Hanin Ghaddar

When you attack freedom in Beirut, you attack Beirut itself. That’s how it feels nowadays being in Lebanon’s capital. We’re prevented from having access to certain films, books and music, and from carrying out demonstrations and expressing ourselves freely. Beirut is great if you want to eat, drink and dance on rooftops, but try not to think. It could hurt you.

This weekend, two simultaneous incidents added to this infuriating realization. Three film directors were banned from travelling to Lebanon by the Iranian authorities. Iranian Nader Davoodi, Iranian Kurd Babak Amin and Iraqi Kurd Ibrahim Saeedi were not allowed to come to Lebanon to attend the screening of their films, “Red, White and Green,” “I Wish Someone Was There Waiting for Me,” and “Mandoo” at the Beirut Film Festival.

These directors are probably heading for a tough trial by the Iranian authorities, and that’s probably why the festival’s administration decided to pull the most controversial one, Davoodi’s “Red, White and Green,” after Lebanese censorship authorities requested to see the film before its screening. The film focuses on the violent events of the three weeks leading up to the disputed June 2009 re-election of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The Lebanese authorities did not even have to ban the film, but only made a simple call, which instilled enough fear among the festival’s administration to pull it. This fear is based on previous incidents when the same authorities banned Lebanese, Arab and Iranian films from the BFF and other festivals. Because festivals rely heavily on the Lebanese authorities for licenses and passes, some believe it is safer not to challenge authorities; otherwise, the whole festival could be shut down. A smaller space for freedom and art is better than nothing.

Others think otherwise. And this brings us to the second incident that took place this weekend. A group of Syrian Kurds decided to organize a small demonstration in front of the Syrian Embassy in Beirut on Sunday to protest the assassination of an opposition leader and key member of the Syrian National Council, Meshal Temmo, who was a Syrian Kurd himself.

Temmo’s assassination came at a very critical time for the Syrians, immediately after the formation of the SNC, and the group of Syrian Kurds in Beirut wanted to express their resentment. According to activists at the scene, Lebanese security services erected extensive checkpoints that delayed and prohibited the arrival of seven buses carrying demonstrators to the embassy. The protest still took place, but not many could attend.

Surprisingly, this time Lebanese security protected the protesters who made it to the demonstration from a group of thugs who, as usual, went to break up the event. Unlike the previous demonstration at the Syrian Embassy, this one did not end in violence.

But the incident did not end there. That night in the neighborhood of Dora, members of the Lebanese intelligence service brutally attacked and humiliated Syrian Kurd workers who participated in the demonstration.
They delivered the message that no one is allowed to demonstrate in support of freedom in Syria.

One is not allowed to call for freedom in Iran and Syria in Beirut. Syrians taking refuge here are not safe, as the Syrian army enters Lebanon as it wishes, and no one can do anything about it. Why? Because for one, Lebanon is now an Iranian-Syrian colony, with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah calling the shots. Also, the Lebanese have become too tired and afraid to oppose this fact.

Banning freedom of expression in Beirut is a serious threat to the true identity of this city, which has survived numerous attacks and occupations. However, the real danger Beirut is facing now is that the majority of its citizens do not seem to care anymore.
When authorities curtail freedom and violate human dignity, it calls for resistance. But a heavy air of desperation mixed with fear hangs over Beirut today. If this persists, not only is freedom threatened, so is the very nature of Beirut itself.

That’s why a new kind of resistance is needed, beyond the usual need to resist Hezbollah’s arms—which is one of the reasons behind the abovementioned incidents. We need to resist against censorship in all its forms, and make a genuine call for freedom in all its forms.
That is vital for Lebanon, because when Hezbollah and the Syrian regime are no longer in power, other parties or groups, whether political or religious, should not be allowed to put different limitations on freedom. Beirut cannot be banned.

Hanin Ghaddar is the managing editor of NOW Lebanon.