Report: Table ronde de lancement de L'Atlas du Liban. Les nouveaux défis

Couverture de Atlas du Liban. Les nouveaux défis (CC/by Institut français du Proche Orient) Couverture de Atlas du Liban. Les nouveaux défis (CC/by Institut français du Proche Orient)

Report: Table ronde de lancement de L'Atlas du Liban. Les nouveaux défis

By : Eric Verdeil

L`Institut fraçais du Proche-Orient vient de publier, sous la direction de Eric Verdeil, Ghaleb Faour et Mouin Hamzé Atlas du Liban. Les nouveaux défis. Le livre est publié en même temps en version arabe(أطلس لبنان. تحديات جديدة). Une table ronde est organisée au Salon du Livre de Beyrouth pour présenter et débattre de ce livre, le 11 novembre 2016 à 18h, au BIEL. Après des présentations de Mouin Hamzé, Henri Awit (pour le comité libanais de l`UNESCO), Eric Verdeil et Ghaleb Faour, la discussion sera introduite par Jad Chaabane.

Résumé de l`ouvrage

Après une quinzaine d’années de reconstruction dans un climat de paix relative, de 1990 à 2004, le Liban a connu depuis 2005 une succession d’épisodes politiques violents mêlant de manière complexe enjeux internes et tensions régionales. Le déclenchement de la crise syrienne et ses retombées politiques, économiques et démographiques sur le Liban accentue cet état de fait. Cet ouvrage met en lumière ces nouveaux défis et complète en intégrant des volets différents  l’analyse des transformations libanaises déjà entreprises dans l’Atlas du Liban. Territoires et société publié en 2007 par la même équipe. Outre la crise internationale et les mouvements de population, il prend en compte les dimensions socio-économiques à l’intérieur du Liban, les problématiques environnementales liées à l’urbanisation incontrôlée et aux risques, ainsi que la gestion territoriale et les conflits locaux qu’elle suscite.

Cet atlas est le fruit d’une collaboration entre des chercheurs et universitaires français et libanais. Il utilise une approche géographique, plaçant au premier plan de l’analyse la spatialisation des faits sociaux et naturels. Les sources publiques sont limitées, notamment du point de vue de la finesse géographique, parfois peu fiables et difficiles d’accès. C’est particulièrement vrai pour les données sur la population libanaise, moins bien connue que la population réfugiée. Les données internationales permettent de situer le Liban par rapport à ses voisins. Des données thématiques, issues des ministères, offrent néanmoins une vision détaillée pour certains domaines. L’analyse d’images aériennes et satellites fournies des données essentielles sur l’urbanisation et l’environnement. Des enquêtes de terrain localisées et thématiques complètent la panoplie des informations utilisées.

L’ouvrage comprend six chapitres. Le premier porte sur la géopolitique régionale, les violences politiques internes et leurs effets locaux, à savoir l’installation des réfugiés syriens et la réémergence au grand jour des milices et groupes armés en conflit entre eux et avec l’armée libanaise. Le Liban apparaît de nouveau comme un territoire fragmenté entre de multiples allégeances. Le deuxième chapitre montre la fragilité du modèle économique libanais. Sa dépendance aux investissements extérieurs et aux remises de la diaspora, les blocages de l’industrie et de l’agriculture aggravent les déséquilibres sociaux. Le troisième chapitre est un bilan de l’urbanisation du pays, qui s’est accrue en superficie de 80% en vingt ans, au détriment des espaces naturels et de l’agriculture. Le littoral, objet d’intenses convoitises, est largement artificialisé et dégradé. De multiples signes de mutations et de dégradation de l’environnement sont observables sur le territoire libanais et sont l’objet du quatrième chapitre. Certains semblent annonciateurs du changement climatique global et de ses effets locaux. En outre, il existe un lien direct entre l’urbanisation massive et de nombreux risques mesurés et cartographiés de plus en plus clairement. Le chapitre cinq se concentre sur les dysfonctionnements de quelques services publics en lien avec l’exploitation des ressources naturelles : l’approvisionnement en eau, en énergie, tous deux marqués par la pénurie, et la gestion des déchets solides, qui traverse une crise profonde. Le sixième chapitre étudie les mutations dans la gestion du territoire libanais, marqué par le retrait voire la marginalisation de l’État et l’affirmation d’autres acteurs agissant sur le territoire, notamment les municipalités, les pouvoirs locaux mais aussi des associations civiles.

Table des matières

Introduction

Partie 1 : Géopolitique : un pays bouleversé

Partie 2 : Une économie déséquilibrée : des inégalités croissantes

Partie 3 : Une urbanisation intense

Partie 4 : Les grands enjeux environnementaux

Partie 5 : La crise des services publics

Partie 6 : Urbanisme, aménagement et gouvernance territoriale

Conclusion

Présentation du livre sur le blog d`Eric Verdeil

Book Abstract

After fifteen years of reconstruction in a climate of relative peace, from 1990 to 2004, Lebanon has experienced since 2005 successive violent political events resulting from complex entangled internal and external struggles. The Syrian crisis and its political, economic and demographic consequences on Lebanon has increased these tensions. This atlas sheds light on these new challenges and adds new data that complete the analyses already published in the Atlas of Lebanon. Territories and society released in 2007 by the same research team. Beyond the international regional crisis and the population movements, it takes into account the socio-economic dimensions inside Lebanon, environmental issues linked to uncontrolled urbanization and to natural risks, as well as local spatial management and the conflicts it raises. 

This atlas is the fruit of a collaborative endeavor of French and Lebanese scholars. It uses a geographical approach, that puts in the first place a spatialized analysis of social and natural facts. Public sources are scarce in Lebanon, especially at the local scale. They are sometimes less reliable and difficult to access. It is particularly true for data on the Lebanese population, which is less known than the population of refugees. International data help compare Lebanon to its neighbors. Thematic data produced by some ministries are helpful to provide a detailed view regarding specific domains. Analyses processed on aerial and satellite images have produced essential data on urbanization and environment. Local thematic fieldwork surveys have provided additional data.

The book comprises of six chapters. The first deals with regional geopolitics, internal violence and its local effects, specifically the installation of the Syrian refugees and the reemergence of militias and armed groups that fight each other and the state army. Lebanon is again a territory fragmented between multiple allegiances. The second chapter shows the fragility of the Lebanese economic model. Its dependency to foreign investments and to the remittances of the diaspora, as well as the weakness of industry and agriculture enhance social imbalances. The third chapter is an assessment of urbanization in the country, which has increased of 80% in surface in twenty years, at the expense of natural spaces and agriculture. The shore is highly coveted and widely artificialized and damaged. Multiple signs of environmental degradation are examined in chapter four. They seem to announce the global climate change and its local effects. There is in addition a direct link between massive urbanization and many risks, measured and mapped in an increasingly detailed manner. Chapter five is about the dysfunctional public services that exploit natural resources: water and energy supply, both marked by massive shortages, and the management of solid waste hit by a profound crisis. The six chapter studies the mutations of the local spatial management and planning, which experience the retreat of the state, if not its marginalization, and the rise of other actors, including municipalities, local powers and also civic organizations.

ملخص

بعد خمسة عشر عامًا من إعادة الإعمار في جو من السلم النسبي خلال الفترة الممتدة من 1990 وحتى 2004 ، شهد لبنان منذ العام 2005 سلسلة من الأحداث السياسية العنيفة الخطيرة التي شكّلت خليطًا معقدًا من التحديات الداخلية والتوترات الإقليمية. وأدى اندلاع الأزمة في سوريا وتداعياتها السياسية والاقتصادية والديموغرافية إلى تفاقم هذا الوضع في لبنان. يسلّط هذا الأطلس الضوء على هذه التحديات الجديدة باعتماد مقاربات مختلفة تكمل تحليل التحولات في لبنان الذي سبق لفريق العمل ذاته أن تناوله في «أطلس لبنان: الأرض والمجتمع » المنشور عام 2007 . وهو يأخذ في الاعتبار، بالإضافة إلى الأزمة الدولية والحركات السكانية )هجرة السكان(، الأبعاد الاجتماعية الاقتصادية في الداخل اللبناني والمشاكل البيئية المرتبطة بالتمدد العمراني العشوائي وبالمخاطر وبالتالي إدارة استخدامات الأراضي والنزاعات المحلية التي تولّدها.

هذا الأطلس هو ثمرة تعاون بين باحثين وجامعيين لبنانيين وفرنسيين. يعتمد المقاربة الجغرافية التي تعطي الأولوية للانتشار المكاني للخصائص الاجتماعية والطبيعية. إن المصادر الرسمية محدودة تحديدًا لناحية الدقة الجغرافية وهي أحيانًا غير جديرة بالثقة وصعبة المنال. والمثال الأبرز على ذلك هي المعطيات حول عدد السكان اللبنانيين مقارنة بعدد اللاجئين. تسمح المعطيات الدولية بتحديد موقع لبنان ببن البلدان المجاورة. كما تقدّم المعطيات الغرضية التي تصدرها الوزارات رؤية مفصلة لقطاعات معينة. ويؤمّن تحليل الصور الجوية وصور الأقمار الصناعية مصدرًا لمعطيات أساسية حول التمدد العمراني والبيئة فيما تشكّل التحقيقات الميدانية الموضعية والغرضية تتمة لحصيلة المعلومات المستخدمة.

يتألف الكتاب من ستة فصول. يركز الجزء الأول على الجغرافيا السياسية الإقليمية، والعنف السياسي الداخلي وتأثيراته المحلية، تحديدًا أماكن إقامة اللاجئين السوريين وعودة الظهور العلني لبعض الميليشيات والجماعات المسلحة المتصارعة في ما بينها ومع الجيش اللبناني، بحيث يبدو لبنان مرة أخرى كبلد تشرذمه الولاءات المتعددةويبين الجزء الثاني هشاشة النموذج الاقتصادي، فاعتماده على الاستثمارات الأجنبية وتحويلات المغتربين وتراجع الصناعة والزراعة يترجم بتفاقم الاختلالات الاجتماعية في لبنان. ويشكّل الجزء الثالث تقيي للعمران في البلاد، الذي زاد بنسبة 80 % خلال الأعوام العشرين المنصرمة وذلك على حساب المناطق الريفية والزراعية. والساحل، وهو محط الأطماع، تدهور وأصبح مصطنعًا إلى حد كبير. ونلاحظ مؤشرات عديدة للتغير والتدهور البيئي على الأرض اللبنانية وهي موضوع الجزء الرابع. ويبدو أن بعض هذه المؤشرات تنذر بتغير المناخ العالمي وتأثيراته المحلية. وفي المقابل، هناك صلة مباشرة بين العمران المتزايد والعديد من المخاطر التي تم قياسها وتحديدها على الخرائط بشكل أكثر وضوحًا. يركّز الجزء الخامس على تردي أداء بعض الخدمات العامة المرتبط باستغلال الموارد الطبيعية كإمدادات المياه والطاقة )المتصفة بالتقنين( وإدارة النفايات الصلبة التي تمر بأزمة حادة. ويتناول الجزء السادس التغييرات في إدارة الأراضي اللبنانية المتصفة بتراجع دور الدولة أو بالأحرى تهميشها والتأكيد على الجهات الفاعلة الأخرى العاملة في المناطق، لا سيما البلديات والسلطات المحلية وهيئات المجتمع المدني.

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Past is Present: Settler Colonialism Matters!

On 5-6 March 2011, the Palestine Society at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London will hold its seventh annual conference, "Past is Present: Settler Colonialism in Palestine." This year`s conference aims to understand Zionism as a settler colonial project which has, for more than a century, subjected Palestine and Palestinians to a structural and violent form of destruction, dispossession, land appropriation and erasure in the pursuit of a new Jewish Israeli society. By organizing this conference, we hope to reclaim and revive the settler colonial paradigm and to outline its potential to inform and guide political strategy and mobilization.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is often described as unique and exceptional with little resemblance to other historical or ongoing colonial conflicts. Yet, for Zionism, like other settler colonial projects such as the British colonization of Ireland or European settlement of North America, South Africa or Australia, the imperative is to control the land and its resources -- and to displace the original inhabitants. Indeed, as conference keynote speaker Patrick Wolfe, one of the foremost scholars on settler colonialism and professor at La Trobe University in Victoria, Australia, argues, "the logic of this project, a sustained institutional tendency to eliminate the Indigenous population, informs a range of historical practices that might otherwise appear distinct--invasion is a structure not an event."[i]

Therefore, the classification of the Zionist movement as a settler colonial project, and the Israeli state as its manifestation, is not merely intended as a statement on the historical origins of Israel, nor as a rhetorical or polemical device. Rather, the aim is to highlight Zionism`s structural continuities and the ideology which informs Israeli policies and practices in Palestine and toward Palestinians everywhere. Thus, the Nakba -- whether viewed as a spontaneous, violent episode in war, or the implementation of a preconceived master plan -- should be understood as both the precondition for the creation of Israel and the logical outcome of Zionist settlement in Palestine.

Moreover, it is this same logic that sustains the continuation of the Nakba today. As remarked by Benny Morris, “had he [David Ben Gurion] carried out full expulsion--rather than partial--he would have stabilised the State of Israel for generations.”[ii] Yet, plagued by an “instability”--defined by the very existence of the Palestinian nation--Israel continues its daily state practices in its quest to fulfill Zionism’s logic to maximize the amount of land under its control with the minimum number of Palestinians on it. These practices take a painful array of manifestations: aerial and maritime bombardment, massacre and invasion, house demolitions, land theft, identity card confiscation, racist laws and loyalty tests, the wall, the siege on Gaza, cultural appropriation, and the dependence on willing (or unwilling) native collaboration and security arrangements, all with the continued support and backing of imperial power. 

Despite these enduring practices however, the settler colonial paradigm has largely fallen into disuse. As a paradigm, it once served as a primary ideological and political framework for all Palestinian political factions and trends, and informed the intellectual work of committed academics and revolutionary scholars, both Palestinians and Jews.

The conference thus asks where and why the settler colonial paradigm was lost, both in scholarship on Palestine and in politics; how do current analyses and theoretical trends that have arisen in its place address present and historical realities? While acknowledging the creativity of these new interpretations, we must nonetheless ask: when exactly did Palestinian natives find themselves in a "post-colonial" condition? When did the ongoing struggle over land become a "post-conflict" situation? When did Israel become a "post-Zionist" society? And when did the fortification of Palestinian ghettos and reservations become "state-building"?

In outlining settler colonialism as a central paradigm from which to understand Palestine, this conference re-invigorates it as a tool by which to analyze the present situation. In doing so, it contests solutions which accommodate Zionism, and more significantly, builds settler colonialism as a political analysis that can embolden and inform a strategy of active, mutual, and principled Palestinian alignment with the Arab struggle for self-determination, and indigenous struggles in the US, Latin America, Oceania, and elsewhere.

Such an alignment would expand the tools available to Palestinians and their solidarity movement, and reconnect the struggle to its own history of anti-colonial internationalism. At its core, this internationalism asserts that the Palestinian struggle against Zionist settler colonialism can only be won when it is embedded within, and empowered by, the broader Arab movement for emancipation and the indigenous, anti-racist and anti-colonial movement--from Arizona to Auckland.

SOAS Palestine Society invites everyone to join us at what promises to be a significant intervention in Palestine activism and scholarship.

For over 30 years, SOAS Palestine Society has heightened awareness and understanding of the Palestinian people, their rights, culture, and struggle for self-determination, amongst students, faculty, staff, and the broader public. SOAS Palestine society aims to continuously push the frontiers of discourse in an effort to make provocative arguments and to stimulate debate and organizing for justice in Palestine through relevant conferences, and events ranging from the intellectual and political impact of Edward Said`s life and work (2004), international law and the Palestine question (2005), the economy of Palestine and its occupation (2006), the one state (2007), 60 Years of Nakba, 60 Years of Resistance (2009), and most recently, the Left in Palestine (2010).

For more information on the SOAS Palestine Society 7th annual conference, Past is Present: Settler Colonialism in Palestine: www.soaspalsoc.org

SOAS Palestine Society Organizing Collective is a group of committed students that has undertaken to organize annual academic conferences on Palestine since 2003.

 


[i] Patrick Wolfe, Settler Colonialism and the Transformation of Anthropology: The Politics and Poetics of an Ethnographic Event, Cassell, London, p. 163

[ii] Interview with Benny Morris, Survival of the Fittest, Haaretz, 9. January 2004, http://cosmos.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IPSC/php/art.php?aid=5412