Never have the events that led to the civil war of 1975 been so clear. The subject that would ignite a Byzantine quarrel has been demystified by the events following the February 14 blast and put an end to the endless finger pointing.
A vulgar assassination with a ton of explosives, a series of bomb attacks intended to create civil unrest and most recently the arming of local militias, most notably those belonging to the Palestinians, with WWII missile launchers, is evidence that whoever is using these tactics is still lost in the 60s.
Back in the early 70s, while everybody’s eyes were transfixed to the waists of generous belly dancers at places like Grotte Des Pigeons, the armed Palestinian militias were surrounding Beirut, drooling over our cultural, financial and economic riches.
Once we sacrificed our sovereignty to the Arab cause, we became the playground of foreign sponsors of war. No one has paid as dearly for this cause as the Lebanese. The irony is that each time Lebanon tried to re-establish its sovereignty, it was accused of treason.
In this issue, Executive tries to make sure our future parliamentarians understand that this time their performance will be appraised with economic results. That is how today’s nations are run. It’s ok to think selfishly and put the nation’s well being first and any armed party that challenges sovereignty by maintaining a separate agenda that is not approved in parliament will be labeled a militia and dealt with by the state. Now is the time for those groups to join the army, acknowledge sovereignty and point their guns outwards, while the real wars of today are fought on the economic battlefields, where the spoils victory are translated into national riches.
They should also understand that real sovereignty coupled democracy is the prerequisite for any economic plan and genuine national movement to transform our country to a fortress where Lebanese lives, culture and investments can be protected.
Meanwhile, the Lebanese public is braving the bomb threats and taking to the streets, shopping and dining to show that they cannot be bowed by violence. But this time, while they are still enjoying the belly dancer, they are keeping one eye on their country, lest any conspiracy robs them of it again.
