27th December 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
A Talisman for Tolerance – Lebanon loses Mohamad Chatah
Lebanon lost Mohamad Chatah and many others today.
As at other such moments, the embassy went into a high gear – checking staff were safe, searching hospitals for Brits, updating travel advice, considering a public response, assessing the facts, analysing the implications.
In between, like so many others here, we try to deal with the shock. And we grieve.
I visited former PM Siniora to condole with him, and with many other former colleagues of Mohamad’s. It was poignant to see May Chidiac and Marwan Hamade, both of whom have so narrowly escaped assassination themselves. I offered condolences on behalf of the UK, and later at a local hospital offered blood on behalf of myself.
Only later today was I able to start to reflect properly on the loss of a good friend. Few people are both wise and smart. Mohamad was both. Above all, he was a moderate. At any moment of jeopardy, including assassinations, he came into his own. He would always be working on a creative Lebanese fix to avoid a breakdown in dialogue or security. He was always trying to keep channels open even while others shut them off. This made him a target for those who would rather see Lebanon divided and violent.
I had many of my best arguments with Mohamad. He was confident enough in his views to admit when he was sometimes wrong. And confident enough in the weaknesses of the arguments of others to tell them so, me frequently. He was recently at a dinner I held on Iran where he took on his political opponents with relish. As he left, I said to him that I hoped he hadn’t felt outnumbered. ‘No’, he twinkled, ‘those are the kind of odds I like’. Another time, I pressed him on the need for a political deal, and received a lecture as a modern day Chamberlain on the perils of being intimidated into accepting the wrong deal.
We often spoke about security. We would meet for lunch with our fleets of armoured vehicles outside. Unlike many politicians (and some diplomats) he didn’t see the security paraphernalia as a sign of importance, or bravado. He knew the risks, and feared them. His courage was that he faced down that fear again and again, every time he got in his car, issued a statement, tweeted about Syrian regime repression, or appeared on television. Once when I asked advice on a particular threat, he quoted Mandela – ‘courage is not the absence of fear but the mastery of it’.
It is a bitter irony, that Mohamad would have recognised, that a man who was so critical of the brutality and militarisation of Lebanese politics should be a victim of just that.
Mohamad was rightly sceptical of Middle East conspiracy theories on assasinations. I’m sure he would not be surprised to see many already springing up about his own. However, conspiracy aside, he did argue that there has been a systematic effort to kill, terrify and silence many of Lebanon’s brightest and best. He is not wrong.
Is the best response to just to put a brave face on it and carry on? After all, this is Lebanon, and the country has learnt to grieve and continue. I don’t think we should. I think we should be outraged that this has happened again. That more wives and children will go home tonight without husbands and fathers. That Lebanon has lost another patriot, another talisman of tolerance.
Mohamad would not expect to be remembered as some sort of Saint. He was used to the rough and tumble of raw Lebanese politics. I hope people will read again what he has written about Lebanese citizenship. That his death makes people more intolerant of intolerance. And that the moderation he stood for can be strengthened rather than cowed by his murder. It is no consolation tonight, but justice is the most powerful revenge. This may seem hopeless. But Mohamad also quoted MLK – ‘the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice’.
Tonight the Lebanese state paid its financial contribution to the Special Tribunal. Every year we go through great drama over whether this will happen. Today was a reminder of why it must. We are not close to ending the culture of impunity. But that is no excuse not to continue to try.
I hope this won’t be another Lebanese murder where everyone condoles and blames, but nobody is held to account. It is time to end the brutal and broken form of politics of which Mohamad Chatah was an eloquent and decent critic.
I would tease Mohamad that a wily colleague had advised me not to trust any Lebanese politicians. I never told him that I distrusted him much less than most. RIP.
To the attention of the
British Ambassador to Lebanon
Mr. Tom Fletcher
Your Excellency,
I have been in the publishing business since 1986. Every year our company, World Heritage Publishers, co-exhibits in London Book Fair under the sign of the Ministry of Culture, Lebanon.
As I filled the visa applications for my wife & myself and tried to fix an appointment for the interview, I discovered that all interview dates are booked till after the 8th of April, the opening day of LBP, meaning we can’t go.
I wish I would be denied a visa on a more serious basis knowing that my wife and I were at LBF in 2009, we passed through Heathrow airport in 2013 on our way to the US, we do have Green Cards from the US, and we are in our late sixties. Given the above, who’d deny us entry visas?
Your Excellency,
I do ask for your help in this matter, bearing in mind that I’ve made hotel reservation, bought tickets, and scheduled a dozen meetings with British, American, and Far East publishers.
To miss all that will be catastrophic.
Hoping to have this issue taken into consideration,
Truly,
Makram Haddad
RIPP!
Tom
What a wonderful, tribute. We looked at it to day wwhen we met for a cousins party and thought about you and the family in Beirut.There was quite an interest invisiting you. I may take you up on it soon. You whetted my apetite.
Happy New Year
Anthony
Mr. Ambassador,
Sir, I rarely comment or read any articles on the web but my wife sent me your article four times. (Should I have not read your article and was questioned, not being able to reply, I would have received a tongue beating, at least now, perhaps, I will gain a credit or two).
On a more serious note, having read your article I am obligated to say that you honour the Lebanese with your words, I can even got further by commenting that your defense of the Lebanon is pragmatic and sensible, if only our politicians could learn your method, our country would be a far safer place to live.
Thank you for believing that there is a chance for this country if only others would believe and act in a fashionable manner.
PS I don’t need a visa.
Thank you Mike. I hadn’t expected the article to help with your marriage, but I’m glad it didn’t create any problems and would love your wife to work in our propoganda section.
To the attention of the
British Ambassador to Lebanon
Mr. Tom Fletcher
Your Excellency,
I have been in the publishing business since 1986. Every year our company, World Heritage Publishers, co-exhibits in London Book Fair under the sign of the Ministry of Culture, Lebanon.
As I filled the visa applications for my wife & myself and tried to fix an appointment for the interview, I discovered that all interview dates are booked till after the 8th of April, the opening day of LBP, meaning we can’t go.
I wish I would be denied a visa on a more serious basis knowing that my wife and I were at LBF in 2009, we passed through Heathrow airport in 2013 on our way to the US, we do have Green Cards from the US, and we are in our late sixties. Given the above, who’d deny us entry visas?
Your Excellency,
I do ask for your help in this matter, bearing in mind that I’ve made hotel reservation, bought tickets, and scheduled a dozen meetings with British, American, and Far East publishers.
To miss all that will be catastrophic.
Hoping to have this issue taken into consideration,
Truly,
Makram Haddad
Dear Tom
My wife and I have been involved in this part of the World for some considerable and a regular visitor to Beirut over the last 20 years. We have just returned to Dubai from there, traveling on the day of the incident, and watched on television at the airport as the tragedy unfolded.
We have shared the ups and downs of the emotions with our many Lebanese friends from visit to visit and this time the weight of concern about the future is very evident. So many issues – so few answers.
Your words capture a level of understanding to which we are not privileged but we do share your feelings about the situation and the great loss.
Regards
Ray & Jeanne Eccles
Dear Mr Fletcher..
You have always been a good analysist of the lebanese situatiion..I hope that one day we will reach justice,and Lebanon would be able to gain peace again.
Happy New Year..
May Monla Chmaytelly
Your Excellency,
it is such a pleasure to read you even in the toughest moments, and Minister Chatah’s death is one of those. We have lost with him a figure that made us proud to be lebanese. He was someone we looked upon as someone who knew how to convey his most extremist opinions in a manner that would make his worst enemy accept them.
But I am writing to you to thank you for all that you write on Lebanon, just wished that we had more ambassadors like you, and that all your governments would listen to your opinions about our country and how it should be.
I wish you and all your staff a beautiful and safe 2014
Thanks Tom for your genuine affection and faith to this country and your love to its people…. I am so proud to know you…at least on the jogging track…
Excellency
My compliments for your article about a “Talisman for Tolerance”.
A true image of what this Gentleman represented. You expressed your
heartfelt feelings for him.
Had we had more if his caliber, we would not arrived at this dead end.
My sincere condolences to his brave Family and my grateful thanks to
you for your moving and truthful article.
Eddy Arida
Your Excellence, as usual you’ve brought tears to our eyes in your unique analysis of where this country stands, where it’s heading, and the dwindling stock of the Mohamad Chatahs in our otherwise corrupt and criminal political class. I hope HM government will stand firm with our cause.
Thank you sir for this article,
But I’m always thinking about these assassinations, when this will stop, every time it is the same story repeating itself, and since 2004 the killers are only targeting politicians that are representing the shining side of Lebanon (journalists, economics, …)
G
Thank you Mr Fletcher
Thank you Tom for your compassion, encouragements and words of hope and solidarity
Thx Tom for always showing the remaining bright side of Lebanon.
MC was and will remain a great guy.
As for standing up for better Lebanon…you know very well it is not easy and not feasible…I might trend to say impossible..Lebanon can not call alone for a democratie in the ME…what is happening is a proxy war and this since Lebanon independence (if I want to stick only to modern history)…assassinating Mohamad Chatah…is to assassinate any possibility of democratie….unfortunately we are going to see much more difficult days…more then 100000 people died just miles from Lebanon border….we have millions of refugees in our small country…we are not capable to manage electricity…..how to implement democratie..
Merry Xmas and Happy New Year…
Grateful thank yous Mr Ambassador for this…written with wisdom as always
Unfortunately its true murder and the funny thing is murderer always get away… no one dares to charge them even though they are well known.
S.E..brilliant as usual..u are a very passionate and sensitive man and what u say is always from the heart…men like mohamad chata7 are very rare, and certainly the impact of his loss will be fetl more and more with time..its like when we lost P.M Hariri, i dont know why am feeling the same..our country is opened to all acts of terrorism and our situation is very weak and endangered by the events surrounding us and by our uncontrolled and unsecured borders..these acts of murder have been repeating themselves 40 times if u look at wikipedia, and its a shame that the murderers are still running free..mr chata7 was a great man, and all assassinated men were great as well, that s why they have been killed..RIP
Thank you for these beautiful words and for representing so well the British people abroad such as myself.
Nothing to add Mr Fletcher, except that most Lebanese also distrust their politicians.
Great Tom !As Usual .. Thank you for This Human , Fair, And lovely Testimony
A shame that the brave positions of Mr Fletcher are not at all reflected in the pragmatic and morally bankrupt foreign policy shift of the UK vis-à-vis Iran. A number of courageous and well-intentioned ambassadors have crossed paths with our tumultuous region – like Feltman and Ford -, but none have left any traces. As a holder of the British passport, I am disgusted to see the UK so quickly bent by Obama’s short-sighted, shrouded and borderline conspiratorial Mideast policy. Look sharp, gentlemen.
All the same, I enjoy reading you op-eds Mr Fletcher, and commend you on at least trying to make a difference despite the systemic constraints of the honorable profession.
Thank you for a great Article. It’s sad that it has to end with RIP.
Your excellency,
One of the best articles i have read about the assasination of Mr. Chatah. I offer my condolences, hope one day we will find the peace.
Best regards
Dr. John Murad
National Poverty Targeting Program
Thank you again and again….
An eloquent tribute.
We’ll said ! Thx
Thank you
Well done saying this and you are 100% right Mr Tom
Blessing and keep the good work much love
Thank you for living in Lebanon hoping and supporting us to have a kind of hope that the political situation will improve in the future although you see and experience lots of madness every single day..!
A human approach