I had an inkling about how Lebanon could change as I started reading this document, and I think my instinct was correct. Lebanon can have hope of change, when they change occurs from the inside out.
I visited Lebanon in December of 2019, and the major issues outlined in this text were blatant during my visit of the land and its people: “Four challenges beset Lebanon today: economic and financial ruin due to a corrupt ruling oligarchy, the hijacking of the country by Iran through Hezbollah, the coronavirus pandemic, and the aftermath of the August 4 Beirut port explosion.” The explosion had not yet happened, but the friends I made in 2019 I kept in contact through that difficult time, and they had a lot to say about the explosion after it happened.
As for the change in culture – there are several avenues this could take, and two are critical – education and places of worship: “Give more direct help to private schools and universities in Lebanon, particularly to primary Catholic schools that have constituted the backbone of pluralist education in the country…Coordinate closely with the Holy See and with the churches both in Lebanon and around the world for the preservation of free indigenous Christianity in Lebanon and the Near East.” These places are the homes of much of the cultural identity in any country, and they ought to be focused on as issues in Lebanon are addressed. Additionally, the political leadership and systems in Lebanon must change in order for improvement – this has become so clear since the current system has failed: “Helping the Lebanese to restore lost confidence and trust in their political system, their institutions, their judiciary, their banks, and new leaders will go a long way in arresting at Lebanon’s borders the regional collapse of freedom.
At the end of the day, SOCIETY is at the heart of the solution: “A strengthened Lebanese civil society will work to methodically dismantle the militia-mafia cartel of enablers and looters that currently hold the people of Lebanon captive.”