From the abundance of leadership of March 14th to its absence in October 17th

14 اذار
Across all squares in Lebanon one scene prevailed authentically Lebanese and uniformly spanning across all areas transcending sectarian divisions. All those displays converged in their demands with no guidance or prior coordination.

It is certain that we are witnessing a new movement far different in nature and design that the March 14 – 2005 movement, the Cedar Revolution. That revolution sought a leader to encompass and advance it, but today’s revolution has renounced any leadership and formed a horizontal manner of organization with no room for leaders.

The Cedar Revolution exploited sectarian tensions as a means of mobilization whereas the current movement has made non-sectarian discourse its main condition.

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The Cedar Revolution renounced foreign tutelage whereas the current is revolting against the local tutelage.

The Cedar Revolution intended to build a political partnership that ended in a game of compromisesthat formed a disastrous political environment inconducive to democracy. However, the current revolution seeks to replace the whole political class and change entirely the rules of the game.

The logical outcome of 14th March was further sectarian alliances and new forms of clientelism whereas today, the logical outcome is the emergence of new cross-sectarian alliances and the rise of new groups whose direction is based on secular discourse.

What brought todays protestors together is the common pain, suffering, anxiety and concern from what’s to come. This common sentiment has become the only cross-sectarian element. It is no longer the sectarian, classist, nor the political, but the Lebanese man who revolts today. He seeks his security, = control over his own fate, as well as maintaining his dignity and identity.

It has turned out that this man is one and the same in all Lebanon; andall that has been attributed to him from sectarian to racial identity was a work of a corrupt industry that produced false security, and a fraudulent sense of power.

In other words, we are facing a new societal dynamics that bring with it promising potential and prospects, but one that awaits the conditions of its potential, that is, the conditions that provide its objective fulfillment to form the basis of the new political order.

These conditions are still fragile, and their absence or systematic absence and circumvention threatens not only to abort this dynamic, but the assassination of Lebanese society itself.

السابق
بداية أفول «اللحظة الأميركية» في الشرق الأوسط
التالي
بيان من وزارة «التربية» للطلاب