Essay on Lebanon: Ethnic, Religious Complexity and Economy of Lebanon

With an area of a little less than 4,000 sq miles and a population of a little over 3.5 million, Lebanon is one of the world’s smaller nations. Located at the site of some of the oldest human settlements in the world, the Phoenician ports of Tyre, Si- don, and Babylon were major centers of trade and culture in the third millennium B.C. the contemporary nation was created in the 1920s when France, which adminis­tered Lebanon as a League of Nations mandate, relinquished control over it.

In Its present form it became an independent country in 1943. Though an Arab repub­lic, Lebanon is characteristically different from many of its Arab neighbors. It is densely populated, has one of the highest rates of literacy in the area, is cosmopoli­tan, and is highly urbanized.

Although relatively poor in natural resources, the na­tion has long been able to serve as a commercial and cultural center for the Middle East. Prior to the civil war of the mid-1970s and the Israeli invasion in 1982, it was one of the more prosperous, pro­gressive, and secular nations in the Middle East, and its various ethnic and religious groups lived in comparative political and social harmony.

Physically, this small nation is a land of contrasts. The coastal plain along the Mediterranean Sea is narrow and discon­tinuous, nowhere more than four miles wide, at places interrupted by sea cliffs, re­sembling the coast of southern California that has, with the exception of Beirut, few good harbors.

Next to the coast in the east are the snow-capped Lebanon Mountains, varying in width from six to thirty-five miles, rising to elevations of 10,138 feet (3,090 meters). East of the mountains is a rich, alluvial plain, 110 miles long and six to ten miles wide, and the Bekka Valley, the scene of much political unrest in the 1908s and 1990s.

The Bekka Valley is drained by the south-flowing Litani River, which is important for the development of hydroelectricity. Next in the parallel se­quence and east of the Bekka Valley are the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, dominated by 10,000 foot Mount Hermon that ex­hibits strikingly beautiful scenery.

Ethnic and Religious Complexity:

Throughout history, the rugged, moun­tainous terrain of the country has been a haven for diverse religious and ethnic groups. Since the census of 1932, no offi­cial data have been taken. At the time of independence, Maronite Roman Catholics were in all probability the largest religious group and had a slight majority. No offi­cial census has taken place since then, in part due to a suspicion that the original ethnic balance no longer holds. Since then, there has been an influx of Muslim Pales­tinian refugees, primarily during the 1950s and 1960s.

The official estimate of the re­ligious affiliations of the population for 1995 was: Christians 37.6 percent (divided by Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Armeni­ans and Protestant groups), Muslims 55.3 percent, and Druzes 7.1 percent. Ethni­cally 93 percent were listed as Arabs (84 percent as Lebanese, 9 percent as Palestini­ans, 6 percent as Armenians, and 1 percent as Kurds).

Based on the population structure of the 1920s, the French who controlled Lebanon after World War I, had worked out a political formula under which the claims of different minorities were bal­anced by assigning top government positions to various groups. The President was always to be a Maronite, the Prime Minister a Sunni Muslim, and the presi­dent of the Chamber of Deputies a Shiite.

The key ministerial positions were also re­served for particular religious groups. In the late 1950s, the “balancing act” broke down, as the ancient animosities between the different areas and villages surfaced. Meanwhile, a heavy influx of Sunni Pales­tinians from the West Bank, and Shias, mostly from Iran, complicated the existing complex demographic and political struc­ture of several areas, particularly in the Bekka Valley.

The uneasy situation persisted for some time, as the United States, through military intervention, tried to patch up the seething internal hostilities. A civil war fi­nally broke out, fomented to some degree by the outside pressures. By 1975, numer­ous factions were pitted against each other, and the city of Beirut became a major bat­tleground, divided into hostile zones controlled by the contending groups.

In 1976, Syrian forces entered Lebanon as “peacemakers” and started operating from bases in the Bekka Valley. In 1982, Israel invaded southern Lebanon to destroy the Palestine Liberation Organization in southern Lebanon where they had taken sanctuary and were considered a grave se­curity risk to the northern border of Israel. But Israel withdrew, after inflicting a heavy blow to the P.L.O. and the Syrians. Since then, the U.N. peace-keeping forces have maintained peace in the “security zone” established by Israel in southern Lebanon that was withdrawn in 2000.

Economy:

The largest sectors of the economy are manufacturing, trade, and the service industry; three-fourths of do­mestic income is derived from these sources. Agriculture and mining activities are more restricted, and account for a smaller proportion of income. A relatively larger share of the service industry (nearly a third of the labor force and the same pro­portion of contribution to the nation’s economy) is attributed to international commerce, and to the preeminent position of Beirut, the national capital (population: 1.1 million) as a center of international banking and tourism.

These statistics hold under normal conditions, but since the civil war of 1975-76, and the later Israeli in­vasion of 1982, the continuing violence has left the economy shattered. Nearly all sec­tors of the economy have been severely damaged, and the productive capacity of the nation drastically reduced, especially the sectors of housing, trade, public serv­ices, and manufacturing.

The mineral resources of the nation are few, limited to some high-grade iron ore, lignite, building stones, and high qual­ity sand. The only important power plant is that of the Litani River hydroelectric project, which appreciably increased the amount of irrigated land for agriculture.

Although the area for cultivation is limited, there is an abundant supply of water from springs, favoring the cultiva­tion of a variety of crops on the mountain slopes and in the coastal areas. Vegetables, citrus fruits, and bananas are cultivated in the irrigated coastal areas, and olives, grapes, figs, tobacco, and almonds are pro­duced in the foothills.

At higher altitudes fruits such as peaches, apricots, plums, and cherries are grown. Sugar-beets, cereals, and vegetables are the principal crops of the Bekka Valley. Poultry’ is an important source of income to the farmers; goats, sheep and cattle are also raised. However, the country is not self-sufficient in food­stuffs. Wheat, cotton, and sheep are the major agricultural imports.

On account of continued violence, many small farmers own livestock and there has been a notice­able decline in the production of most crops. However, in the Bekka Valley there has been a noticeable increase recently in the growth of hemp, the source of hashish which is exported illegally through ports on the coasts.

Many of the industrial plants have, on the other hand, survived the civil war, al­though Beirut’s industrial belt was practically destroyed. Manufacturing activ­ity has revived to a smaller extent since the 1970s on account of difficulties of obtain­ing labor, working capital, and credit.

Lebanon’s greatest economic asset has been its commerce, dating back to the pe­riod of the ancient Phoenicians. Beirut’s well-developed seaport and airport, and the country’s free economic and foreign exchange systems and banking secrecy law (modeled after Switzerland) have all con­tributed to the traditional supremacy of trade and services. Tourism has been an important industry, spurred by the coun­try’s scenery, mild climate, its historic sites, its hotels and restaurants, its seaside and mountain resorts, its cultural events, and its banking facilities.

Lebanon’s geographical situation makes it a vital crossroads between East and West. The road network in the coun­try includes international highways, which form a part of the major land routes con­necting Europe with the Arab countries and the East. Several ports dot the coast. Oil tankers were built at Tripoli and Sidon where the pipeline terminals are located. Beirut is the chief cargo and passenger port, which has a free port zone.

During the 1950s and 1960s the port was greatly expanded and deepened. Beirut also has an international airport and was one of the busiest in the Middle East before the civil war.

Traditional exports of the country’ have been textiles, jewelry, vegetable prod­ucts, and pharmaceutical goods directed primarily to the Middle East countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, Turkey), Europe, and the United States. Consumer goods, machinery and transport equip­ment, petroleum products and food come mostly from Western Europe.

A high trade deficit has been generally offset by “invis­ible” trade (foreign aid, government loans, and tourism). Since 1975 widespread smug­gling, covert foreign aid to armed groups and illegal drug production has, however, characterized the traditional pattern of trade.