A leftist group away from the duality of the Communist Party and the Democratic Left Movement

A music festival that public places rejects, didn't happen

BEIRUT - Sahar Mandour

Mayl 2005

Translated from Arabic

Start After February 14, Lebanon lived through a moment which some considered to be independent while others called that of "collaboration." That moment forced the youth to choose between the "Revolution of the Cedars" and "Ain Al-Tineh." Both were not a choice for a group of Lebanese youth.

Some of these young people found sectarianism and racism infesting both factions and couldn’t find a free space where they could practice their activism. The sharp division between the two sides was unattractive. Political factions employ this division while the different social factions reinforce its sharpness to make out of it an identity of the period that is considered crucial in the modern history of Lebanon.

A small youth group was formed and called itself the Gathering of International Socialists. Why this name? "Because we discovered that all other leftists names were taken," said a smiling Bassem Shit, a founding member of the group that was formed three months ago of 12 young guy who consider themselves to be "of the people of the outside." "Outside" here means outside the frameworks of the Lebanese Communist Party, which is the official left, and the Movement of Democratic Left, an offshoot that made for itself an independent identity. "Outside" also includes the group being outside the division between the "opposition" and the "loyalists," between "we surprised you, noooooo?" and "you didn't surprise us at all."

The Gathering of International Socialists sponsored a public meetings and invited all Lebanese leftist factions, from the party to the movement, including civil society organizations. The idea behind the invitation was a gathering under the banner: "No to racism and war, yes to a democratic and secular society." The people who made the invitations didn't find a meaning for the word democracy in the mouths of the people in power and their opponents. "The opposition is the reproduction of the ruling political class itself which is called loyalists on the basis of sectarianism and racism. Democracy doesn't include – in the minds of both the opposition and the loyalists – economic, social and political items. It (democracy) doesn't have to deal with the rates of wages and social security and doesn't include the freedom of the individual in a society. Democracy – to the rule and its opposition – is a means for the organization of the ruling class and not for the organization of society.

Based on these statements, Bassem Shit believes that it has become imperative to confront the coalition of sects, which will definitely lead to throwing out the minority secular political powers outside of parliament. To Baseem, that is the job of the left, per se. Yet, the birth of the Democratic Left formed an obstruction. Why? In the past few years, a number of leftist groups were active outside the framework of the official "party" (including Communist Students and the Leftist Independent Groups) in the campaign supporting civil marriage, the campaign against civil war and the campaign of "no war, no dictatorships," in addition to the open strike in the Martyr's Square against the siege of Ramallah. These groups and campaigns, to Bassem, formed a movement that could have been supported economic democracy, political secularism at that moment which witnessed the reformation of sectarianism in the country.

"At the time, a majority of the new left was engaged in the battle against the Communist Party. On the day the formation of a new leftist coalition of the groups that participated in the strike against the siege of Ramallah was suggested, Elias Atallah asked us to suspend the project until the end of the battle with the party. The same thing happened after the campaign of "no war, no dictatorships" under the claim that the ninth conference was close and that we should wait until it is held before we start forming a new frame. Suddenly, they formed a party as they pleased and eliminated multilateralism that had predated before that party. Their invitation to join the party was based on a document that they had drafted and not on dialogue between the different factions. Thus, they eliminated that multilateralism and we found ourselves, like with the opposition and the loyalists, between the party and the movement. On the other hand, the Democratic Left joined the opposition and shared its racist rhetoric… and became part of an authority that it used to attack: Hariri's economic policy and foreign intervention."

The call for a secular and democratic coalition came to do away with the frustration that had infested these young leftists as they find themselves unable to join anyone of the dualities of politics and society. They held several meetings and the number of participants became 65 individual a number of whom attend on a personal bais while others represent groups or NGOs. They are currently drafting the political document which those present approving it and will announce after that their coalition.

Meanwhile, they have decided to start a dialogue with people through the organization of public activities, debates and parties, that aim at  "breaking the recession and prohibition that dominate the political scene except when it comes to media matches between the opposition and the loyalists," says Bassem. They have scheduled the first of May, the Day of Laborers, to witness a general music festival that will serve as a window for addressing people on two issues: Workers' rights and fighting racism and sectarianism.

But prohibition has hit them. How?

They met with youth music bands that don’t have any political affiliations. These were: Qitaiyyoun, Akher Jeel, New Government, Vanckedlick Trio, D J Capsule, Ashakman, Khatt Ahmar. The bands subscribed to the proposed ideas which they found matching their understanding of human rights, away from any political affiliation or ideological rhetoric.

They then went to search for public venues to hold the event. Public responses came as follows, according to Bassem:

Mathaf Square: The municipality refused considering May Day to be a day of security concern.

The Sanaeh Garden: The park's authority refused saying that a night event required a long bureaucratic process.

Car parkings in Hamra: requires expensive fees.

Hursh Beirut: See "the Sanaeh Garden."

Martyrs' Square in front of the Dom building where, in the past few years, there have been memorial events commemorating the beginning of the (civil) war: The guys submitted a request to the Solidere administration which denied them an approval due to the following reasons:

1-      The area is residential and residents of the Saifi Village could be disturbed

2-      The kind of music doesn’t subscribe to Solidere's idea of music

3-      Subjects of racism and sectarianism can not be raised prior to elections

4-      There is another national project in the area that cant take more than one national project

In return, Solidere proposed to the guys that the Workers' Day music festival be held in the Souq Al-Barghout area next to the tennis courts provided that the kind of music to be played is changed.

"We laughed at first then were shocked because we didn't think that handcuffing could reach this much."

After we had digested the shock, we decided to reschedule the event to May 27, which coincided with the Massacre of Hay Al-Sullom, provided that the same issues would be raised with a greater focus on the racism of the state against its citizens, in addition to economic hardships that limit the understanding of democracy. "It is worth mentioning that May 27 was a national day during which Lebanese protested the increase in benzene prices," says Bassem.

Specifying the venue is still ambiguous due to the limitation on free public spaces prior to elections, but the period, for the guys, allows time for the collection of money and the renting of a public space, a public space that is far from the dualities that draw parallel lines and prohibits meetings.