identity and daily life. Lebanon is an experience in coexistence between segments that have different religious and intellectual identities. This is one of the secrets of its uniqueness despite the challenges facing diversity in this difficult part of the world,” he added.
“I am contacting you to express my joy over the recent developments. Lebanon has chosen a president - Joseph Aoun - who has integrity and can be entrusted to lead it given his commitment to the country’s sovereignty, unity, constitution and institutions. I am delighted that the government will be formed by a man outside of the political class. Nawaf Salam is competent, honorable and respected internationally,” he went on to say.
“With all my heart, I hope the Lebanese people don’t commit the sin of squandering this opportunity. I can confidently say that Arab countries are eager to help Lebanon restore normal life under the rule of state institutions and a revived economy. This is definitely possible. The Saudi foreign minister’s visit to Lebanon reflects Saudi Arabia’s push in that direction. The whole world is ready to help Lebanon. It is now up to the Lebanese people to help their country, abandon wars, quotas, wrong calculations and banking on foreign powers to upend internal balances. I hope, with all my heart, that this opportunity is not wasted,” he said.
I recalled how much was said of Beirut over the decades and how much the city meant to several Arab figures.
Hazem Jawad, who led the Iraqi Baath party to power in 1963, once told me that the new rulers of Baghdad would await diplomatic mail from Beirut to read its newspapers and to learn what its most important journalists and writers had to say about the situation in Iraq and the region. The prevalent impression was that Beirut reflects the intensity of the heat in the region and the way the winds blow. So much importance was placed on Beirut that some Arab officials believed that the embassies of major countries were sending messages through this or that journalist. Others believed that Beirut was the place where coups were planned, and the hub of intelligence agencies.
Years ago, I heard about how United Arab Emirates Vice President and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum had visited Beirut when he was young and how he was attracted to its vitality, diversity, openness to the world and ambition to achieve progress. As he left the Lebanese capital, he asked himself: When will Dubai be able to forge ahead on a similar path as Beirut, which was seen at the time as a successful model.
Mohsen Ibrahim, former Secretary General of the Communist Action Organization in Lebanon, revealed to me that late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser always asked about Beirut as if wanting to uncover the secret of its luster, despite the city’s small size and meager natural wealth. He said that Abdel Nasser viewed Beirut as a testing ground for Arab leadership. He knew that the rallies that took place there were not being orchestrated by a director of intelligence as was the case in Baghdad, Damascus and several other capitals.
Abdel Nasser used to ask about newspapers in Beirut, especially An-Nahar and its editor-in-chief Michel Abou Jawdeh. He perhaps used to wonder at how a ruler or president would wake up to a surprising headline as opposed to headlines that are written by the ruling authorities themselves.
I am not one to yearn for the past. I know that Lebanon has changed, that the region has changed and so has the world. But this does not deny the Lebanese people their right to live under the rule of a normal state where vacuum does not take place in the presidency, where the government is easily broken apart and where its parliament does not fall into a coma and run around in empty circles.
A normal state can rebuild the Lebanese houses based on equality between its segments under the rule of its institutions. Coincidence would have it that my friend spoke to me as the Lebanese army was firing at Lebanese people who were trying to return home to their southern villages, even if they only had the rubble of their homes to return to. It is evident that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is attempting to lure Lebanon into a clash so that it can further deepen its tragedies.
Despite their pain, it is important for the Lebanese people to realize that there can be no salvation except through turning to the state, which alone can reclaim all of the country’s territories, sovereignty and normal life and whose sole concerns are stability and prosperity.
It is evident that the train is moving closer to Lebanon and that the Lebanese must gather the conditions to jump aboard, seizing the Arab and international support accorded to them. Missing the train will spell surrender and sliding into an even deeper and more dangerous abyss. The Lebanese people have no better choice than Lebanon. This has been demonstrated in old and fresh experiences. For the first time in decades Lebanon is being visited by a visitor called “hope”. Let’s hope that petty calculations won’t drive it away.
