Transcript Buccianti-Barakat

TERRITORIAL MARKERS
AND SOCIAL FRAGMENTATION
IN
BEIRUT’S VISUAL
URBAN LANDSCAPE
Religion in Lebanon
Defining Lebanese population
Dividing state power
National Pact (1943) : an unwritten
agreement
Political foundation of modern Lebanon
on a confessional system :
President of the Republic = Maronite
Prime Minister = Sunnite
President of the National Assembly =
Shi’a
Deputy Speaker = Greek Orthodox
Ministry of Defence till 1975 = Druze
1975-1990 : the civil war
Faith fractures
Signs shaping new territories
Lebanon is deeply cleared along ethnic
and socio-religious lines of force
It creates a situation
The city, the country are running
contrary to the will of its people
Divided among communatarian and
regional lives
Markers, messages … elaborating
mental borders
CIVIL WAR
AND IT’S
TERRITORIAL MARKING
April 1975
In a popular suburb of Beirut
Political frustration
Occupation of downtown Beirut : symbol
of Lebanon’s multi-confessional
character
Parliament Square
The Downtown : stage of fighting
Demarcation lines : Martyrs Square and
Damascus street
Beirut is divided in two sectors
East Beirut : Christian
West Beirut : Muslim
Put a stop to coexistence
Visual markers and messages
Territorial markers
Political and religious
Sign of affirmation community : « this
land is mine »
Bill-boards, posters, graffitti, flags… =
boundaries of ideological territories
To communicate quickly a message to
supporters and residents
RETURN TO PEACE
Political issues
and
confessional new territories
After 1990
Former warlords entered into the State
Defending private interests
Milicia performs in a legal way
Hezbollah is an exception : still armed
to defend its « secure land »
Media
and audio visual markers
Religious authorities
Are using media and television
« Al-Manar » belongs to Hezbollah
« Télé Lumière » to Catholics
They preach good word and
demonization of the other religious
communities
New kind of war
New places of worship are more
impressive in size
September 2010 : inauguration of a
towering cross of 73 meters tall by
Maronite church
Rehabilitation
Minarets much higher
Multiplying bells
Powerful speakers
The biggest bell in the Middle East
Fertile ground : the youth
Consolidation of Community Lebanese
Universities :
University of Balamand = Greek Orthodox
Univsersity of Holy Spirit = Maronite
Islamic University = Shi’a
Arab University = Sunnite
…
Cyber propaganda
« Internet is a wonderful tools that gives
to political movement an echo of
disproportion relatively to their real size »
(DESTOUCHES G., 1999)
« CNN of the poor »
The « Arab Spring » is the illustration of
the political power of social networks
like Facebook, Twitter….
Islamists and others religions websites
Or terrorist and militia networks
They practice cyber propaganda that
amplifies ideological messages
target
Young unemployed people
Mobile’s screen or electronic bill boards
New media calling for rally,
commemoration, informations …
Clothing and behaviour
In the Muslim world
The veil
Rigor is not the same everywhere
Lebanese streets : western fashion,
iranian tchador, islamic headscarf, body
piercing….
New attitudes
sale of alcoholic beverages prohibited in
lebanese sunni cities (Sidon, Tripoli…)
Lately it extends in Christian areas
During the month of Ramadan new type
of decorations : crescent moon, palm
tree…
Educational Institutions or stores
doesn’t close anymore during a
religious holiday of another community
Advertising Companies consider 2
posters for the same product
Calendar of commemorative dates or
events is still respected
Sport and politics
Sport
To assert its sovereignty, independance
a Nation creates its own sports teams
Football = a collective national cohesion
and promotes the group
Since 2005, in Lebanon, football games
are played without spectators
Football game
The militia’s role
Confessional behaviour
Great influence on the people
Territorial fragmentations are wider
between rich and poor people
28% of Lebanese families lives below
the poverty line
militia’s activities
Various social projects
Support to youth groups
Allowing an ideological indoctrination
Recruiting from a much more fanatical
youth than before
THE CULT OF MARTYRDOM
Statue, monument, memorial
« These markers strike the imagination
and allow us to individualize a place to
make it unique »
(NESSI J., 1999)
memorials
Are numerous in the Middle East
Object of pilgrimage for Jewish,
Muslims and for Christians
In Israël : Wailing Wall, Yad Vashem…
The Wailing Wall
In Lebanon
Cult of martyr was born in the civil war
Militias were using the symbolic
dimension of space to legitimize their
power
In West Beirut : pictures of martyr
Moussa Sadr
Hezbollah
Pictures or painted panels representing
Khomeiny…
Sound & Light shows
Decorating gravesites
Flags with Katyusha
Hezbollah Flags
For young Shi’a
Martyr falling in the service : a supreme
honour
The goal is not a military victory but
rather to have the privilege of being a
martyr
Syrian occupation (19902005)
During the « Pax Syriana » several
statues had been installed in many
lebanese regions
They were unbolted or vandalized
during the withdrawal of Syrian troops
(2005)
14 February 2005
Since the assassination of Rafic Hariri,
« new martyrs » have their public places
Surprisingly since Islam forbids all
image representations
Plaques, statues, gardens… became
places of memory
CONCLUSION
In Lebanon
Tension and idology of fear which
« creates a report of mistrust and
potential conflict with each other; « us »
and « them » have built virtual walls that
draw the boundaries of our new
indentities and affiliations. »
(RAMADAN T,. 2005)
Lebanese Constitution carries with it the
seed of community division
Great difficulty to establish a national
dialogue
Shi’a is by now the largest sect in
number
Should we despair ?
A large part of Lebanese people is
fighting for values : family, education,
civil order…
Religious coexistence for centuries
Cathedrale & Mosque
Former rector of USJ
« In Lebanon Christians and Muslims
share more than they think, common
patterns of behaviour and thought; the
former are more Arabized and the Second
more Westernized that they do think »
(ABOU S., 1994)