Farewell to Mr Fix-it

With the death of the former prime minister, Rafik Hariri, among the most enduring aftereffects will be its putting an end to the feeling, no matter how misguided, that Lebanon could always pull economic rabbits out of its hat. That is probably as good a definition of economic confidence as any, and as Hariri’s years in office show, even when his policies stumbled, he could yet peddle Lebanon as a profitable bet. When he came to power in late 1992, Hariri’s reconstruction strategy rested on three pillars, with a fourth serving as both cornerstone and illustration: a return to monetary stability; circumvention of the state bureaucracy, when desirable; and rehabilitation of Lebanon’s shattered infrastructure. The last leg of Hariri’s plan was to rebuild Beirut’s old city center, which would show what Lebanon was capable of, but also highlight a key ingredient in the prime minister’s vision, namely that the country’s