Chouf, 'Mountain reconciliation' tinged with a bitter note
August 2 is the anniversary of the historic "reconciliation of the mountain" between Christians and Druses. Christians, however, are still not returning to the villages, the scene of massacres during the Lebanese civil war. To date, some politicians foster for rivalry among the communities.
Beirut (AsiaNews) - In the course of the Lebanese civil war, the mountainous territory of the Chouf, in 1983, was the scene of bloody clashes between Christians and Druses of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP). On August 2, 2001, the long peace process between the parties known as "the reconciliation of the mountain" was reached. The path of peace was followed and wanted by the Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir who met with the head of the Psp, Walid Joumblatt. 17 years after that historic reconciliation many Christians have not yet returned to live in their villages. The parish priest of the village of Brih explains: "We are very happy with reconciliation, but when we get to the financial aspect, we are sad to see that there are people who do not yet have a home due to lack of means (...). the Ministry dealing with displaced persons is very corrupt ".
Sheikh Jamil from Abey, 80, explains: "Reconciliation is successful here, there are no problems between us. Unfortunately, very few Christians came back. Some of them come to see me from time to time, but now they live in Beirut for work ".
Below is Fady Noun's commentary on the current situation of reconciliation in the region.
In the national memory, August 2nd is linked to what we call "the reconciliation of the Mountain", a great celebration marked by the triumphal visit of the Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir to Moukhtara, the stronghold of Walid Jumblatt, in 2000, and the decision to turn permanently page of the "Mountain war" that broke out on September 3, 1983 (after the retreat of the Israeli army, which had invaded Lebanon in 1982) among the Druse soldiers of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) and the Christian military of the Lebanese Forces. Now, this memory today is tinged with bitterness.
The "Mountain war" caused the mass deportation of the Christian populations of Chouf-Aley and Alta Metn, and some parts of southern Lebanon (Iqlim al-Kharroub and villages east of Sidon). This was the episode of a major war that devastated Lebanon since 1975 and in which Hafez el-Assad's Syria was one of the actors, as the French ambassador Emmanuel Bonne rightfully recalled (October 2016) in a memorable speech delivered on the occasion of the delivery of the Legion of Honor to Samir Frangié.
"In 1990, the war ended and Assad's Syria prevailed. Lebanon obtained peace, but strong protection is also imposed ", says the diplomat. "For some it is the price to pay, the price of peace, but for you (Samir Frangie), it is unacceptable, it is unbearable. The Lebanese must decide for themselves. They must be reconciled. However, the Syrian regime still divides them, to better justify its control over the country it is brutally occupying and looting without restraint. You therefore decided to devote herself entirely to national reconciliation which is also a struggle for liberation. In this difficult undertaking, you have had all the support of Patriarch Sfeir with whom you are bound by a strong mutual respect ".
"These years of strife seem to come when the Israelis withdrew from Lebanon on May 25, 2000. Liberation is a great moment of national union. Suddenly, the Syrian presence in Lebanon seems to be much heavier and more questionable. In September 2000, Patriarch Sfeir and the bishops launched the Bkerke appeal asking for a 'redistribution of Syrian troops' with the following words 'in view of their withdrawal from Lebanon'. The message was evidently badly received in Damascus, but galvanized the Lebanese and triggered a sovereign claim (...). You have also worked for the reconciliation of the Mountain, between Druze and Christians, which is particularly dear to you ".
Certainly, after the Taif agreement and the normalization started, a formal process of local reconciliation had gained momentum in the territories of the Mountain. This process was carried out on a case-by-case basis and was part of a broader context of restoration of state authority and reconstruction of the social fabric. However, there was a lack of strong moral support that could encourage the still hesitant Christian populations to return to their villages with confidence. The historic visit of the patriarch Sfeir to the head of the Psp was planned in this spirit.
In retrospect, the patriarch emeritus' collaborators assure that "this approach had crowned years of efforts by the patriarch Sfeir". "After his election, the latter was obsessed with the unacceptable protection of Syria, he had favored by all means all that could end it and build bridges between Christian leaders and political leaders of all communities", explain the sources .
The spirit of national reconciliation, he thought rightly, is trustworthy, and its construction is an everyday job. Unfortunately, "a triumphalist political discourse, which inscribes communities in a relationship of rivalry and not cooperation, is now undermining this process," says a source close to the field of sovereigns. The process of formation in the new government, full of annoying and conflicting statements for some communities, is partly a clear sign of this.
"These data - states a Druze political source - are hampering the process of national reconciliation today". "Community triumphalism is expressed both in political and religious terms," adds the source. "It undermines the trust that communities must have in each other; it is likely to lead to new interference from former masters such as Syria, skilled in the art of divide and rule ".
.png)
