Walid Beik and the "Tribalism" of Lebanese Politics

Walid Beik and I
Originally uploaded by Jane Rubio.

This is a picture of me and Walid Jumblatt. This picture is a BIG DEAL!!! For all you non-Lebanese, you might need an explanation as to who this guy is. He is the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party. He is one of the leading politicians in the opposition against Syria. He has been one of the most important Arab politicians since his father, Kemal Jumblatt, was assassinated by the Syrians in 1974. But most importantly, he is the Druze tribal chief.

When I say tribe, I mean "sects" or as some put it, "religion." Politics is very tribal here. Maybe there was some movement beyond sectarianism in the last election, but I don't think so. The Christians are just as tribal as the Druze, even more so. Some of my Christian friends HATE Walid Jumblatt, because he was a war lord and a criminal. He ordered the destruction of many Christian towns on the mountain. But at the same time, these people are like, "Haram, Samir Geagea." Poor, Geagea, the Christian psychopath who bombed a church to try to frame Muslims. He's still in prison; all the other warlords are out. So that's not fair, they say. Actually, the new government has issued an amnesty, and he'll be out of prison by the end of the week. I have a great view of the fireworks from my apartment.

People in my neighborhood adore Walid Beik. When I showed the picture to the security guard at school, he said "We have been fighting with him for more than 20 years, and never do we have such a picture. You are here for only 9 months. . ." . . . Another reason to feel guilty about my American privilege???

One of my Druze friends started yelling and punching me when she saw it; it was her automatic reaction. And of course I blew it up to bring to school to show the kids.

On Sundays, Jumblatt opens his mansions in Mukhtara to the public. Anyone can come. I came with a group of Americans, but most of the people were there were Druze. Some came to discuss issues of the community, some for personal favors, and some just to be up close and personal with their hero. Here, he is the tribal chief. They call him "Walid Beik," which comes from the Turkish word, "bey," a regional governor in the Ottoman empire.

So what's he like?? He was very jittery; he couldn't stop shaking his leg. It was two weeks before the election, and he obviously didn't have any time. (So it was cool that he made time for us) He's super intellectual and had a long-term view of everything. He criticized every politician.

Here's an excerpt from an October 2004 BBC article.
"Walid Jumblatt, a Druze leader and leading member of the opposition . . . warned that 'the decision to extend Mr Lahoud's term is a matter that will throw the country into a cycle of violence'". That's very prophetic. The extention of President Lahoud's term led Hariri to resign from the government and was the beginning of the cycle of assassinations in Lebanon.

After the formal questions, Walid Beik took us into his private library. He had a lot of books about planes and guns and such. He said in an off-hand, sarcastic sort of way, "I graduated from AUB, and then had to become a warlord." He didn't have a choice. They killed his dad. He had to take over.

When I first saw him on TV, I was like, "That's Smithers from the Simpson's." He looks better in real life. Like a human, not a cartoon.

I know I diss Lebanon a lot in my blog. And I realized as I was reading over what I've written that I've picked up too many Tom Friedman-ism's. The whole "tribalism" of Arab politics. For me to say that, I need to talk about the tribalism or racialism of the U.S. Religion is to Lebanon what race is to the U.S. Both countries have made some strides out of their ugly pasts. There are always some notable examples. But people are still primitive. As Marx says, "Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past. The tradition of all dead generations weighs like an Alp on the brains of the living. . . "

I can criticize Lebanon and maybe the Arab World for its "tribalism", but the U.S. is just as primitive. I mean we do have a president who wants to replace one of two female Supreme Court justices with a white male. Where is the progress there? But at the same time, I saw the news in Lebanon when Condoleeza Rice made her surprise visit. And the image on the TV almost paralyzed me--all the light-skinned, Lebanese men in their fancy designer suits with the one black woman. And they all had to kiss her ass. It was one of those rare moments in my life where I really felt proud to be an American.

But progress is slow on all fronts. It will be a long time before the politics in Lebanon moves past religious sectarianism.