Rampling: Leaders will be prosecuted for what they have done

The British Embassy in Lebanon published the farewell blog of British Ambassador Chris Rampling:

Lebanon has changed a lot since my arrival, especially during the last fourteen months. My wife and two children came to this country on Monday 2018 full of high hopes. Before I came, while I was still in London, I heard Yasmine Hamdan sing “Beirut” and from then on I knew she would come to the most beautiful city in the world (and I still have the same opinion).

Today, however, sadness fills the eyes of the Lebanese, whose words are words of despair. Almost half of the workforce is unemployed and more than half live in poverty. The British Minister for Middle Eastern Affairs, two weeks ago, was brandishing a human tsunami. Many families have separated, talents and experiences have migrated in number. Cities are blacker at night and in more ways than one.
In my farewell meetings there was a climate of reflection on how these crises converge. Lebanon did not cause the refugee crisis nor did it provoke the Crown crisis, but the economic crisis and the explosion on August 4 were locally made. Added to all this was the deep political crisis accompanied by a worsening social crisis. I found no evidence that Lebanon has a system or leadership that charts a way out. Leaders did not assume the mantle of responsibility when they set out a roadmap and urgent investment promises in 2018 or again this year.

Everyone is tired, tired, but I hope that no one stops defending the good of Lebanon. I have met some amazing people in this country: people working for change, others studying in the UK, many creative entrepreneurs, and some of the top government employees. But some things are rotten: the sponsorship system, for example, is a disgrace to Lebanon’s reputation and its freedom of expression is under great pressure. Lebanon has always been a regional pioneer in the field of freedoms and human rights, but today it is a country that takes one step forward, two more steps back.

Some traditional festivals may accuse me of interfering in the affairs of the country, but my wife Liz and I love Lebanon and will long for our Lebanese Sunni, Shiite, Maronite, Druze, Armenian and Catholic friends … Lebanon is the fifth Arab country in the world. that we live and more that forced us to have our children at home. I see with qualities of hope. The slogans of enterprise and openness of the Lebanese people have been exhausted and the energy is no longer what it was. But everything else remains the same.

The most important thing is that today everything is on the table. Politics has to change and this process will be enriched with ideas. The power of the October 17 revolution not only dates back 14 months, but most of those seeking a better future remain. Its modern culture continues to be a reference adorned by a dynamic youth. But sectarianism has stifled political thought, and success requires current leaders and future leaders to step out of the chair distribution. They have to override existing groups.

Secondly, the Lebanese remain their greatest source of power in the countries of emigration. These Lebanese abroad do not want to invest in a failed business model – the business model they admire should be a source of pride. But they no longer think so. Lebanon must rebuild its economic model (the IMF roadmap is correct) and ensure a sustainable and attractive framework. A new trend that addresses industry, technology and tourism. Getting there requires more than one strategy: Electricity is evidence that the political trade-offs required for implementation pose the greatest challenges. With a new national consensus and a focus on results and planning, your people are joining forces with their international friends to drive this growth again. The British-Lebanese trade agreement, then, is at the heart of this event.

Third, the international community remains strongly united. I always hear that France and the United States are fighting, but I don’t see that. They and with them we, as the UK, share the analysis and conclusions and see the same opportunities and the same risks (eg security institutions and the education system in Lebanon, which need support). There are differences in how things are approached, but the convergence is much greater than these differences. And when we start to worry about participation, instead of looking for ways to fill the irresponsible void, then it can be considered that we have entered a phase of indifference towards this country.

Let it be clear that continued support for Lebanon has become more difficult. The UK will continue to support security, education and the most vulnerable, and we are very proud of all that we have accomplished with the Lebanese Armed Forces and of all that we have accomplished in education and support for poor communities over the past decade. But the Corona pandemic is imposing financial hardship on us, and therefore on our friends as well. Lebanon should fight harder for superficial resources, political paralysis never helps, and lack of credibility is the biggest international problem for its country.

I did not mention Hezbollah or the normalization that is changing the face of the region. Patriarch Al-Rahi was right when he again called for impartiality. A country that truly aspires to stability and security cannot have weapons outside the authority of the state, especially when these weapons are used outside the borders of this state. Not taking a position in this regard is exactly what prevents it.

Lebanon is a special country whose people deserve better than this. You deserve leaders, government employees, financial experts and entrepreneurs who are responsible, transparent, and accountable. However, this is not as easy as an apple falling from an apple tree in the Bekaa Valley. Rather, it requires effort and effort.

My last call to those leaders, government officials, financial experts and entrepreneurs, your country is a friend and we love your people. But you, not us, have the reins of power. You, more than all leaders, will be remembered and judged for what you did in the most urgent moments.