Wide Angle . Future for Lebanon

View this episode of WIDE ANGLE on your computer.

This Web site was created in July 2005 in conjunction with the premiere broadcast of WIDE ANGLE's original documentary "A Future for Lebanon" on July 19, 2005.

Can Lebanon, a country of 18 different ethnic groups that fought a 15-year civil war, now achieve true independence and overcome renewed divisions within?

Read this week's briefing (below) and learn about the Lebanese elections of June 2005, as well as the nation's struggle to escape Syrian occupation and years of sectarian strife.

The Struggle for Lebanon
by Michael Young
July 2005

There is gloom in Lebanon these days, as the public feels little has really changed since the Syrian Army withdrew in April. The reality, however, is that everything has changed, though many of the same political actors will remain at center stage. What the Lebanese ignore -- especially amid the high expectations following the public demonstrations against Syria after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri on February 14 -- is that, in their country, change and continuity tend to advance together.


April 1920	With the end of World War I and the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the Allies give France a mandate over Greater Syria
Sept. 1, 1920	France divides Greater Syria into Syria and Lebanon
1926	Lebanon draws up its constitution, dividing power between major religious groups
1943	Lebanon gains independence from France, whose troops withdraw completely in 1946
1958	Civil war; U.S. sends troops See more facts

The Lebanese political system is sectarian, and will continue as such for the foreseeable future. Parliament is divided evenly between Christians and Muslims, though the latter are a majority, while the three highest posts in the state -- that of president, prime minister and speaker of parliament -- are reserved for Maronite Christians, Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims, respectively. The tendency is to regard this setup as backward; however, it has imposed compromise on all since no one community can hope to control all the others; it has also allowed for democracy in a region replete with despotism, since the state is weaker than society's component parts.

Yet, in this environment, what is taking place today is a hardnosed struggle over Lebanon's future. Domestic political actors, but also unwanted Syria, the United States, and France, are seeking to fill the vacuum left by the Syrian departure. Many Lebanese find this struggle unbecoming in the shadow of the massive March 14 rally that brought together about a million or more Lebanese in a show of national solidarity. They may well be right, however that astonishing event was also a Rashomon moment. People read it and its long-term implications in different ways, even as a majority did agree then on two commonalities: that Syria had to leave Lebanon; and that the gathering was necessary in response to a large March 8 rally organized by Hezbollah, which tried to show that Lebanese opposition to Syria was less widespread than believed.

Read More

Inside This Episode

Find out more about the governments of the Middle East in the Interactive Map.

Look into Lebanon's complicated political history in the Handbook.

Go behind the scenes with filmmaker Paul Mitchell in the Filmmaker Notes.

Photo of soldiers controlling a crowd at an anti-Syrian demonstration

Soldiers control a crowd at an anti-Syrian demonstration

Examine examples of violent and non-violent responses to conflict by exploring some of the different perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Discuss the issue!

Map It! -- Locate this week's WIDE ANGLE show.


		Is it democratic to allocate legislative seats by religion or ethnicity to ensure minority representation?							Join the Discussion Debate the issues presented in this show in our online forum!