The Oral History and Memory of Ras Beirut: Exceptional Narratives of Co-Existence

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

The Oral History and Memory of Ras Beirut: Exceptional Narratives of Co-Existence Middle East Studies Association (MESA) Conference Washington, DC, November 2014 The Oral History and Memory of Ras Beirut: Exceptional Narratives of Co-existence Maria Bashshur Abunnasr, PhD This paper is a very condensed version of my past dissertation research and my current project on the oral history and memory of Ras Beirut sponsored by the Neighborhood Initiative at the American University of Beirut. For those of you who do not know Beirut, Ras Beirut is the western-most extension of the city and is most renown as the location of the American University of Beirut (AUB) founded by American missionaries in 1866 as the Syrian Protestant College. To many Ras Beirut is a place famous, indeed exceptional, for its association with tolerance, education, and cosmopolitanism. And that association is largely credited to AUB. The focus of this paper, however, is not on AUB’s role in Ras Beirut. It reverses the lens to consider the local community’s role in making Ras Beirut’s past through what I term, “narratives of coexistence.” Comprised of primarily (though not exclusively) Greek Orthodox Christians and Sunni Muslims, Ras Beirut’s local community claims its foundation is based on ta’ayoush, Arabic for coexistence. They consider their history of peaceful coexistence the bedrock of Ras Beirut’s exceptionalism that distinguished Ras Beirut from other parts of Beirut, of Lebanon, and of the region. While they recognize the presence of the AUB as momentous to the future shape of Ras Beirut as a cosmopolitan hub, their narratives insist on the influence, if not the determination, of their 1 coexistence on the missionary choice of Ras Beirut as the site for the College in the first place. No missionary records substantiate these claims and Ras Beirut narrators avoid specificity inasmuch as their memories “resist correction by others.”1 But it is the very fallibility of their recollections, as oral historian Alessandro Portelli argues, that suggests deeper meanings and provides invaluable insights into “the interests of the tellers, and the dreams and desires beneath them.”2 The repetition of these “narratives of coexistence” highlight the local agency in the making of Ras Beirut’s exceptionalism and serve to preserve the intangibility of Ras Beirut’s past as a tangible “repository of peoples’ memory.”3 Furthermore, these “narratives of coexistence” extend over time and take shape as a nuanced challenge to the Anglo-American missionary “discovery” of Ras Beirut that AUB’s founder Daniel Bliss’s memoir describes, on the one hand, and as a rejection of any association with the sectarian brutality of the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) on the other.4 In a representative example, the late Ghassan Tueni famously remarked that during the Lebanese Civil War there were three Beiruts: Christian East Beirut, Muslim West Beirut, and Ras Beirut, the latter defying any confessional categorization.5 This portrayal of Ras Beirut as exceptional within both Beirut and Lebanon perpetuates the enduring clichés of Beirut, as the cosmopolitan Paris, or of Lebanon, as the multi-confessional 1 David Lowenthal, “History and Memory,” The Public Historian 19 2 (Spring 1997), 34. 2 Alessandro Portelli, The Death of Luigi Trastulli and Other Stories (CUNY, 1991) 2. 3 Barbara Mitsztal, Theories of Social Remembering (Open University Press, 2003)16. 4 Daniel Bliss, Reminiscences of Daniel Bliss (Revell,1920) 190. 5 Ghassan Tueni (1926 – 2012) headed one of Lebanon’s leading newspapers (and was son of its founder) An-Nahar; he was also a prominent Lebanese spokesperson, journalist, academic, and politician. 2 6 mountainous Switzerland, of the Middle East. In his memoir Munir Shama‘a, a third generation Ras Beiruti, goes as far as to define Ras Beirut as an independent state, in Arabic a dawla, “of small size, large impact, a pioneer in liberty, justice, equality, and democracy.”7 Perhaps unwittingly, his definition of Ras Beirut fits the definition of American exceptionalism that presents the U.S. as unscathed by authoritarianism, class conflict, and as a model to be emulated by the world. The difference between these two exceptionalist discourses, however, is the cultural superiority inherent to the Anglo-American one as compared to the sense of alienation and loss that haunts local Ras Beirut expressions of exceptionalism. For these “narratives of coexistence” conjure up a social landscape unique in time and place where neither class nor religion mattered and where all lived as one Ras Beirut family, or ahl Ras Beirut. They act as what Michel de Certeau calls as “spatial trajectories” that travel through time and “carry out a labor that constantly transforms spaces into places” as they delineate Ras Beirut as a “practiced place,” where Muslims and Christians lived together as one family.8 Because of time constraints, I can only share a few examples: many are from my oral history interviews, but the oldest ones, necessarily come out of published memoirs of those now deceased authors, such as the aforementioned 6 C. Nagel, “Reconstructing space, re-creating memory: sectarian politics and urban development in post-war Beirut,” Political Geography 21 (2002): 717. 7 Munir Shama‘a, Take off and Landing: the Lifestory of a Doctor from Ras Beirut (Riad el Rayess, 2000) 101-114. 8 Michel de Certeau, The Practice of Everyday Life (California, 1988) 115-118. Ras Beirut described as “one family” in almost every interview conducted. 3 Munir Shama’a, Kamal Salibi, renown historian of Lebanon, and Kamal Rebeiz, colorful Ras Beirut mukhtar (or elected neighborhood headman). 9 Indeed, Mukhtar Kamal Rebeiz went as far as to say that, “Even the sun in Ras Beirut is different!” In 1986, in the middle of the Lebanese Civil War, Rebeiz published his folkloric history of Ras Beirut, entitled Rizq allah ay-haydeek al- ayyam…ya Ras Bāyrut, idiomatically translated to Those good ol’days…Oh, Ras Beirut. Though laden with ubiquitous clichés, his book makes invaluable contributions to local history in the voices captured through the individual biographical sketches grouped under the heading “Families of Ras Beirut - Their Memories.” One of the most quintessential and, as far as I can tell, oldest “narratives of coexistence” is the one Rebeiz includes in his sketch of Al-Hajj Abdallah al- ‘Itani, or Abu Abed (not to be confused with the jokester!).10 At some point in the 1940s, Abu-Abed, who headed the al-‘Itani Family, Ras Beirut’s largest Sunni family, led a contingent of Ras Beiruti family representatives, both Sunni and Greek Orthodox, to visit Lebanon’s first Prime Minister, Riad al-Solh on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. When Prime Minister al-Solh asked al-‘Itani to present him with a list of needy families from Ras Beirut, the Prime Minister reacted with surprise when he saw that it included both Muslim and Christian names. He questioned the inclusion of Christian names on a Muslim feast and noted that Christian families usually received alms during their feast. Al-Itani responded that in Ras Beirut there was no distinction between whose feast was whose and that, 9 Kamal G. Rebeiz, Rizqallah ‘ala haydeek al-ayyam…ya ras bāyrut (Beirut: al-matbu‘at al mussawarat, 1986). 10 If al-‘Itani had not told Rebeiz the story himself, Rebeiz’s father, Girgi Nicola Rebeiz presumably did as a member of the Ras Beirut contingent that al-Itani lists who visit to Prime Minister al-Solh. “Al-Hajj Abdallah Itani,” in Rebeiz, 107. 4 “we celebrate together, we are happy together, and we cry together, like we hunger together and are satiated together; if it is not possible for you to provide for those on the list, then forget the whole list (baleha, in colloquial Lebanese dialect).” With tears in his eyes, the Prime Minister responded, “I wish all of Lebanon was like Ras Beirut.” Several of Rebeiz’s individual sketches make reference to the milk kinship that existed between Muslim and Christian families thus further underlining Ras Beirut’s description as one family. The common scenario features a Christian or a Muslim mother who, unable to nurse her baby, takes it to her Muslim or Christian neighbor to be nursed. The ensuing milk kinship (ikhwat bil-rida‘a) established legally recognized, though non-obligatory, relations between the families. Despite the fact that milk kinship, even across confessional lines, was not limited to Ras Beirut, it is used in these “narratives of coexistence” to showcase the fraternity integral to Ras Beirut’s exceptionalism. Even Kamal Salibi alludes to this in his autobiographical essay: he explains that, In Ras Beirut, among the oldest established Christian families, which were Greek Orthodox, the Aramans considered themselves relatives of the Muslim Shatilas, and the Bikh’azis relatives of the Muslim ‘Itanis. The families in question, and others like them, were actually unrelated by blood, because no intermarriages were possible between them. Foster kinship, however, was believed to serve as a replacement for blood kinship. Several Ras Beirut Muslim and Christian families, it was said, made a point of having their babies nurse, at least once, from the same breast, so that they became foster siblings. […] How many Aramans and Shatilas, Bikh’azis and ‘Itanis, had actually been nursed as babies from the same breast was moot. The story existed, and it was believed.11 11 Kamal Salibi, “Living With Changing Times,” In Franco-Arab Encounters: Studies in Memory of David C. Gordon, eds. L. Carl Brown and Matthew S. Gordon (Beirut: AUB, 1997), 169-170. 5 In one paragraph Salibi contrasts Ras Beirut to the mountains, historicizes the Orthodox Christian-Sunni Muslim community, and attributes their harmonious coexistence to the belief in the deliberate ties of milk kinship. In his authoritative capacity as historian, Salibi gives credence to Rebeiz’s collection of individual anecdotes.
Recommended publications
  • Constitutional Patriotism in Lebanon
    Sonderdrucke aus der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg MAURUS REINKOWSKI Constitutional Patriotism in Lebanon Originalbeitrag erschienen in: New perspektives on Turkey 16 (1997), S. [63] - 85 CONSTITUTIONAL PATRIOTISM IN LEB ON Maurus Reinkowski* In this paper I will discuss the options of political identity the Lebanese have at their disposal against the background of the German experience. Germany and Lebanon, states at first glance completely different from each other, show some similarity in their historical experience. In the context of this comparison I will discuss constitu- tional patriotism, a political concept in circulation in Germany over the last fifteen years or so, and its potential application in the Lebanese case. Constitutional patriotism, unlike many other concepts originating in the West, has yet not entered the political vocabulary of the Middle East. The debate on democracy and the civil society is widespread in the whole of the Middle East, including Lebanon. Lebanon's political culture, polity and national identity, however, show some peculiar traits that might justify the introduction of the term constitutional patriotism into the Lebanese political debate. As democracy and civil society are both closely linked to the concept of constitutional patriotism they will be treated in the first chapter. The second chapter will be devoted to the question of whether and to what extent Lebanon differs from the mainstream of the modern Middle East's political history. I will venture to draw a parallel with the German "sonderweg" (deviant, peculiar way). The third section will present briefly the German discussion of constitutional patriotism and its innate link to the sonderweg.
    [Show full text]
  • The Istiqlalis in Transjordan, 1920-1926 by Ghazi
    A Divided Camp: The Istiqlalis in Transjordan, 1920-1926 by Ghazi Jarrar Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts at Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova Scotia April 2016 © Copyright by Ghazi Jarrar, 2016 Table of Contents Abstract........................................................................................................................................................iv Acknowledgements.................................................................................................................................v Chapter One: Introduction.................................................................................................................1 Background.....................................................................................................................................3 Historiography...........................................................................................................................11 Project Parameters and Outline..........................................................................................26 A Note on Sources.....................................................................................................................29 Chapter Two: The Militant Istiqlalis...........................................................................................31 Background..................................................................................................................................32 The Militant Istiqlalis: Part
    [Show full text]
  • Palestine: Reunification by Other Means
    PALESTINE: REUNIFICATION BY OTHER MEANS Maj D.E. Turner JCSP 40 PCEMI 40 Exercise Solo Flight Exercice Solo Flight Disclaimer Avertissement Opinions expressed remain those of the author and Les opinons exprimées n’engagent que leurs auteurs do not represent Department of National Defence or et ne reflètent aucunement des politiques du Canadian Forces policy. This paper may not be used Ministère de la Défense nationale ou des Forces without written permission. canadiennes. Ce papier ne peut être reproduit sans autorisation écrite. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as © Sa Majesté la Reine du Chef du Canada, représentée par represented by the Minister of National Defence, 2016. le ministre de la Défense nationale, 2016. CANADIAN FORCES COLLEGE – COLLÈGE DES FORCES CANADIENNES JCSP 40 – PCEMI 40 EXERCISE SOLO FLIGHT – EXERCICE SOLO FLIGHT PALESTINE: REUNIFICATION BY OTHER MEANS Maj D.E. Turner “This paper was written by a student “La présente étude a été rédigée par un attending the Canadian Forces College stagiaire du Collège des Forces in fulfilment of one of the requirements canadiennes pour satisfaire à l'une des of the Course of Studies. The paper is a exigences du cours. L'étude est un scholastic document, and thus contains document qui se rapporte au cours et facts and opinions, which the author contient donc des faits et des opinions alone considered appropriate and que seul l'auteur considère appropriés et correct for the subject. It does not convenables au sujet. Elle ne reflète pas necessarily reflect the policy or the nécessairement la politique ou l'opinion opinion of any agency, including the d'un organisme quelconque, y compris le Government of Canada and the gouvernement du Canada et le ministère Canadian Department of National de la Défense nationale du Canada.
    [Show full text]
  • Baabda Declaration Issued by the National Committee of Dialogue at Baabda Palace on 11 June 2012 (See Annex)
    United Nations A/66/849–S/2012/477 General Assembly Distr.: General 21 June 2012 Security Council English Original: Arabic General Assembly Security Council Sixty-sixth session Sixty-seventh year Agenda item 36 The situation in the Middle East Identical letters dated 13 June 2012 from the Chargé d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of Lebanon to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council On instructions from my Government, I transmit herewith the Baabda Declaration issued by the National Committee of Dialogue at Baabda Palace on 11 June 2012 (see annex). I should be grateful if this letter and its annex could be circulated as a document of the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly, under agenda item 36, and of the Security Council. (Signed) Caroline Ziade Chargé d’affaires a.i. 12-38540 (E) 260612 270612 *1238540* A/66/849 S/2012/477 Annex to the identical letters dated 13 June 2012 from the Chargé d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of Lebanon to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council Baabda Declaration issued by the National Dialogue Committee on 11 June 2012 At the invitation of the President of the Republic of Lebanon, Michel Sleiman, the National Dialogue Committee met on Monday, 11 June 2012, at the residence of the President of the Republic in Baabda. The meeting was chaired by the President and attended by the dialogue teams. Mr. Saad Hariri and Mr. Samir Geagea were absent.
    [Show full text]
  • Endowed Faculty Chairs, Student Scholarships, Fellowships
    Endowed Faculty Chairs, Student Scholarships, Fellowships, Hardships, Awards, and Research Funds Endowed Faculty Chairs, Student Scholarships, Fellowships, Hardships, Awards, and 474 Research Funds Endowed Faculty Chairs, Student Scholarships, Fellowships, Hardships, Awards, and Research Funds Endowed Faculty Chairs FM Raja N. Khuri Deanship for the Faculty of Medicine: Sayegh, Mohamed FEA Mohammed Abdulmohsin Al-Kharafi Chair in Engineering Al Mu’allim Mohamed Awad Binladin Chair in Architecture in the Islamic World Dar Al-Handasah (Shair & Partners) Endowed Professorship in FEA: El-Fadel, Mutasem The Qatar Chair for Energy Studies: Ghaddar, Nesreene Zakhem Deanship of Engineering and Architecture OSB Coca-Cola Chair in Marketing The Abdul Aziz Al-Sagar Chair in Finance Kamal Shair Chair in Leadership at OSB The Husni A. Sawwaf Chair In Business Management FAS Michael Atiyah Chair in Mathematics Alfred H. Howell Chair: Hamadeh, Shirine Margaret Weyerhaeuser Jewett Chair of Arabic: Baalbaki, Ramzi The Sheikh Zayid bin Sultan Al-Nahyan Chair of Islamic and Arab Studies: Khalidy, Tarif Edward W. Said Endowed Chair in American Studies: Reidpharr, Robert Mary Fox Whittlesey Visiting Professorship: Khalidi , Lamya Scholarships, Fellowships, and Hardship Grants The scholarships listed below have been made available to needy and deserving students through the generosity of alumni and friends of the University. Many of them represent the income from endowed funds which in some cases are supplemented by an additional grant. A student requesting aid does not apply to a particular fund but is considered for all awards administered by the University for which the student is qualified. Endowed Faculty Chairs, Student Scholarships, Fellowships, Hardships, Awards, and Research Funds 475 President Mahmoud Abbas Scholarship for Palestinian Students in Lebanon Sami V.
    [Show full text]
  • An-Nahar, One of Lebanon's Most Influential Daily Newspapers
    Four Generations of Tuenis at the Helm • Gebran Tueni founded An-Nahar in 1933. An-Nahar • Ghassan Tueni took over in 1947, when his father died. An-Nahar became the most authoritative and credible paper in the Arab region. Where History Lives • Gebran Tueni served as editor-in-chief from 2003 to 2005, when his life was cut short. His father Ghassan took over again until his death in 2012. n-Nahar, one of Lebanon’s most influential daily newspapers, • Nayla Tueni is the current deputy general manager of An-Nahar. Nayla A is 85 years old. It is considered Lebanon’s “paper of record.” American- is a journalist and a member of the Lebanese Parliament, like her late British author and journalist Charles Glass, who specializes in the Middle father Gebran had been. East, called An-Nahar “Lebanon’s New York Times.” Its archives’ tagline is: “The memory of Lebanon and the Arab world since 1933. What many don’t know is that the newspaper's offices themselves are a living memorial to its martyrs and a museum of its history. At the same time, it is still an active newsroom, where journalists report both for the paper and for annahar.com, the online version launched in 2012. Inside the tall glass tower at the northwest corner of Beirut’s Downtown, known as the An-Nahar building, Gebran Tueni’s On the desk is frozen morning in time. A slip of Dec. 12, of paper with Ghassan Tueni handwritten received the notes, a news that his business card only surviving and a small son was stack of books murdered.
    [Show full text]
  • The Promise and Failure of the Zionist-Maronite Relationship, 1920-1948
    The Promise and Failure of the Zionist-Maronite Relationship, 1920-1948 Master’s Thesis Presented to The Faculty of Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Brandeis University Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies Ilan Troen, Graduate Advisor In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Master’s Degree by Scott Abramson February 2012 Acknowledgements I cannot omit the expression of my deepest gratitude to my defense committee, the formidable triumvirate of Professors Troen, Makiya, and Salameh. To register my admiration for these scholars would be to court extravagance (and deplete a printer cartridge), so I shall have to limit myself to this brief tribute of heartfelt thanks. ii ABSTRACT The Promise and Failure of the Zionist-Maronite Relationship, 1920-1948 A thesis presented to the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Brandeis University Waltham, Massachusetts By Scott Abramson Much of the historiography on the intercourse between Palestinian Jews and Lebanese Maronites concerns only the two peoples’ relations in the seventies and eighties. This thesis, in contrast, attempts a departure from this scholarship, joining the handful of other works that chart the history of the Zionist-Maronite relationship in its earliest incarnation. From its inception to its abeyance beginning in 1948, this almost thirty-year relationship was marked by a search of a formal alliance. This thesis, by presenting a panoptical survey of early Zionist-Maronite relations, explores the many dimensions of this pursuit. It details the Zionists and Maronites’ numerous commonalities that made an alliance desirable and apparently possible; it profiles the specific elements among the Zionists and Maronites who sought an entente; it examines each of the measures the two peoples took to this end; and it analyzes why this protracted pursuit ultimately failed.
    [Show full text]
  • AUB to Hold Memorial for Veteran Journalist Ghassan Tueni, an AUB Alumnus and Trustee Emeritus
    For Immediate Release AUB to hold memorial for veteran journalist Ghassan Tueni, an AUB alumnus and trustee emeritus Beirut, Lebanon- 19/09/2012 – The American University of Beirut (AUB) will be holding a special memorial ceremony in honor of Ghassan Tueni’s life on September 24, 2012. The ceremony, which will take place at Assembly Hall from 6pm to 7pm on September 24, 2012, will bring together members of Tueni’s blood family and adopted news family as well as officials and members of the AUB community. Speakers will include his grand-daughter Nayla Tueni, who now leads the An-Nahar newspaper, AUB Board of Trustees President Philip Khoury and Mohammed Baalbaki, the head of the Press Federation. Tarek Mitri, former minister of culture and information and a senior public policy fellow at AUB, and Sociology Professor Samir Khalaf will also speak at the ceremony which will be led by AUB President Peter Dorman. Tueni was an alumnus, trustee emeritus, a former instructor, and a generous supporter of AUB as well as a diplomat, politician and veteran journalist and editor-in-chief of the leading An-Nahar newspaper. He died on June 8, 2012 at the age of 86 after a long bout of illness. ENDS For more information please contact: Maha Al-Azar, Associate Director for Media Relations, [email protected], 01-353 228 Note to Editors About AUB Founded in 1866, the American University of Beirut bases its educational philosophy, standards, and practices on the American liberal arts model of higher education. A teaching- centered research university, AUB has more than 600 full-time faculty members and a student body of about 8,000 students.
    [Show full text]
  • Kamal Salibi
    PAPERS ON LEBANON 8- by -Kamal Salibi- ---- ---. -- - --------- Centre for Lebanese Studies ------ -- --- -- --- - -- -- - 59 Observatory Street, Oxford OX2 6EP. Tel: 0865-58465 papers on Lebanon 8 Lebanon and the Middle Eastern Question --- --- ---- - -- --- ---- ------ --- - Centre for Lebanese Studies -- --- - - -- 59 Observatory Street, Oxford OX2 6EP. Tel: 0865-58465 May 1988 o Kamal Salibi 1988 Published by the Centre for Lebanese Studies, Oxford ISBN 1-870552-08-3 ISSN 0269-89 19 Typeset on a Monotype Lasercomp at Oxford University Computing Service Printed in Great Britain by Oxonian Rewley Press Ltd. LEBANON AND THE MIDDLE EASTERN QUESTION Kamal Salibi * IT is often said that no lasting political settlement in Lebanon can be achieved except in connection with a general Middle Eastern settlement. Regardless of whether or not, or to what degree, this proposition proves to be correct, it would be useful to determine what it actually means. Clearly, the proposition reflects a special vision of the regional politics; and even if it ultimately proves incorrect as a judgement, the vision on which it is based may be valid. In any case, it deserves to be carefully examined. Originally, what was meant by a general Middle Eastern settlement was the resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, which the Arabs identify more specifically as being the Palestinian question. But today the Gulf conflict involving the Iraq-Iran war and its regional and international ramifications is also indicated. Moreover, there are the numerous conflicts within the * Kamal Salibi has been associated with the Department of History at the American University of Beirut since 1954. He is the author of several studies and books on Islamic and Arab history.
    [Show full text]
  • Geopolitical Genesis and Prospect of Zionism
    International Journal of the Humanities Volume 2, Number 2 Article: HC04-0190-2004 Geopolitical Genesis and Prospect of Zionism Mohameden Ould-Mey, Associate Professor of Geography, Department of Geography, Geology and Anthropology, Indiana State University, USA Edited by Tom Nairn and Mary Kalantzis International Journal of the Humanities Volume 2, Number 2 This paper is published at www.Humanities-Journal.com a series imprint of theUniversityPress.com First published in Australia in 2004-2006 by Common Ground Publishing Pty Ltd at www.Humanities-Journal.com Selection and editorial matter copyright © Common Ground 2004-2006 Individual papers copyright © individual contributors 2004-2006 All rights reserved. Apart from fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part of this book may be reproduced by any process without written permission from the publisher. ISSN 1447-9508 (Print) ISSN 1447-9559 (Online) The International Journal of the Humanities is a peer-refereed journal published annually. Full papers submitted for publication are refereed by the Associate Editors through an anonymous referee process. Papers presented at the Second International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities, Monash University Centre in Prato, Italy, 20-23 July 2004. Editors Tom Nairn, The Globalism Institute, RMIT University, Australia. Mary Kalantzis, Dean, Education, Language and Community Services, RMIT University, Melbourne. Editorial Advisory Board of the International Journal of the Humanities Juliet Mitchell, Cambridge University, UK. Paul James, Globalism Institute, RMIT University, Australia. Krishan Kumar, University of Virginia, USA. David Christian, San Diego State University, California, USA. Giorgos Tsiakalos, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
    [Show full text]
  • Lebanon's Democracy: Prospects and Pitfalls
    Durham E-Theses Lebanon's Democracy: Prospects and Pitfalls EL-AMIN, MOHAMAD,HADI How to cite: EL-AMIN, MOHAMAD,HADI (2012) Lebanon's Democracy: Prospects and Pitfalls, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/3463/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk Lebanon’s Democracy: Prospects and Pitfalls By: Hadi El Amine A thesis presented in candidature for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of Durham The Faculty of Social Sciences The School of Government and International Affairs October 2011 I Declaration I, the writer of this research study, confirm that no part of the material presented in this study has previously been submitted by me for a degree in this or any University. I also declare that all the work presented in this thesis was carried out by the candidate.
    [Show full text]
  • The Hariri Assassination and the Making of a Usable Past for Lebanon
    LOCKED IN TIME ?: THE HARIRI ASSASSINATION AND THE MAKING OF A USABLE PAST FOR LEBANON Jonathan Herny van Melle A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS May 2009 Committee: Dr. Sridevi Menon, Advisor Dr. Neil A. Englehart ii ABSTRACT Dr. Sridevi Menon, Advisor Why is it that on one hand Lebanon is represented as the “Switzerland of the Middle East,” a progressive and prosperous country, and its capital Beirut as the “Paris of the Middle East,” while on the other hand, Lebanon and Beirut are represented as sites of violence, danger, and state failure? Furthermore, why is it that the latter representation is currently the pervasive image of Lebanon? This thesis examines these competing images of Lebanon by focusing on Lebanon’s past and the ways in which various “pasts” have been used to explain the realities confronting Lebanon. To understand the contexts that frame the two different representations of Lebanon I analyze several key periods and events in Lebanon’s history that have contributed to these representations. I examine the ways in which the representation of Lebanon and Beirut as sites of violence have been shaped by the long period of civil war (1975-1990) whereas an alternate image of a cosmopolitan Lebanon emerges during the period of reconstruction and economic revival as well as relative peace between 1990 and 2005. In juxtaposing the civil war and the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in Beirut on February 14, 2005, I point to the resilience of Lebanon’s civil war past in shaping both Lebanese and Western memories and understandings of the Lebanese state.
    [Show full text]