Geagea: Confident regarding the future of Lebanon

by **Admin** Tue Mar 18, 2008 2:23 pm

After a series of meetings with representatives from the House and Senate, top officials from the Bush administration which included U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Steven Hadley, President George W. Bush's national security adviser and Elliott Abrams, deputy national security adviser, Samir Geagea told the Middle East Times in an exclusive interview last Saturday that he felt more confident regarding the future of Lebanon.

Asked if he had received guarantees from the Bush administration, Geagea replied: "Concerning independence and sovereignty of Lebanon 100 percent, clearly enough. Guarantees concerning the Lebanese state as a state; guarantees concerning their [the U.S. government's] attitude toward the Palestinians in Lebanon. They [the Bush administration] are against the Palestinian refugees remaining in Lebanon; and guarantees that they will endeavor to get the Israelis out of the Shebaa farms [in south Lebanon] and place it under U.N. auspices."

Political scientists, politicians and diplomats are worried by the way the crisis in Lebanon is crystallizing, widening the gap between the pro-government March 14 Movement, which enjoys the backing of the United States and France on the one side, and the opposition March 8 group, backed by Syria and Iran on the other.

The March 14 Movement comprises the political heirs to assassinated Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri (representing the country's Sunni Muslims), the Lebanese Forces led by Geagea (representing one side of the country's Christians), and the majority of the Druze community, lead by Walid Jumblatt.

The March 8 group is made up mostly by the Shiite Hezbollah, a minority Druze clan, and General Michel Aoun who speaks on behalf of another Christian faction.

The Middle East Times asked Geagea if he could explain the shift in Lebanese politics, the difference between 1975 when the civil war had greater sectarian overtones, and now when the divide is more political.
"This is really a very deep question that has to do more with the dynamics of the social and political evolution in Lebanon rather than politics; nevertheless, it is an interesting one for me," said Geagea.

"First, because there was a shift in the position and attitude of the different Lebanese communities, and because of the Taif Agreement," [the city in Saudi Arabia where the end of the Lebanese civil war was negotiated].

"In 1975 in addition to the Palestinian problem inside Lebanon we had an acute output, what they called at the time, a participation problem. And this acute participation problem overshadowed the sovereignty problem and the problem of armed Palestinians. But after 1990 the problem of participation was one way or another solved and we were left only with the sovereignty dimension of the Lebanese problem.

"Second, I think some of these Lebanese communities had illusions concerning the nature of the Syrian regime. With time and experience they got to know exactly what was the nature and the real aim and ideology of this regime."

When asked what he thought Syria wanted from Lebanon, Geagea replied: "Syria doesn't want anything from Lebanon. Syria wants Lebanon.

"Ideologically, historically, political thought-wise, strategically, economically; Syria wants Lebanon because of all these considerations. Unfortunately, not only the Syrian regime, but many intellectual people still think of Lebanon as part of Syria," said Geagea.

"Ideologically they think this way. Strategically, Lebanon is extremely important for them because they think of it as their backyard and Lebanon has a strategic geographic position, especially having frontiers with Israel.
"And economically over the last 15 or 20 years Syria made billions and billions [of dollars] out of Lebanon."
So what is the solution?

"The solution is to stand up to the Syrian plan for Lebanon, stand up to Syrian wishes concerning Lebanon and to tell them many times, as Prime Minister Siniora tried to tell them many times, but in his own way; 'You, friends, Syrians, you should start realizing that there is here, near you, an independent free and sovereign country. You should start realizing this and start behaving accordingly,'" said Geagea.

As for the future, what is Geagea's vision?

"I have faith in Lebanon, I am optimistic even though I know this may take a long time; don't get me wrong, I am not talking about next month or even next year, but overall I am optimistic and I have faith in Lebanon."

At the end of the civil war Geagea was jailed in a military prison in solitary confinement where he spent 11 years, three months and five days. During this time he was only allowed visits from his lawyers and his family.

Does he begrudge those who put him in jail?

"No. I have my own philosophy of life. I have nothing to do with those who put me in jail. My whole interest was to make all the necessary efforts to survive the jail period."