The curious and terrible case of Salah Ezzedine — Lebanon’s Bernie Madoff — is only the latest example of the dangers of having Hezbollah’s state operating within, but off limits to, the state of Lebanon.
The political party that has segregated its followers from the rest of Lebanese society, and from legal oversight, allowed a con man to befriend its most senior officials and use his connections to lure people into trusting him with their savings and investments. Ezzedine capitalized on Hezbollah’s secrecy and its closed system, which kept his activities hidden from the regulatory framework of the state. No one could see into the con man’s bubble until it had already burst. Hezbollah’s massive stock pile of weapons, and reputation for honesty, couldn’t help protect the party’s supporters against the financial devastation some in the south compare to the 2006 war with Israel.
Had Ezzedine’s $500 million venture (the lowest estimate) been registered with the central bank, red flags would have almost certainly gone up sooner. The central bank has been guarding investors since 1989 and helped them weather such disasters as the Al Madina and BLC scandals.
The scandal is also an example of how Hezbollah’s one party system limits its supporters’ potential. Despite Hezbollah’s claim to having a majority of the population behind them, the community that Hezbollah claims to protect owns not one of Lebanon’s top 10 banks or manufacturing plants.
But we do know that Hezbollah’s grassroots support base has hundreds of millions, if not billions, to invest with people like Salah Ezzedine. We know the people of South Lebanon and the Bekaa have traveled to all corners of the world to become successful businessmen and entrepreneurs and industrialists.
This community should take its rightful place in the institutions of Lebanon’s banks, industries and business community. Bringing the protection of the rule of law into areas that Hezbollah treats as its sovereign territory would benefit the community and reunite them with the broader Lebanese nation; this in turn would go a long way toward building a strong and solid republic.
Meanwhile, in the fields of the Bekaa valley, 95 percent of this year’s best hashish crop was cut and burnt by the Lebanese state. Perhaps if the government were to embrace and regulate this crop instead of demonizing it, Lebanon’s farmers would be much better off. The regulated sale of the crop to countries where it’s legalized, not to mention decriminalizing its use in Lebanon, could improve the country’s balance of trade.
For now, hashish can only help to forgive and forget.
