Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Samir Qassir and 14th of March Concert

Now, 14th of March named a Square after the late Samir Qassir. Of all those who got assassinated, Samir Qassir probably was the strongest academically.

The Democratic Leftist Movement, of which Samir Qassir constructed, have went bankrupt. They are not leftists, and they will never be as long as they adopted the right-wing's line, and worse goals. Yet, they claim to be leftists. They are probably gambling in this sectarian line-up to recruit the seculars among the Sectarian parties which are gathered for 14th of March. I mean between the Marounstan preacher, called Jaajaa, or Sunni land, or Durzistan, they can pick up the scraps to their side to face Hezbollah Land or Psycho Aoun.

The Democratic Left remained shrinking in size, and will never be the same number as they started (supposed to be 5000, now barely 400 members). They rely on the muscles of their stronger allies while their members defend even as far as Bashir Gemayel, who George Hawwi wanted to assassinate during the Israeli invasion.

Every now and then they try to abuse the memory of Samir Qassir and try to recruit to their ranks and files. I have to mention that last year at a one point, all the members were executive committee, so ironically they needed to invent a central committee for the executive committee (go figure that out). Now, they got the perfect chance. With the opposition still going to strike, and none of the 14th of March are organizing an event, they are the only faction to do so, and are gambling a lot of attendence will take place. However, most of the left-wing will boycott the event as insultive to Samir Qassir and another promotional event to 14th of March rather Samir Qassir.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect, 14th of March. The day a lot of Lebanese hit the street in the quest of a better life, while the politicians hijacked the event to transform the Bristol Coalition towards 14th of March coalition (the Bristol Coalition was carved out by Samir Qassir). There will be a lot of attendence to celebrate 14th of March in the concert, and the DLM will try to recruit in the name of "defenders of Samir Qassir's ideas" will end up indirectly preaching Harriri's grand plan which is the Neo-Con doctrine, something Samir Qassir haven't wrote anything on. Since there are no 14th of March groups doing anything on that event except them, they will try to harvest it. They have been trying hard to counter the weight of the other reactionary stalinist party: the Lebanese Communist Party, specially for the past couple of years the Stalinists did a come back.

To be exact, the DLM are behaving like AMAL did when Moussa el Sadre disappeared. AMAL's recruitment boomed after el-Sadre disappeared while they promoted his ideas and themselves as its defenders. Bottom line, the DLM sank to the level of the Lebanese Forces, AMAL, and all the rest. Elias Attallah wanted his own LCP to rule and he got it. The first generation to join were supposed to have an independent Democratic Leftist Movement, but they ended up in a brainwashed LCP "a la 14th of March" style under the leadership of Elias Attallah. His opponent, according to my birds, told me that Elias Khoury stopped participating totally with the reactionaries. Those who dreamt of a free movement now are parrots to Elias Attallah. Attallah himself abuses his historic friendship with Qassir for his own purposes, and the majority follow.

They already got weaker factions inside the movement, but they too are reactionary while the progressive became political free lancers. The movement itself is destined towards destruction, and was supposed by now to have broken up into several pieces, but remained intact due to the Parliamentary chair, held by Elias Attallah, who got it by the muscles of Saad Harriri. Once they fail to attain the chair, the DLM, like all reactionary "left" wing will scatter to different trends.

Someone should remind them that this whole war is nothing but class struggle.

5 comments:

J. said...

I share your disdain for the DLM, but I don't understand when you say that "they went bankrupt". Do you think they had any capital to spend to start with ;)? Also, your evocation of Kassir is overly nostalgic, as if he was a beacon of light in the midst of opportunists. Sure, academically and intellectually he had more relevance than others (but who are you comparing his scholarly achievements with? Rafic Hariri or Pierre El Jmayel? LOL); he had a positive input on issues a long long time ago, but he has held consistently regressive views on everything for years before his death.
Finally, how is the whole war "class struggle"? I'm afraid you give us too much credit. Class is definitely part of it, but we are still struggling with much more primitive social divisions. We're still in the tribal and sub-tribal (family) level. Class struggle might be the motor of history in 19th entury Russia, but definitely not in 21st century Lebanon ;)

MarxistFromLebanon said...

Bankrupt is mentally, actually they started bankrupt.

Samir Qassir was the academic, and no he was not the light carrier, he also had the opportunism as well. He got trapped with the (then) future government frame work. I agree on your critiques on him; however, he had established contacts with Syrian opposition rather approach the whole affair as overthrowing the Baathi regime from Beirut.

Capitalism has already made it to Lebanon since 1860 when the silk factories opened; currently it is a class struggle as well. We may have tribalism but we are in the Capitalist era (just as Europe entered that phase amidst kings and monarchs). As long as people are struggling to live, and suffer from Alienation due to bourgeoisie greed, it is class struggle. Moreover, when those "Sect Defenders" bark, this shows their form of oppression to their brainwashed followers while we as marxists have failed, and got a long road to go. Don't undermine our goals :)

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Ms Levantine said...

Class struggle is a dirty word in Lebanon, since we are all aristocrats given the amazing numbers of sheikhs, beys, rayyes, affendis... populating the country.

So let us say there is a conflict bet. the haves and the have-nots that we still refuse to acknowledge.

I admit I was never very familiar with the DLM, but the little I am seeing is disappointing. Kassir was giving them a direction a least. They are lacking it now.

Angry Anarchist said...

I do not understand to this day what the rage about Samir Qassir is. The guy had really disgusting views, and was at best a pseudo-intellectual. He was not a scholar, nor were his writings of any scholarly value! I do not like this cult of praising dead people to the skies, how about we praise the dead Hezb Allah fighters? I think that's something that actually is WORTH doing (please, do not bring the march 8-14 thing here).

Angry Anarchist said...

Jij, I read your reply after posting mine. Amen to that! :D