When Ethan and I decided to move to Lebanon, it was well before Rafiq Hariri was assassinated. We knew him as the controversial billionaire Prime Minister who had formed a company to rebuild the gutted downtown after 15 years of civil war and therefore saved/raped Beirut, depending on your take on the outcome. Three months before our arrival, he and 20 others were blown up in a seaside blast. We watched the aftermath on TV and read all we could about the outpouring of unity, excitement, and hope that followed. Activism helped force the Syrian soldiers out a month before we arrived. We fully expected to be living in a place with a sort of revolutionary spirit, a place that was recreating itself and electing new leaders brimming with ideas.

We quickly realized that we were wrong. We arrived just before the elections, which turned out to be a farce. The voting laws are a mess, and most people didn’t vote, as a form of protest or out of apathy (so soon). Nothing has changed since the Syrian Army left, except that there is more political bickering between the leaders- the same leaders who were around during the war, or their progeny. There are 3 major leaders who were not around this time last year- Saad Hariri, son of slain Rafiq, who returned to Lebanon for the first time in over 6 months (he’s living abroad because he is afraid he will be killed), Samir Geagea, former Christian warlord released from prison where he’d been sent on war crimes charges, and General Michel Aoun, another civil war throwback who boycotted yesterday’s commemoration because he has now joined forces with Hezbollah. Lahoud, the President/Syrian puppet, who may have been involved in Hariri’s murder, is still in “power”. Hezbollah is still armed. Telecommunications is still abominable – the 2 cell phone companies are government owned and the rates are among the highest in the world, and the internet situation is absurd, with years of infighting preventing the arrival of DSL.

feb 14 martyrs square

Yesterday, something like 500,000 people came to Martyr’s Square in Beirut, to honor Rafiq Hariri and to express support for Lebanon as a free, sovereign country. The event yesterday still seemed to be lacking ; somehow it felt forced. It felt like people only came because it was better than the alternative, which was to stay home, meaning to give up. At least people came, which was not a forgone conclusion. The country is extremely divided right now- some are saying more than at any time since the war. Hezbollah’s pro-Syria rally was probably bigger last week, but they also co-opted an extremely important religious holiday and involved the cartoon drama – a lot of those people would have been out anyhow.

Yesterday showed that there are at least half a million people in this country who are willing to come together under one national flag (though the event was not without a few Christian militia flags here and there) for a common goal. Let’s hope that is enough.