Statement on the Inauguration of the Canadian Lebanese Academic Forum
Towards a Just State in Lebanon
Lebanon’s long-lasting economic, social, and political problems have eradicated all safety nets of its citizens. The explosion that devastated Beirut on August 4th, 2020 is a clear evidence of the criminal negligence committed by the ruling authorities that have never fulfilled their responsibilities and will always fail to do so. While the people of Lebanon are in the middle of a devastating humanitarian crisis, the authorities continue to neglect their duties, deny their extensive negligence and failure, and beg for international aid while imposing their own conditions. The persistence of this aggravated situation cannot be attributed to regional developments or to internal political disparity only. It is fundamentally and structurally tied to the Lebanese political system. For that, there is no solution to Lebanon’s long-date practices without fundamentally changing the system itself. Therefore, we the undersigned, due to our concern for Lebanon’s citizens and residents, inaugurate the “Lebanese Canadian Academic Forum” through which we aim to contribute to the process of structural change to transform Lebanon from a sectarian state to a civil one.
The current Lebanese system is an intrinsically corrupt sectarian, feudal, and capitalist one. Its rulers and beneficiaries accumulate personal benefits by all possible means, in total disregard for the consequences on society, especially on the vast impoverished sectors. In this pursuit, they:
This situation has disrupted and obstructed the health care system and all safety nets for citizens, widened class differences, and deteriorated social justice to unprecedented levels that cannot be ignored anymore. As a result, the salvation of Lebanon requires fundamental change in its political and economic systems. This begins with a transitional government from outside the ruling class and that is granted exceptional legislative powers. This transitional government must be able to design new political and economic systems, new laws including non-sectarian election law, and new policies that institutionalize citizenship and reinforce social and economic justice and security. The salvation of Lebanon also requires having an independent state capable of defending itself and liberating its occupied land. The independence of Lebanon and the protection of its people necessitate the rejection of normalization of relations with Israel, which continues to occupy part of the Lebanese land and to constantly threaten Lebanon’s sovereignty.
This system is the essence of the problem and changing it is the basis for the solution. Any attempt for repairing it or restoring it is useless. Hence, we, in the forum, see that there is an urgent need to adopt a few basic principles by the proposed transitional government:
The forum is in the process of establishing alliances and partnerships with multidisciplinary academics and building bridges with those interested in establishing social justice, in order to support the creation of a democratic and civil state in Lebanon. We reiterate that the crux of the problem in Lebanon is the existing system that feeds on sectarianism, and its radical change is the only solution available. We call upon our Canadian colleagues, who are of a Lebanese (maternal or paternal) descent, to join our project and contribute to transform Lebanon from a sectarian state to a civil one. You can communicate with the founding board by email at: [email protected]. You can also find more information on our Web site at: www.claf-facl.ca.
Founding board members of the Canadian Lebanese Academic Forum (in alphabetical order): Ali BERRO, Ph.D., Nahida EL ASSI, Ph.D., Christo EL MORR, Ph.D., Yahya EL LAHIB, Ph.D., Abdulmotaleb EL SADDIK, Ph.D., Mazen HOTAIT, Ph.D., Jalal KAWASH, Ph.D., Mohamad SAWAN, Ph.D., Amal GHAZAL, Ph.D., and Imad RAAD, Ph.D.
The current Lebanese system is an intrinsically corrupt sectarian, feudal, and capitalist one. Its rulers and beneficiaries accumulate personal benefits by all possible means, in total disregard for the consequences on society, especially on the vast impoverished sectors. In this pursuit, they:
- use all sectarian means to brainwash and gain followers, imposing themselves as best representatives and rallying their supporters against their rivals for money and power.
- Personalize state institutions, destroying them as public institutions, and use them to reward their loyal followers instead of serving the public.
- Disregard labour policies, thus resulting in high unemployment rate, and establish fake jobs or institutions to cater to their supporters at the expense of the people and the state.
- Subjugate and utilize media platforms and personalities to advance their agenda through organized propaganda, diverting people’s attention from the real problems.
- Use the judicial, security, and military apparatus for suppression purposes and to strengthen their authority at the expense of society’s safety.
- Use security, regional conflicts, and global health crises as excuses to delay any discussion pertaining to the nature of the system and to their responsibilities for the deterioration in the living conditions.
- Adopt policies that intentionally marginalize specific regions in the country and that have led to mass impoverishment, keeping people busy securing their livelihood and deterring them from claiming their basic rights.
This situation has disrupted and obstructed the health care system and all safety nets for citizens, widened class differences, and deteriorated social justice to unprecedented levels that cannot be ignored anymore. As a result, the salvation of Lebanon requires fundamental change in its political and economic systems. This begins with a transitional government from outside the ruling class and that is granted exceptional legislative powers. This transitional government must be able to design new political and economic systems, new laws including non-sectarian election law, and new policies that institutionalize citizenship and reinforce social and economic justice and security. The salvation of Lebanon also requires having an independent state capable of defending itself and liberating its occupied land. The independence of Lebanon and the protection of its people necessitate the rejection of normalization of relations with Israel, which continues to occupy part of the Lebanese land and to constantly threaten Lebanon’s sovereignty.
This system is the essence of the problem and changing it is the basis for the solution. Any attempt for repairing it or restoring it is useless. Hence, we, in the forum, see that there is an urgent need to adopt a few basic principles by the proposed transitional government:
- Create an Inventory of all state assets as a precondition for any meaningful future planning.
- Tackle the public deficit and distribute the cost among the banks, big corporations, and the large account holders who benefited from monetary policies, including the unrealistic interest rates that drained the treasury and crippled the Lebanese economy.
- Establish a universal health care system, and social and economic safety nets for citizens and residents.
- Reject privatization under any pretext, including International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB) recipes, and refuse to sell or mortgage state’s assets and revenues to banks, large account holders, or any other entity. The state assets and revenues belong to the Lebanese people.
- Pass laws that help fight corruption and reinforce transparency.
- Reform the judicial system and revamp it to become completely independent and shielded from political intervention.
- Improve the public-school system and restore the independence of the Lebanese University.
- Update and activate the law to prosecute presidents, ministers, and legislators.
- Revisit and revise the banking system laws.
- Implement the laws against illegitimate profiteering.
- Shut down all shadow institutions, boards, and funds, that have become centres of corruption.
- Rebuild Lebanon’s infrastructure with the highest level of transparency.
- Restructure the public sector based on needs assessment and activate the quality control bodies.
- Reform laws of citizenship and personal status.
The forum is in the process of establishing alliances and partnerships with multidisciplinary academics and building bridges with those interested in establishing social justice, in order to support the creation of a democratic and civil state in Lebanon. We reiterate that the crux of the problem in Lebanon is the existing system that feeds on sectarianism, and its radical change is the only solution available. We call upon our Canadian colleagues, who are of a Lebanese (maternal or paternal) descent, to join our project and contribute to transform Lebanon from a sectarian state to a civil one. You can communicate with the founding board by email at: [email protected]. You can also find more information on our Web site at: www.claf-facl.ca.
Founding board members of the Canadian Lebanese Academic Forum (in alphabetical order): Ali BERRO, Ph.D., Nahida EL ASSI, Ph.D., Christo EL MORR, Ph.D., Yahya EL LAHIB, Ph.D., Abdulmotaleb EL SADDIK, Ph.D., Mazen HOTAIT, Ph.D., Jalal KAWASH, Ph.D., Mohamad SAWAN, Ph.D., Amal GHAZAL, Ph.D., and Imad RAAD, Ph.D.
