“I myself have likened Lebanon to the lung through which the problems of the area breathe. Thus, Lebanon was not created to be a national home for its citizens but as a laboratory for international political experiments in the region. Lebanon is a listening post for monitoring all the political trends that exist in the Arab world at least, perhaps even in the Islamic world. It is this function, rather than aspirations for democracy, that explains the political freedom enjoyed by all parties and flags represented in Lebanon. The freedom facilitates the observation as well as the interference, with the experiment sometimes requiring the heating up of a conflict between groups or trends to see how such matters can be managed or played out.”
-ٍSayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah, May 1995
3 responses so far ↓
Joe // February 1, 2007 at 6:22 pm
thats the most insightful thing I’ve ever heard Fadlalah say. actually its the most insightful thing about Lebanon i’ve ever heard anyone say.
Joe // February 1, 2007 at 6:23 pm
but who’s running the experiment?
Anarchorev // February 1, 2007 at 6:34 pm
who’s running the experiment?
Anyone and everyone, I would say. Different actors at different times.
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