Lebanon, Canada, and In-between

Lebanon, Canada, and In-between: Ali Cheaib discussing the Flotilla incident on The View with Christine Williams

2010-07-03T21:27:00.001-04:00

Lebanon, Canada, and In-between: Ali Cheaib discussing the Flotilla incident on The View with Christine Williams

Ali Cheaib discussing the Flotilla incident on The View with Christine Williams

2010-07-03T17:17:00.002-04:00

http://www.ctstv.com/ontario/player.php?ctsvidID=17746&show=On%20The%20Line

Ali H. Cheaib appearing On The Line with Christine Williams

2010-06-28T21:33:00.002-04:00

May 26, 2010

Ali Cheaib appears On the Line with Christine Williams debating different topics.

Lebanon, Canada, and In-between: On The Line with Christine Williams

2010-06-28T09:46:00.005-04:00

November 16, 2009

Lebanon, Canada, and In-between: Ali H. Cheaib appearing On The Line with Christine Williams

2010-06-28T09:07:00.002-04:00

جنان العشق

2008-02-27T21:37:00.001-05:00

Janan 'el Ishk

Her flower has finally bloomed
with hope, love, and desire
her love is coming loud in my face
like a strong wind
traveling the oceans
looking for a whisper
and finally landing on her lips

The eyes are the genesis
of all creatures that have made love
from now till eternity

A tear
broken tear
sleeps in her eyes
endless falls building in her cheeks

for that split second
when my lips touch her eyes
and explode like a volcano
full of flowers and tears

Ali Cheaib

رداً على فايز الصايغ

2008-02-17T23:54:00.003-05:00

"النهار"

الخميس 20 تشرين الأول 2005

رداً على فايز الصايغ

أعزائي الاخوة السوريين، تحية خاصة من شاب لبناني قرأ بتمعن تعليقاتكم "الحماسية" عبر الموقع الالكتروني لصحيفة "الثورة" السورية والمشيدة بالاطروحة الهشة والهزيلة، للسيد الصايغ في حق لبنان في شكل عام، وأولاد الرئيس الشهيد رفيق الحريري رحمه الله على وجه الخصوص.

لا أخفيكم أمرا انني كنت من أكثر الفرحين والمهللين برحيل القوات السورية من لبنان عقب اغتيال الرئيس الطيب الذكر كما أني، بالطبع، لن أخفي عن أحد أني بكيت بسرور عند مشاهدتي آخر شاحنة عسكرية سورية تعبر الحدود من دون رجعة الى الداخل السوري، حيث يجب ان تكون في الاصل منذ توقيع اتفاق الطائف عام 1990.

لكن ما يدمي قلبي اليوم هو بالتحديد ما آلت اليه العلاقات اللبنانية السورية على صعيد الشعبين الشقيقين جراء تلك التفاعلات. ما لا أفهمه، وأحب أن تطلعوني عليه، هو سر تعلق عدد لا بأس به من أصدقائي السوريين في الوطن والمهجر بمقولة ان لبنان هو جزء من الجغرافية السورية التابعة للنظام السوري، وكأن ذلك يعني بالضرورة ان يلحق النظام اللبناني والحياة السياسية اللبنانية بركب النظام السوري أيا يكن ذلك النظام، هذا العقل "الاستلحاقي" السوري هو في رأيي ما يجلب وسيظل الويلات على وطنينا السوري واللبناني.

أحب أن أعطي مثلا على ذلك ما حدث بعد أسابيع عدة على جريمة اغتيال الرئيس الشهيد رفيق الحريري وما حدث خلال استقبال كانت جاليتنا العربية في أونتاريو كندا قد أعدته لرئيس وزراء مقاطعة أونتاريو "دالتون ماغنيتي". فكما تجري العادة هنا، يقوم عدد قليل من قيادات الجالية بالانفراد بالضيوف الكبار قبل موعد ظهورهم في الحفل بقليل، حيث يتجاذبون أطراف الاحاديث الاجتماعية والسياسية في محاولة للتأثير في قراراتهم السياسية والاجرائية التي قد تكون لها ردة فعل على جالياتنا او حتى الاوطان التي ننتمي اليها. فمن الطبيعي ان يكون من ضمننا اللبناني والسوري والفلسطيني والمصري والعراقي والبعض من البلدان العربية الاخرى. في تلك الليلة، وخلال المحادثات، لاحظت ان احد الاصدقاء السوريين يختلي جانبا مع المسؤول الكندي الكبير الذي كان يعرف من قبل جنسية الاخ السوري ليسأله عن الوضع في لبنان والدور السوري فيه. فما كان من الصديق السوري الطيب الصيت هذا إلا ان رد على المسؤول الكندي بالقول: "عزيزي دالتون، ليس هناك من شيء اسمه لبنان".

لا أنكر ان ما قاله صاحبي هذا نزل على رأسي كالصاعقة وأدمى قلبي ان يكون شخص مثله وعلى قدر دماثة أخلاقه ورجاحة عقله وعلمه ليتفوه بكلام "ألغائي" خطير كهذا، كأني به يلغي وجودي عبر الغاء وطني الذي أعبد. أحسست حينها بان وجودي كلبناني هو فعلا في خطر، اذا كان البعض في "الانتلجنسيا" السورية على هذا النحو من التفكير الالغائي.

ان اللبنانيين في غالبيتهم لا يستسيغون الالغاء او "الاستلحاق" السياسي بنظام لا زال يعاني من الستالينية والفساد الاداري، وظلم البشر وحشرهم في أقبية السجون فقط لذنب انهم عصوا الفكر السياسي لبلدهم. كما اننا لا نقبل البتة ان يقبع مواطنونا اللبنانيون في السجون السورية العفنة بسبب فكرهم السياسي.

علي حيدر شعيب

(أستاذ في هندسة المعلوماتية – أونتاريو كندا)

أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا

2008-02-16T09:38:00.005-05:00

أليك بعثت الشعر عنقوداً مُدَلا
فهاك قصتي يا طيبة الثنايا
عندما
أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا
وعن لون البحر وصوت القمر
ودكاكين الشعر القديم في يافا
وعن ياسمين دمشق المعتق في زهر الليمون
وعن الحب والعسل الأحمر
والنهد الأسمر المفتون
وحبات المطر والشوق ووجع السبايا

أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا
وعن فاتن وعبلا وفاطمة وسلمى
وعن شاب كان يلبس الشعر لبسا
يعتمره يناجيه يبكيه ويسكنه سكنا
شاب شاب عنه العمر في أزقة العمر القصير
فراح يرقص كالمجنون خلف الحكايا

أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا
وعن الفاتنة والشاعر المجنون في يافا
وعن أمي وأبي وأنا
والقفل العتيق
والسمك والبحر
وقصب السكر والحليب
نعم... أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا

أخبرتني أمي
عن شعريَ المسكون وجعاً وأرقاً ووردا
عن قافلة فقدت في الأمس شهيد
وعرس طفلة وصرخة شبل رضيع
كلهم كانوا هنا - كانوا معنا في يافا

حيث الشعر يلتهب في فم القمر
وتصبحي أنت أمي وأصبح أنا السمر
والشاعر المجنون أنا وأنت السبية
فكم مكرك جميل يا أحلى صبية

نعم... أخبرتني أمي عن مكر الصبايا
عنك يا حلوتي
وعن أمي وأبي وأنا
والقفل العتيق
والسمك والبحر
وقصب السكر والحليب

علي

Faith, hope and hard work

2008-02-13T23:08:00.005-05:00

Ali Cheaib and Lorne Finkelstein have forged a friendship that may help bridge centuries of animosity

Jeff Mahoney
The Hamilton Spectator

(Jun 2, 2007)

Picture by Michael Nikas Dismatsek

If it is going to happen at all, perhaps this is how it has to start. Haltingly. One textured friendship at a time. Small increments, a beachhead here, a beachhead there, one hope back, two hopes forward. Ali Cheaib and Lorne Finkelstein share such a friendship and it has put ripples on the waters, starting here, but with the momentum possibly to push beyond.

Cheaib and Finkelstein are not going to solve the problems of the Middle East in a restaurant booth in Hamilton, obviously. But they may have already blazed the beginnings of a path to peace for local Muslims (as well as non-Muslim Arabs, Lebanese and Palestinians) and Jews. In the fall of 2005 they began something called the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue. How those communities, often divided even among themselves, choose to follow that path remains to be seen, but there are encouragements.

Recently McMaster University approached the Dialogue Committee (see inset box on D9 for current membership) to provide leadership in dealing with conflict on campus and in bringing together Muslim and Jewish student groups, as well as others.

The invitation came after vandals defaced the McMaster office door of Muriel Walker with an anti-Muslim obscenity. Walker is the French professor who organized the Wear A Hijab Day in Hamilton to help sensitize people about Islam. That was April.

There is a meeting scheduled for June with a student council executive and members of various campus groups, and on May 14 the Dialogue Committee met with McMaster University president Peter George.

"We feel honoured to be consulted," says Finkelstein.

Even more recently the Dialogue Committee was contacted by Muslim and Jewish leaders in Quebec for their advice on how to address the publication by a satirical magazine in that province of cartoons playing on the crudest stereotypes of Jews, Muslims and other groups.

Clearly, the committee is a player.

Last November, Finkelstein, Cheaib, and the committee brought to Hamilton the famous Muslim-Jewish dialogue tour featuring Judea Pearl, father of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was captured and beheaded in Pakistan, and Akbar Ahmed, a Muslim scholar. That was no small achievement. The video of the event was carried on Yahoo.com internationally.

On the subject of encouragements, it's an encouragement of no small magnitude that their friendship itself survived its first year, let alone got started in the first place. Regardless of the considerable external pressures on it (more on that soon), the two men in and of themselves are so different.

Cheaib and Finkelstein do not walk with the linked arms of political solidarity. They may not even be kindred spirits. They come from very separate worlds.

Cheaib, a Lebanese who came to Canada in his mid-20s, is outspokenly critical of Israeli policy and practice in the troubled region, to the point of sympathizing, if not with the methods of the Palestinian insurgency then with some of their goals and grievances. The things he says sometimes make Finkelstein shake his head.

Cheaib is a big man, 41, solidly built, charismatic, affable, with a ready laughter. He grew up in Beirut, his formative years coinciding with the monstrously violent civil war that tore the city asunder.

"After a while, in the midst of a civil war, somehow you get used to bombs," says Cheaib. Born the son of a Lebanese colonel and into the Shiite Muslim faith, his parents sent him to Catholic schools in Beirut and later to study at the American University of Athens when he was 18. He teaches computer science at Mohawk College.

He is missing most of three fingers, shot off when he was caught in the crossfire of two factions as he sat in a car waiting for a friend.

Finkelstein is a cardiologist at St. Joseph's Hospital, average height, trim build, charismatic, but in a different way from Cheaib, a bit more guarded, with a wryer since of humour. He grew up in Westdale, son of a physician, in what he calls a "sheltered background."

He says he experienced little overt anti-Semitism.

He never thought a great deal about the state of Israel until he studied at the University of Western Ontario at the time of the 1967 war.

"That's when I first developed a passion for Israel," says Finkelstein. "There were so many small-town kids at the university who had never met a Jew. And I found there was a lot of ignorance about what was happening."

He calls himself a pro-Israeli centrist, but one who speaks bluntly about his disgust with violence and terrorism, especially as practised by Muslim extremists. He puts the blame for last summer's conflict involving Hezbolla and Lebanon on what he describes as Hezbollah's deliberate provocations. Finkelstein feels Israel had no choice but to strike. The things he says sometimes make Cheaib shake his head.

But while they can hardly resist hashing out the latest current events when they meet privately, the Arab-Israeli conflict and its rhetoric are out-of-bounds when it comes to formal meetings of the Dialogue Committee.

There the focus is not on the insolubles of far-off places but what can be done, here and now, to smooth relations between people in Hamilton, whose views and emotions are unavoidably affected by the larger geo-politic.

For all they have differences, Finkelstein and Cheaib share some common traits. They both describe themselves as secular. They are both committed to peace and mutual respect -- and they love the vigorous art of verbal sparring, even though there's little hope either will change the other's mind.

They are both very well-read, and, yes, at least a little opinionated.

They also relish each other's company, even though they can be testy and indignant with each other at times, with Cheaib sometimes growing challenging and Finkelstein sometimes adopting a kind of lecturing tone. But they hold it together. They have to -- passionate but respectful debate is the fulcrum of their vision of an exit out of perpetual hatred between peoples.

As is so often the way with these things, their friendship arose from what was perhaps a low point in relations between Hamilton's Muslim and Arab communities and its Jewish community.

THE LOW POINT

In September 2005, the Hamilton Police Services Board called an open forum to help air citizens' views on police Chief Brian Mullan's controversial trip to Israel to learn anti-terror techniques from Israeli police.

The meeting was disastrous, with yelling, name-calling, confrontation and obstruction. The conflict centred on the Arab-Israeli question.

At the meeting, Cheaib and Finkelstein witnessed the breakdown of civility with disgust. They were both shaking their heads. And it was at this point that they caught each other's eyes.

They knew each other a little through their membership in the Strengthening Hamilton Communities Initiative, a committee formed by the mayor after a Hindu temple was burned shortly after 9/11 to draw the city's various ethnic, religious and identity groups into conversations of understanding and outreach.

Cheaib was part of SHCI as president of Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs.

Finkelstein represented the Hamilton Jewish Federation.

That look that passed between them became the seed of a whole new initiative.

"Lorne called me and the next day we met at his office (along with several other community leaders)," says Cheaib.

That meeting laid the groundwork for the Dialogue Committee.

"The rules are -- no intimidation, no rhetoric from either side," says Finkelstein. "It's about sharing perspectives, not yelling at each other. It's OK to have different views and still be friends."

Says Cheaib, "The beauty is that we can disagree on almost all that relates to the Middle East but there is respect, and that is the basis of our work."

Aside from their meetings with the Dialogue Committee, Finkelstein and Cheaib took to having regular breakfasts together on Sundays, during which their common interest in the committee developed into something stronger. Friendship.

Now they take other meals together, other opportunities for fellowship and talk about everything from their families to their personal lives.

A NEW HIGH?

You might think that this was the beginning of a happy ending, but it's not that simple.

Right from the start, there were those who viewed the work of the committee, the very idea of it, with suspicion, in some cases, with outright antipathy. Prejudices die hard and can survive on the flimsiest diets of unfounded paranoia, complacency and willed ignorance.

Both Finkelstein and Cheaib faced -- still do -- opposition from within their own communities. But mostly there has been support or at least a wait-and-see attitude.

And so the committee pressed ahead patiently, bearing down on its work, the positives, the practical things it could do to further its cause.

And the shape this took over the course of the first year was the organization of what promised to be a milestone event for the young committee, bringing to the city the Pearl-Ahmed Muslim-Jewish dialogue tour.

As a musical garnish, the committee also arranged for the formation of an inter-faith children's choir, mostly young Hamilton Muslims, Arabs, Christians and Jews, under the direction of Laura Wolfson, to sing at the Pearl-Ahmed event.

Then, as the machinery of the event began to mesh, something happened that profoundly threatened not only the cohesion of the committee but the very survival of the Cheaib- Finkelstein's friendship -- last summer's conflict between Hezbolla and Israel, resulting in the bombardment of Beirut.

Bad enough a strain in and of itself. But as it happened Cheaib was visiting Beirut at the time, and was caught in the thick of it. He divided his days between runs, for his very life, to underground shelters and organizing relief and outside communication, including constant attempts to e-mail people in Canada. Among those who were feverishly e-mailing back was Lorne Finkelstein, worried for his friend.

When Cheaib returned safely to Canada, he was consumed with anger and outrage over what had happened in Lebanon over the summer. Finkelstein was also concerned that Cheaib might be filled with hate, and that events in the outside world, over which they had no control, would once again undo the progress that Jews, Muslims and Arabs had achieved locally.

But Cheaib channelled his anger into forward motion, working on relief for the Lebanese and also reaffirming, redoubling his commitment to dialogue locally -- and to friendship.

Finally, on Nov. 12, 2006, after an enormous amount of work, Finkelstein, Cheaib and the dialogue committee welcomed Pearl and Ahmed to Hamilton, where they were the centrepiece of a gala event at Hamilton Place, devoted to breaking through the impasse of hatred and historical fatalism that too often characterizes our perception of Muslim-Jewish relations.

Pearl and Ahmed exchanged views on a number of issues pertaining to those relations and the Arab-Israeli conflict, and then invited questions from the audience. There were about 800 people in attendance, which represented a huge success for the planners, and a large media presence. But still, and it's beginning to look like a pattern, perhaps a necessary one designed to keep them always sharply turned away from complacency, the night was not a smooth one for Cheaib and Finkelstein, not totally.

Cheaib says now that he and many Muslims and Arabs in the audience were shocked and insulted by what Cheaib describes as the pro-Israeli rhetoric that found its way into Pearl's comments at the event. Cheaib calls some of his remarks "near propaganda" and feels they were not in keeping with the spirit of the dialogue.

Finkelstein acknowledges that Pearl is avowedly pro-Israel but argues that his views were consistent with the goal of respectful yet still open expression of opinions, even ones that may be polarizing.

But Finkelstein says he was disappointed that the "dialogue" between Pearl and Ahmed seemed scripted, somewhat too rehearsed. They seemed to speak almost with the same voice, not really sparring or disagreeing. And the question and answer period was flat, with the answers going on too long and not enough people getting to the mics.

Still, Cheaib graciously thanked Pearl, which was his assignment to do. He says he felt conflicted. "This man (Pearl) is like a god of forgiveness to me. But politically I could not be more opposed to what he said."

In the lobby after the event, Cheaib was confronted by eight people from his community. They were extremely upset and let Cheaib know. They felt blindsided by Pearl's remarks. And these, says Cheaib, were moderates.

Later Finkelstein himself addressed the angry eight. He stood as Cheaib had earlier, surrounded by them in a circle. He listened to them and asked why they were talking with such anger at him and they told him that was how they express their passion in their culture.

"Yes," Finkelstein says he told them, "but now you are in Canada, and I ask you -- I have listened to all of you, but which of you has asked my opinion?" And then they listened.

By the time the dust had cleared, a detente had been reached. The eight men, Finkelstein and Cheaib were talking calmly among themselves.

Cheaib says now, "I'm not quite sure how Lorne did it. It was masterful." Finkelstein came to the aid of a friend. And Cheaib, once again stung, after a horrible summer, is putting the best face on things, redoubling yet again his commitment to the dialogue and friendship. That too is what friends do.

What everyone agreed on was -- the choir sounded magnificent and it was inspirational to see the children -- Jews, Muslims,Christians, Arabs alike -- singing as one, separated at least for that moment and one hopes in a more permanent and profound way from the pain and the bitterness of their parents' conflicts.

Cheaib and Finkelstein continue their sparring, their friendly though sometimes heated goading of each other. In Finkelstein's office, Finkelstein asks where the moderate, self-correcting voices are in the international Muslim community. Cheaib says that the post 9/11 backlash against Muslims and Arabs in the west -- stories of women being spat on for wearing hijabs -- has discouraged moderate voices and left them caught in the middle, between extremism in their own community and prejudice outside it.

Cheaib asks where the moderate voices in Israel are, with a succession of recent right wing governments. Finkelstein parries that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East and Israelis are their own harshest critics. They talk about cultures of violence, tribalism, the lingering effects of colonialism, books they've read.

The dialogue committee effort seems to have bounced back from the feeling that the Pearl-Ahmed evening may have left with the Muslim/Arab community in Hamilton. No one can predict these things, but no one, it seems, would doubt the sincerity and good intentions behind the committee and events like the Pearl-Ahmed visit.

And really, where else is there to go? What other path? The ones of violence and anger have been tried. They are worn thin. A new one beckons. Lorne Finkelstein and Ali Cheaib, friends, are standing at the mouth of it, waiting to greet others.

The membership of the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue (Dialogue Committee)

Lorne Finkelstein -- representative of Hamilton Jewish Federation

Ali Cheaib -- president of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs

Javid Mirza -- past-president, Muslim Association of Hamilton

Hussein Hamdani -- vice-chair, North American Spiritual Revival

Harold Pomerantz -- board member and Public Affairs Committee chair, Hamilton Jewish Federation

Morteza Jafarpour -- executive director, SISO (Settlement and Integration Services Organization)

Bridging a faith divide

2008-02-13T23:02:00.001-05:00

By Tom Carter
THE WASHINGTON TIMES -- COVER PAGE
Published December 24, 2006

HAMILTON, Ontario
Ali Cheaib, a Lebanese Canadian who spent his summer vacation taking refuge from Israeli warplanes in a Lebanese bomb shelter, calls Judea Pearl, the father of Daniel Pearl, the reporter for the Wall Street Journal who was beheaded by radical Muslims, a hero and a mentor.

Mr. Pearl is a Jew and Mr. Cheaib is a Muslim. Both teach computer science -- Mr. Cheaib (pronounced "Shibe") at Hamilton's Mohawk College, Mr. Pearl at Stanford University in California, where he is renowned as a specialist on artificial intelligence.

They disagree on almost every point of Middle East politics, and both have suffered bitter losses at the hands of their enemies but are nevertheless trying to get beyond personal tragedy to build bridges with people of the other faith.

Asks Mr. Cheaib, in an interview: "Judea Pearl is a phenomenal example, like a phoenix, of coming out of the ashes of loss and tragedy and saying, 'We are going to turn this into something worthwhile.' He has done this. Why can't I?

"What I was living [in Lebanon during the war] was the alternative to dialogue. Dialogue must continue."

He said this minutes before Mr. Pearl took the platform at the Hamilton Place community center in Ontario for an unusual public airing of the differences between the Islamic world and the West.

Mr. Pearl and Muslim scholar Akbar Ahmed of American University in Washington have been traveling around North America talking to one another before audiences like this about Daniel Pearl's death in Pakistan four years ago, and about Palestinian-Israeli relations and other issues.

Nearly 1,000 Jews, Muslims and Christians crowded into Hamilton Place last month to listen to the two men talk, much like old friends, about some of the world's most provocative issues. On stage, they parry and thrust as if continuing a long-running conversation in someone's living room.

Does Israel have the right to exist? Was it created out of the Holocaust? Why shouldn't Iran have nuclear weapons? Are terrorists authentic Muslims? If the United States champions democracy, why won't it recognize Hamas? Why do Muslims think they are under siege by the West? Why won't Muslim nations recognize Israel's right to exist? What, if anything, can be done about the state of the world today?

"Our mission is not to embrace each other with understanding, but mainly to listen to each other, to hear two narratives side by side," Mr. Pearl says in an interview before his presentation. "To acknowledge each other's narrative. I am a soldier fighting hatred, fighting ignorance.

"I have not forgiven [what they did to my son]. I am not going to forgive. I am dialoguing as a soldier. Dialogue is my weapon. ... I am fighting the hatred that took Danny's life. We don't have armies, but we have the good will of millions, the coalition of the decent."

Community journey
The narratives related by the two men hold that Jews and Muslims both follow in the tradition of Abraham, and that both have suffered from the Holocaust, the Crusades, dictatorial governments, insults and religious discrimination. That suffering, they say, must be acknowledged and appreciated by both sides.

Mr. Ahmed, who is regarded in most mosques as a scholar and devout Muslim, says his religion has been hijacked by extremists. He is working to see the vision of moderate Muslims carry the day. "It is [the 13th-century Sufi poet] Rumi's vision of Islam, versus Osama bin Laden's," Mr. Ahmed says.

To the two men the speaking tour is a way of combating the religious hatred that both see threatening the world. For the audience in Hamilton Place, it was the culmination of a five-year effort marked by tension, flared tempers and growth. It was opposed by some Jews and Muslims who say talking with the others is not only a waste of time, but a betrayal.

Sponsors of the event, including Mr. Cheaib, say they want what has happened in Hamilton to be a model for other conflicted communities where Christians, Muslims and Jews are searching for reconciliation.

They understand their experience will not be easily replicated. Any group of people can talk, but reconciliation can take place only if recognized community leaders are willing to endure hours of tense and often emotional meetings, and are committed to building long-term and respectful relationships that will become genuine friendships. They liken their conversations to a rocky marriage that works only because both sides are committed to it.

"We are getting calls from other towns, asking for help in setting up their own dialogue groups, but I don't know that we have anything yet that can be duplicated," Mr. Cheaib says. Mr. Pearl says interfaith outreach efforts generally take place among rabbis, imams and academics, rather than between families and individuals.

"We demonstrated a tone of respectful discussion that can be duplicated anywhere, on a community level," he says, if there is genuine curiosity and a willingness to listen.

'Madness by fools'
Hamilton, a run-down industrial city of steel mills, smokestacks and factories at the western tip of Lake Ontario, made international headlines when the city's largest Hindu temple was firebombed just after the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States, perhaps by vandals who mistook it for a mosque.

"The Hindu temple was torched out of madness by fools," says Larry DiIanni, who was mayor at the time of the Pearl event. "People were fearful. You could cut the tension in the city with a knife." Hamilton, a city of half a million, includes 15,000 Muslims, about 5,000 Jews and a number of Hindus.

In an effort to dampen emotions, city officials arranged meetings of ethnic and religious leaders, which over time grew into the Strengthening Hamilton's Community Initiative (SHCI). The goals were simple -- to prevent the destruction of property and to deal with racism and religious and ethnic tensions.

By the summer of 2004, Javid Mirza, a member of the initiative who was then president of the Hamilton Muslim Association, had a strained relationship with Lorne Finkelstein, a prominent cardiologist and one of the Hamilton Jewish Federation's representatives on the initiative.

Mr. Mirza, a Pakistani-Canadian who imports sporting goods for Wal-Mart, was trying to raise money to bring a 9-year-old Afghan child to Canada for urgent heart surgery.

Dr. Finkelstein read about the boy in the Hamilton newspaper, called Mr. Mirza and volunteered his medical and media contacts from an earlier campaign on Canadian health care issues. Together, the two men worked through the bureaucratic obstacles and got the child to Canada, where the life-saving surgery was performed.

"The national headlines were about Jews and Muslims of Hamilton working together," Dr. Finkelstein recalls. "This brought a tremendous amount of appreciation to the Jewish community, and it was the first real breakthrough in Hamilton Jewish-Muslim relations. This was the beginning ... of Javid's and my relationship."

But more obstacles lay ahead. In the summer of 2005, Hamilton's police chief and 30 other Canadian police officials went to Israel to attend a summit on terrorism and security, infuriating the city's Muslims, who said the summit was the occasion of anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian propaganda.

City leaders called a conference to air the issue, but the meeting quickly degenerated into a shouting match, with local Muslims spouting anti-Semitic invective and offended Jews responding angrily.

"Ali Cheaib, who I knew from the anti-racism committee, and I looked across the room at each other, and we just shook our heads," Dr. Finkelstein says. "It was ugly. We both knew this should never be allowed to happen again."

'All Canadians'
Dr. Finkelstein called a meeting at his office the next day, inviting Mr. Cheaib, Gerry Fisher of the Hamilton Jewish Federation, Mr. Mirza and Hussein Hamdani, a charismatic Muslim youth leader. Over the course of several months, the men formed the Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue Committee, which sponsored the Hamilton Place event last month.

They agreed that they would not try to change one another's opinions on Middle East politics, but would focus on local issues, and that no matter what the topic the discussion would be respectful and civil.

"The Middle East has nothing to do with what we are doing here," Dr. Finkelstein says. "We are all Canadians. We may have different opinions of what is going on in Israel, Gaza or Lebanon or Iraq. But we are not trying to change anyone's mind on the Middle East. We all left somewhere else to come here, and we should not bring the old hatreds and resentments to Hamilton. We have to make sure that what happens over there does not filter back to our community here."

Particularly disturbing, at the police forum, was the sight of the loudest, most extreme participants mugging for the cameras and reporters.

"It was embarrassing," Dr. Finkelstein says. "These people, some of whom did not even come from Hamilton, did not represent our communities. The media was being used."

Afterward, they tried to identify community spokesmen they regarded as responsible, and gave the names to local reporters. Most agree that this has softened the tone and reduced the volume of the rhetoric.

"I'd say we have become more thoughtful and sophisticated in understanding how international stories will play out in our community," says Dana Robbins, editor in chief of the Hamilton Spectator, which co-sponsored the Hamilton Place debate and donated thousands of dollars in advertising to promote it.

"But let me turn this around. The respective communities have spent a huge amount of energy in putting up leadership [to serve as spokesmen]. They decided that they couldn't let our community be defined by people holding onto old habits and prejudices."

Silencing the fringe
Even so, it seems that every month produces an overseas event that threatens to percolate into a local crisis, forcing the community dialogue group to deal with resentment over the Danish cartoons ridiculing the prophet Mohammed and the subsequent attempt to silence the newspapers, or Pope Benedict XVI's reference to historical assertions that Islam was propagated by the sword.

When two Muslim students at Hamilton's McMaster University were among 17 Canadians arrested for plotting to blow up Canadian government buildings last June, the local Muslim community was stunned by the revelations of the plot and disappointed that Muslims were called on to defend their religion.

Says Mr. Mirza: "If someone commits a crime, then arrest them. But why call them Muslims, as if all Muslims are terrorists? No one calls Timothy McVeigh the Christian Oklahoma City bomber, as if Christianity is a religion of terrorism."

In August, Hamilton's Muslim community held a rally to protest Israel's border war with Lebanon. Some of the dialogue members saw that the list of speakers included extremists and asked editors and reporters to avoid the event. As a result, it went uncovered, in effect silencing the fringe at the risk of giving life to rumors.

"What happens if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it?" asks Dr. Finkelstein. "When the event was not covered, it denied the hatemongers the attention they wanted."

Because Daniel Pearl was an accomplished violinist, the Pearl Foundation established by his father uses music to create bridges. At the Hamilton Place event, a choir of Muslim, Jewish and Christian children sang songs of peace, at times a little off-key.

Mr. Cheaib says the choir was the best thing to come from the event. Not only did the children get to know each other, but their parents -- Jews in yarmulkes and Muslim women wearing the hijab -- waited together through the practices. The parents started talking, not about Middle East politics, but their children's school grades, soccer, ice hockey and their hopes for their children.

"There were Muslims who had never spoken to a Jew before, and Jews who had never spoken to a Muslim," says Mr. Cheaib, who encouraged Muslim parents to allow their children to participate.

"The parents have been quite eager," says Laura Wolfson, the choir director. "The choir was created for this event, but many of the parents have asked me to continue. They see it as a good thing. As a social group, it is very diverse."

Breaking the fast
Not everyone has been won over, and many declined to attend the Hamilton Place event. Some Muslims stayed away because days before, Israeli artillery had missed its target and killed 17 persons, most of them women and children in the Gaza Strip. Some Jews petitioned the Hamilton Jewish Federation to end the dialogue, arguing that some local Muslim leaders support calls for the eradication of Israel.

"I believe in dialogue, but this is a monologue, a one-way street," says Lawrence Hart, a doctor who sits on the Hamilton Jewish Federation board. "It is time to rethink what we are doing and maybe find new partners."

But the dialogue is likely to continue. A few months ago, the five members of the Hamilton Dialogue each invited half a dozen executive members from their respective organizations to an informal dinner, for the purpose of establishing another dialogue group -- this time made up of the most senior community directors.

It is still in the early stages, but it was the first time several of them had met, and the first time some of the Jews and some of the Muslims had met a person of the other faith.

In early November, at the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Jewish and Muslim students at McMaster University broke the fast together at an Eid dinner and Jewish community leaders were guests of honor at the Hamilton mosque.

"This will go on," Dr. Finkelstein says. "There is no alternative. As Yitzhak Rabin said when he shook hands with Yassar Arafat, you make peace with your enemies, not your friends. Through this, I've become friends with Ali, Javid, Hussein.

"We don't agree on many things. We don't try. There will be issues. But at least now we know who to call when something happens. That is better than five years ago."

"The challenges are still there," agrees Mr. DiIanni, "but now we have a vehicle with which to deal with them."

• Amy Baskerville and John Haydon contributed to this report.

مقال ما قبل "ثورة الأستقلال الثالثة"

2008-02-12T21:14:00.003-05:00

هذا المقال كًتب قبل أستشهاد ألرئيس العظيم رفيق الحريري --قدس الله سره-- وفيه نوعٌ من التنبؤ بما كانت ستؤول أليه الأوضاع في لبنان

لا نفهم "حزب الله

2008-02-12T21:08:00.002-05:00

"النهار"

السبت 12 آذار 2005
بقلم علي حيدر شعيب ()

مع احترامنا الشديد لمقام السيد حسن نصرالله وقيادات "حزب الله" وعناصر المقاومة الباسلة ولاسيما ارواح شهداء "حزب الله" الابرار الذين استشهدوا على مذبح الوطن وذوداً عن اراضيه ضد عدو لئيم لا يرحم، نقول للسيد حسن اطال الله عمره ولقيادة الحزب ان المواطن اللبناني العادي (العامة منا نحن الشعب) قد تصعب عليه فهم استراتيجيا الحزب وهضمها في هذه المرحلة الدقيقة من تاريخ لبنان المعاصر. فقد اضحت المفردات المتداولة على ألسنة ممثلي الحزب والمتحدثين باسمه عصية على الفهم، كما ان مواقفه وقراراته في المدة الاخيرة تطرح تساؤلات قد يكون "بقية" الشعب اللبناني في امس الحاجة لفك طلاسمها وبلغة قريبة الى المفهوم الشعبي اكثر مما قد يتفتق به جهابذة الجيوستراتيجيا واعلام الجيوبوليتيك من مفردات اكل عليها الدهر وشرب منذ سقوط حائط برلين وظهور المارد الاميركي بقبعة الكاوبوي الشهيرة.

ما يهم المواطن اللبناني اليوم عموما والشيعي خصوصا ان يفهم ماهية هذا الاصطفاف الغريب العجيب الذي يؤطره "حزب الله" مع مجموعات حزبية اخرى وغير حزبية لا يجمع "حزب الله" العقائدي بها على المستوى الاخلاقي اي اجتماع، فهي في اغلبها من شذاذي الآفاق واصحاب المصالح الخاصة. ومنهم العديد ممن اصاب من لبنان الوطن وهن هنا وجرح عميق هناك. ومنهم العديد ممن لا يستسيغون من وجود سوريا في لبنان غير امكان اصابة ربح سريع هنا او مصلحة ضيقة هناك. كما ان من بينهم العديد من المتزلفين والمتملقين والمنحنين والمتخلين عن مواطنيتهم من اجل قومية يفهمونها فحسب من زاوية الاستقواء على الآخر والتبعية العمياء لا اقل ولا اكثر. هذا الخليط الغريب العجيب من قدامى "المقاومين" ومن "المقاومين" الجدد الذي اختار "حزب الله" ان يكون حليفا لهم وان يمشي واياهم رحلة الالف ميل نحو عصيان ارادة العائلات اللبنانية الاخرى المسيحية والمسلمة – غير المنضوية تحت لواء التكليفات الشرعية التي تحدو بالكثيرين من المسلمين الشيعة الى المسايرة والمحاباة والسير زرافات ووحدانا الى ساحات التجمع والتظاهر – هو ايضا يطرح تساؤلا حول امكان ان يتحول الحزب من مشروع وطن الى حالة داخل الدولة، كما حصل في الماضي القريب حين تحولت المقاومة الفلسطينية دولة داخل الدولة اللبنانية لها منظومتها الدفاعية الخاصة ومؤسساتها الطبية والثقافية والاجتماعية واتحاداتها الشبابية وعلاقاتها الدولية الواسعة المربوطة جميعها بقرار قيادي واحد يمثله شخص أوحد.

هذا الاصطفاف الجديد والمقلق للحزب مع بعض رموز الارتكابات والفساد يطرح ايضا تساؤلات حول صفاء وشمولية قراءته الحقيقية لمفهوم الدولة والمواطنية اولا، وحماية ظهر المقاومة عبر تمتين التحالف مع مجموعات وافراد قد يتخلون عنه عند اول منعطف طريق، او عندما تدق ساعة الحسم الدولية. فهؤلاء تاريخهم معروف ونسيج عباءاتهم مجبول بالخيانة والشرور والضغينة والتكاذب في ما بينهم وبعضهم على بعض. هؤلاء هم في معظمهم مرتكبون وفاسدون، نقيض المجموعات اللبنانية الشبابية وافراد العائلات المحترمة التي نراها على شاشات التلفاز في ساحة الشهداء (الحرية) تسطر آيات المواطنية الصحيحة والمبنية على احترام المصلحة العليا للوطن اولا والعمل على جلاء، ليس العدو الاسرائيلي فحسب من مزارع شبعا (وجنسيتها التي لا تزال "قيد الدرس والتمحيص") وانما ايضا النضال السلمي لنبذ اي وجود مسلح على أرض لبنان غير لبناني الهوية والهوى.

اما التساؤل الآخر فهو عن بعض التحليلات المسهبة التي يتبناها الحزب لطبيعة الصراع وحصره في الخانة الدولية او الاقليمية واعتبار القضايا المحلية مجرد تفصيلات من غير المفترض اضاعة الوقت والجهد في محاولة ايجاد حلول ناجعة لها، كقضية الفساد المستشري في جسد الوطن ومحاربته واعتباره اصعب بألف مرة من مقاومة اسرائيل! وكذا عملية التصدي للاجهزة الامنية والمخابراتية التي امعنت اغتصابا لمقدرات الدولة وحدت برؤوسها الي تبوؤ سدة الحكم من خلف الكواليس. فالشعب اللبناني يعلم، و"حزب الله" عماد اساسي منه، كم من رؤوس تلك الاجهزة تنعم بالجاه والاموال والتنفيعات التي تجعلهم يسكنون في قصور مشيدة ويركبون مراكب دنيوية بحتة وينعمون بما لذ وطاب من افخر المآكل والمشارب، في حين تتضور عائلات كريمة من هنا ومن هناك جوعا وذلا ما بعده ذل في كل صبيحة يوم جديد!

كفانا وكفى كل لبنان ان نفيق في الصباح وننام في المساء على نغمة الصمود والتصدي الرتيبتين. كفانا تصفيق لدول اخرى غير دولتنا ولشعوب اخرى غير شعوبنا ولازمنة غير ازمنتنا. علينا ان نفيق من سكرة النصر على العدو الصهيوني الى مقارعته اجتماعيا اولا ثم علمياً واقتصاديا وابداعيا. دعونا نصطف كلبنانيين اولا ونشبك الساعد بالساعد مع كل وطني حر همه الاول والاخير تحصين الساحة الداخلية اللبنانية عبر نبذ الشعارات الواهية التي لا تغني ولا تثمر عن جوع.

المطلوب وطنيا من "حزب الله" اللبناني الخالص ان يلتفت الى الشأن اللبناني ليؤطر علاقته بالنسيج اللبناني المتعدد حيث الارقام وعدد الاجساد لا يستوي مع الفكر والمعرفة والتعددية الثقافية والدينية والمذهبية التي فيها قوة لبنان الحقيقية وقيمته ومنعته وهي ايضا الخاصرة الواقعية لسوريا وحامي ظهر المقاومة من شرور المتربصين بها سوءا.

()علي حيدر شعيب – أستاذ في هندسة المعلوماتية وكاتب

Arab, Muslim leaders condemned barbaric acts

2008-02-11T21:34:00.002-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Sep 18, 2001

The horrific, satanic and self-destructive terrorist attacks on the United States of America and the total disregard towards the loss of innocent lives is clear evidence that those who perpetrated these heinous acts do not belong to the human race. They are a species out of touch with the modern world, alien to the notion of civility and common sense. Their acts are clearly contradictory with the basic tenet of Islam: Peace.

It may well be that the species that carried out the recent massacre under the banner of Islam actually has nothing to do with the teachings of this glorious school, which is at the forefront in teaching religious harmony and respect for one another under the auspices of a brotherhood of all nations.

If this species is found to have been associated with Islam, it is certain that they were only the followers of a label, a nametag of some sort, and not the true spirit of Islam.

Evidence that this is far removed from the core teachings of Islam can be seen in the world-wide condemnation of these attacks from Islamic institutions all over the world, and by the use of language never before used in describing this posse of gangsters. Arab Muslims are using names such as murderers, infidels, enemies, and evil to describe the butchers of New York.

Sheikhs Tantawi, Quaradawi, Kabbani, Fadloullah, Sabri, as well as a host of other Arab and Muslim high-ranking clergy, have strongly denounced these barbaric acts.

In his televised sermon last Friday, Imam Mohammed Hossein Fadloullah, a religious figure of a great stature in Lebanon, asked his followers to look deeply into this human tragedy and deduce that the criminals who "did this horrific deed, had no relations to the human race." Fadloullah himself was the victim of a car bombing in the early '80s mentioned in Bob Woodward's book The Veil as masterminded by the CIA, and which resulted in the death of 90 innocent bystanders.

Mufti Sheikh Mohammad Kabbani, also of great religious standing in Lebanon, denounced the killings in New York as "acts of crazed and blood thirsty infidels."

In the flurry of North American network coverage, a very small amount of coverage has been allotted to something we have never seen before: A succession of overt condemnations from the Islamic world and calls for "the elimination of terror that culminated in this sea of blood" on "black Tuesday."

It is significant that prominent political and religious figures in the Arab and Muslim world are united on one issue: The need to fight terrorism, all types of terrorism, including state terrorism.

Make no mistake about it, Arab and Muslim communities all over the world are united in their stance against terrorism. They are all affected by it in a very negative manner. No other culture has been more subjected to stupid questions than Arab and Muslim communities in North America -- and that, by the way, includes Canada. These are questions, that may or may not be innocent, such as: "What is your reaction to the latest events?" or "What do you think about what happened?"

Some of these, posed by neighbours and casual acquaintances of Arab and Muslims, seem intended to instigate a debate, as if Arabs and Muslims should somehow have a different take on the butchering of innocent civilians with whom they share a country and, more importantly, a destiny.

Ali Cheaib is a professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College, and an active member of the Muslim and Arab community.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Hamilton battles evils of hate, prejudice

2008-02-11T21:28:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Dec 21, 2001

Hamilton has recently been a hub for some remarkable events.

First was the Mayor's Roundtable on Strengthening Hamilton's Community, a forum dedicated to finding better ways to deal with local issues pertaining to racism and intolerance.

Second was the highly successful multi-faiths town hall meeting at the Hamilton Mountain Mosque, aired live by CH TV on Dec. 4, which featured community and religious leaders debating timely issues such as Bill C-36.

Third was the birth of the new Hamilton Chapter of the Canadian Arab Federation (CAF-HAM), founded to foster good relations between Canadians of Arab descent and their fellow citizens.

It is no secret that the new city of Hamilton, like other Canadian cities, has had its fair share of incidents of hate, racism, and even domestic terrorism. As hard as it is to grasp the new realities, we must pay attention to the fact that our beloved city is not immune to the plague of ignorance, intolerance, and vigilantism.

Local law enforcement agencies know of several recent incidents, the torching of the Hindu Samaj Temple being the most high-profile example.

Also, there was an attempt to vandalize the Hamilton Mountain Mosque, a centre of Islamic knowledge and religious harmony. There were also the outrageous attacks by a group of vigilantes against members of the mosque while performing their daily religious duties of prayer and reading from the Koran.

Attacking and verbally abusing Muslim, Hindu and Sikh women who wear head covers while out in the city shopping or going about their daily lives has also been common since Sept. 11.

There have been other incidents, including one in which a Muslim student at a local elementary school was beaten up and subjected to racial slurs.

Police say a man threw Molotov cocktails at a mosque in Burlington and another in Mississauga. Fortunately, the Burlington bomb exploded on the lawn, and the maintenance man at the Mississauga mosque saw the bomb explode and immediately put out the flames.

At the same time these incidents of hate were taking place, political and religious groups and individuals from a number of different ethnic and religious denominations were unanimous in their resolve to defuse the tension that had been building since the New York and Washington terrorist attacks. The Reverend Canon Patrick Doran of St. Paul's Anglican Church in Westdale and Rabbi Irwin Zeplowitz of Temple Anshe Shalom were instrumental in mobilizing the troops under the banner of the "An Attack On One Is An Attack On All" poster, a very welcome gesture to assert unity in Hamilton.

There was also an important Hamilton visit and speech by a prominent Christian Arab academic, Dr. Naim Ateek, founder of Sabeel Ecumenical Center in Jerusalem, a canon of the St. George's Anglican Cathedral there and a renowned scholar on religion, philosophy, and politics. Rev. Ateek gave an illuminating speech on religious harmony and the plight of Palestinians.

Also during these troubled times, Muslim and Arab community leaders in Hamilton have been meeting with officials of government, including MPs Sheila Copps and Tony Valeri, Mayor Bob Wade and and Police Chief Ken Robertson, as well as former lieutenant-governor Lincoln Alexander. The results are remarkable: We have been successful in breaking new ground in our struggle to assert our Canadian identity, fight the evils of racism, and forge friendships with other faiths that share with us the same dedication to peace and religious and ethnic harmony.

We have been able to accomplish a lot in the last few weeks. However, it is incumbent on many other leaders and regular citizens to step in and be counted to make sure that Hamilton stays at the forefront in ethnic and religious harmony, and that manifestations of hate and prejudice are dealt with swiftly and strictly.

Ali Cheaib of Hamilton is a professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College and an active member of the Arab and Muslim community.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Sharon hasn't changed since invading Lebanon

2008-02-11T21:24:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Feb 23, 2002

I promised myself that my second Community Editorial Board column would be about education and innovation at postsecondary institutions in Ontario. However, the urge to talk about issues of more important moral and personal relevance caused me to change course.

What could be more important than the current manifestations of ignorance, hate, and genocide in the Middle East?

I asked myself: Why would I, an immigrant from the Middle East and a son of that Biblical and Koranic part of the world, shy away from writing about the constant suffering of millions of my people under a long and brutal occupation? Why not speak about the subject that keeps me sleepless at times, especially after a good dose of gruesome TV images of acts of violence directed toward innocent civilians on both sides of the Arab-Israeli conflict?

My change of mind came after recent successive media headlines that featured the following: a secular Palestinian woman explodes herself into tiny pieces, killing one Israeli and injuring dozens; Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon regrets not having liquidated PLO leader Yasser Arafat during Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon; Israeli Defence Forces mutiny -- more than 100 troops are refusing orders to shoot and kill innocent Palestinian women and children; and a Lebanese warlord, who was to testify against Sharon in a Belgian court, was blown to pieces by a car bomb said to have been planted by Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service.

Then, I realized that my memory was unintentionally transmitting images from the past; images I had thought would never be relived.

It was the 1980s again - a dj vu of some sort. I was 15 years old at the time -- a kid full of energy yearning for, paradoxically, a bright future like other kids in war-struck Beirut. With the civil war raging, Lebanon was still a mecca for academic and intellectual growth -- a country with one of the finest selections of private schools in the world. I was happy to be one of the many lucky Muslim pupils whose families had the means to secure them a decent education in some of the more prestigious and expensive Catholic schools of Beirut.

In June 1982, while I was playing a game of volleyball with a bunch of my friends at school, a squadron of Israeli fighter jets roared low over city skies. The sound of those planes is still engraved in my mind. It was horrible. We did not know what to do as the school's court had no ceiling. It was like watching a horror movie played on a giant screen in an open field except that it was not a movie. It was the real thing and all of us were right in its midst and well exposed to the dangerous elements.

The screams of little children mixed with F-14 and F-15 heavy bombardment created a true symphony of death. We were later told that upwards of 300 innocent civilians -- "collateral damage" as the American defence establishment would like to call them -- were killed and a large number of nearby buildings destroyed. We were lucky that day, but others were not.

It was the beginning of an Israeli invasion of Lebanon that triggered 19 long years of occupation orchestrated by none other than Sharon himself. News later surfaced that the United States had given the green light to the Israelis to drive Arafat and his troops from their Lebanese strongholds at any cost, under the pretext of defending Israel's northern borders from frequent Palestinian rocket attacks.

For six brutal months, Sharon kept his war machine pounding the tiny country with all kinds of state-of-the-art American-funded weapons of mass destruction, killing and maiming thousands of Lebanese and Palestinians and causing massive migrations from the capital area to relatively safer areas of Lebanon.

Sharon's hatred and unmatched disregard for non-Israeli lives later culminated in an infamous massacre of thousands of unarmed, mainly Palestinian, civilians in two refugee camps that the world would come to know as Sabra and Shatilla. The slaughter was carried out by a thug named Elie Hobeika, but many believe the orders came directly from Sharon himself. The cold-blooded Hobeika and his men made sure no refugees survived.

A few weeks ago and almost 20 years after the massacres, news of Hobeika's assassination came as no surprise to many. Less than 28 hours prior to his assassination and that of three of his closest men in a Beirut suburb, Hobeika had met with two members of the Belgian parliamentary committee in charge of investigating the Sabra and Shatilla massacres.

The two MPs later declared that Hobeika had agreed to come to Belgium and be deposed by a judge looking into allegations of war crimes by Sharon and that Hobeika had had in his possession concrete evidence directly linking the heinous crimes to the Israeli prime minister whose current actions are spawning more Palestinian and Israeli deaths. Sharon is destroying more homes than ever; he has also destroyed the peace process.

Manifestations of mutiny within the IDF have become normal occurrences, given the type of irrational orders the soldiers have to put up with on a daily basis. Peace-loving Israelis and all decent human beings know that Sharon has not changed since 1982 and that his hunger for death and destruction is unstoppable -- at least not in the foreseeable future.

Ali Cheaib of Hamilton is a professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College and an active member of the Arab and Muslim community.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

RE: 'Sharon hasn't changed since invading Lebanon' (Feb. 23).

2008-02-11T21:22:00.001-05:00

I have compassion for the difficulties faced by Community Editorial Board columnist Ali Cheaib in Beirut in 1982.

However, it was Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) violence, starting in the early '70s, that reduced Beirut to utter anarchy. The PLO destruction created the conditions that led to the Syrian military occupation of Lebanon -- an occupation that continues today but is rarely mentioned in the media.

Those who recall those events have no trouble remembering the astounding savagery with which various Lebanese, Palestinian and Iranian factions reduced Lebanon and Beirut to burned-out rubble. They didn't need any help from the Israelis; they did it all by themselves.

It can be easily argued that the reconstruction of Beirut began the day that the Israeli army drove the PLO out of Lebanon -- a day for which many Lebanese remain thankful.

The Israelis didn't show up in Lebanon for the fun of it. Northern Israeli towns and villages had long been under daily assault from PLO terrorist incursions and nightly ketusha attacks. And, for years, the Israeli government implored the Lebanese government to do its share in bringing stability to the area by asserting its sovereignty in the south of its own country -- an undertaking the Lebanese government was unwilling or unable to carry out.

The circumstances that led to the Israeli action in 1982 are eerily similar to the current situation in the disputed territories. The entire world has implored PLO leader Yasser Arafat to assert his authority and bring the terrorist onslaught to an end so that the peace talks he walked away from could be renewed. So far, he has refused to listen or to act and the Palestinian shootings, bombings, suicide attacks and hateful propaganda continue unabated.

However horrible the Palestinians' situation may be today, it will never improve -- and it is very likely to grow even worse -- unless the PLO begins to apply a higher level of civil behaviour in its effort to secure the real self-interest of the Palestinian people.

PLO terrorists and their supporters are not entitled to murder Israeli civilians with impunity and then try to convince the world that they are the real victims. Their murderous policies have consequences and the Israeli government is obligated to take whatever steps are required to ensure the safety of its citizens. This was true in 1982 in Lebanon and it is equally true in 2002.

The so-called intefadeh is not a spontaneous Arab response to the policies of the Ariel Sharon government. He was not in power when the PLO launched its strategy of renewed terrorism as a response to the remarkably generous peace proposals of former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak. Sharon was not in power when Arab mobs destroyed the Tomb of Joseph and burned it and all its holy books to the ground. Sharon was not in power when crazed mobs captured two Israelis in Ramallah and lynched them in front of the whole world.

Cheaib suggests that peace-loving Israelis know that Sharon has a "hunger for death and destruction which is unstoppable." I believe Sharon has a long and respected military career that has been singularly focused on the protection of Israeli lives from an enemy that apparently prefers violent martyrdom to any prospect of a peaceful future. One might wonder if the "hunger for death and destruction" description might more appropriately apply to Arafat.

The reference to "peace-loving" Israelis is specious. Peace- loving Israelis are listening to hear just one Palestinian voice that genuinely wants to stop the violence. Sharon is listening. All of us are listening. If it is there at all, it may be buried under voices more interested in raising the level of invective than raising the level of understanding.

-- Gerald Fisher, Brantford.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Temple arson sparked move to build peaceful community

2008-02-11T21:21:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Cheryl Stepan
Date: Mar 16, 2002

On Sept. 15, Hamilton got a "wakeup call."

Amid mounting apprehension following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, someone set fire to the Hindu Samaj Temple on Twenty Road East, reducing it to ashes.

That eventually led to a major initiative involving around 50 people from all sectors of the city, from Mayor Bob Wade and the Hamilton police to people in the business sector and religious communities. The goal of the project, called Strengthening Hamilton's Community, is to create a peaceful community that values all its racially diverse parts.

"Hamilton made world news" because of the temple fire, said Gary Warner, chair of Strengthening Hamilton's Community working group and director of the arts and science program at McMaster.

"That was a wakeup call that we do need to address this issue and make sure this kind of thing doesn't happen again."

The temple fire may have seemed like an isolated act to some people but it was terrifying to people in the Muslim community and visible minorities who'd been caught up in hate crimes, said Ali Cheaib, professor at Mohawk College and head of the local chapter of the Canadian Arab Federation.

"It was a clear message that their lives were in danger," he said. "If you were in our shoes, how could you tell otherwise?"

He said some people even hung American flags to try to blend in, "out of fear and not out of conviction. People were scared. They were scared to death," he said.

The launch of Strengthening Hamilton's Community will take place at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Art Gallery of Hamilton.

Warner said they will announce a series of public meetings in different parts of the city where citizens can offer input on how to make Hamilton a more inclusive community.

At the same time, there will be consultations with representatives from different community groups.

The goal is to come up with specific strategies that can address issues of racism, safety, civic leadership and intercultural and interfaith education.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Peaceful protest for Palestine; 700 march in Hamilton demanding Israel withdraw from the West Bank

2008-02-11T21:16:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Suzanne Morrison
Date: Apr 15, 2002

More than 700 demonstrators marched peacefully through downtown Hamilton on Saturday, demanding a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the West Bank.

Elderly women walked in pouring rain, some supported on the arms of their adult children, side by side with couples pushing baby strollers, teenagers and children.

They walked from City Hall to Bay Street, then east along King Street to the State of Israel Bonds office.

Protesters shouted "No justice, no peace."

Some carried or draped themselves in Palestinian flags, others carried placards which read "Bring Sharon to Justice" and "Sharon is a war criminal."

Ariel Sharon is Israel's prime minister.

Before the march began, organizers stressed the protest must be peaceful with no flag burning because the goal was to stop the Israeli army's incursion into Palestine and support a resumption of the peace process.

Police were on hand but their job was limited to traffic control as demonstrators passed calmly through intersections, causing brief delays to Saturday afternoon motorists in the downtown core.

The protest, organized by the Palestinian Arab Association of Hamilton, started with a rally on the steps of city hall.

Mariam Ibrahim, 17, one of the organizers and a Grade 11 student at Barton Secondary School, told the crowd she was in Palestine two months ago and witnessed first-hand her uncle being taken away by Israeli soldiers.

"I watched my uncle being taken away from me in front of my eyes for no reason," she said. "We didn't know where he was going, when he would be back, and nobody gave us any answers. Why doesn't the United States consider that terrorism? That's terrorism," she said.

Ibrahim called on demonstrators to support Palestinians' demands for a complete Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza, the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, the return of all refugees and release of all Palestinian prisoners.

"Call your MPPs, MPs, and write letters, as mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, as human beings. It's the least you can do," Ibrahim said.

Frank Dimant, executive vice-president, B'Nai Brith Canada, said last night the demands outlined by Ibrahim are basically asking for the eradication and elimination of Israel.

"When we talk about return of Palestinian refugees, that's really a code word for the destruction of Israel because it's inconceivable that 3.5 million so-called refugees would be allowed back into Israel," he said.

Dimant said Jerusalem is the united, undivided capital of the state of Israel. "I think starting from those premises, it's very difficult to move forward."

He said he is sorry to see Canadian citizens who, after Sept. 11, protest against any democratic government that is trying to eradicate terrorism.

"Our own Canadian soldiers are fighting in Afghanistan just as Israeli soldiers are fighting in Jenin and Ramallah to ensure there are no more suicide bombers against civilians," he said. "Canada, the United States and Israel are in the same fight and I would expect that all Canadians would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with democracy."

However, at the start of the rally, Abbas Hamade, president of the Islamic Association of Hamilton, said Canada, as a champion of human rights, has a moral obligation to see Israel ceases its violation of Palestinian rights.

Then, an unexpected speaker, Fatima Hassan, emotionally came to the microphone dressed in a homemade sweat-shirt designed as a replica of the Palestinian flag.

Hassan, who has lived in Canada for 34 years and returned home six years ago, urged Palestinians to stick together: "I have cousins and relatives there and I can tell you how humiliated they are by the Israelis. They have been killing the elderly, children and the helpless."

To applause from the crowd, she said: "One day the truth is coming. If nobody is going to help us, God will."

Ali Cheaib, president of the Hamilton chapter of the Canadian Arab Federation, said Palestinians are not begging for anyone's help.

"They need our full understanding of their just cause. That's all they want. Is that too much to ask?" he put to the crowd.

Locally, only Ward 2 Councillor Andrea Horwath -- who was away at a conference -- sent greetings which said she stood with protesters' demands for a just peace and sovereign Palestinian state.

"It's time to sit down and make that dream a reality," Horwath said.

The protest coincided with rallies in other cities around the world.

For example, in Berlin, more than 11,000 demonstrators marched in the city's centre waving Palestinian flags and placards with messages like "Stop the Genocide in Palestine."

Yesterday, American Secretary of State Colin Powell made little progress toward a ceasefire in his talks with Yasser Arafat, who refused to discuss cracking down on militants until the Israeli military pulls out of the West Bank.

American and Palestinian officials are holding further discussions today ahead of an expected second Powell/Arafat meeting tomorrow.

Tens of thousands of people from across the United States are expected to attend a rally in Washington today to demonstrate solidarity with Israel and to declare that its current military operations in the West Bank are part of the global battle against terrorism.

You can contact Suzanne Morrison by e-mail at smorrison@hamiltonspectator.com or at 905-526-3474

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Israel and Palestine: Twin stories of pain and mistrust

2008-02-11T21:11:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Apr 26, 2002

The least we can do to preserve and strengthen our Canadian values is to proactively search for peace and not just hide behind the American shadow in the hopes that a "quick and dirty" U.S. solution is all that is required to restore calm in the Middle East.

The latest round of violence proves again that the Mideast problem is not just about land but a multidimensional tragedy riddled with shady characters and variant circumstances that must be approached diligently and creatively for any initiative to succeed.

The first dimension is a lack of trust between two peoples, each with a claim to one historic land that causes them to distrust and refuse any proposed peace initiative made by one of them to the other.

The second dimension is the absence of a fair-minded peace broker willing to ride the rough seas of internal politics at the expense of finding peace in an area so vital to the world.

The third dimension is a corrupt Palestinian leadership that has wasted tens of millions of donated dollars on building its own infrastructure, including villas, without paying attention to the pain and suffering of the average Palestinian who has yet to find employment besides menial labour inside Israel or in neighbouring settlements.

The fourth and more dangerous dimension is the long, brutal occupation by a country that colonized Palestinian towns. This fuels despair and a sense of injustice among Palestinians and causes them to lash out and inflict mass injuries and even death.

However desperate and anguished Palestinians are, suicide bombing is not serving their cause. On the contrary, suicide attacks on innocent Israelis are immoral and serve extremists on both sides. These extremists would like to see the conflict escalate into an all out war. If an Arab-Israeli war were to break out, the whole area would be transformed into an apocalyptic nightmare.

All this talk of all out war is music to the ears of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Mistakenly convinced that Sharon is one of few leaders who can bring security and stability to their lives, Israelis voted for him fearing the intefadeh and not out of conviction that he was a man of peace. Now both sides are paying the price of a historic mistake.

Not so distant from Sharon, Arafat is playing his cards the way he knows best. His 88-day siege during the 1982 Beirut invasion, by none other than Sharon himself, and the series of cat-and-mouse chases thereafter, have afforded Arafat the experience and tenacity needed to ride a popular wave of support as the underdog and to reconsolidate his hold on power.

With Israeli-Palestinian leadership caught between personal enmity and the hardships of more painful concessions, innocent bystanders on both sides are paying the price.

All this leads me to ask what's next? And how can we end acts of vengeance?

The logical answer is to send international observers to monitor and break the cycle of violence, giving both sides time to grieve and move to more constructive levels of engagement.

Fair-minded international observers can also pinpoint the true aggressor, who could later be revealed to the world for immediate collective action.

The proposal to send international observers is not new. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has recently suggested such a force be sent to the occupied territories as soon as possible to stop further bloodshed.

The only obstacle to implementing this vision is the Israeli refusal to let multinational forces be deployed in the occupied territories for fear of "internationalizing" the conflict and losing its 54-year-old grip on Palestinian lives.

On a parallel front, leaders from all 22 Arab countries recently met in Beirut to declare their acceptance to fully normalizing relations with Israel on condition the latter immediately pulls out of all the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem.

If agreed upon by Israel, the Beirut Declaration can be the base to build an international solution for a peaceful co-existence for both peoples that could last a lifetime.

Ali Cheaib is professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College and an active member of the Arab and Muslim community.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Only Arafat gains from conflict

2008-02-11T21:08:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Date: May 4, 2002

RE: 'Israel and Palestine: Twin stories of pain and mistrust' (April 26).

This column by Ali Cheaib, of The Spectator's Community Editorial Board, is fascinating in what it says and what it omits.

Cheaib is correct in that the endless Palestinian terrorist attacks are brutal, immoral and serve no purpose other than to prolong the conflict.

He is equally correct in labelling the corruption of the Palestinian leadership which is stealing millions of dollars of their own people's money. What he does not do is to identify the connection between those two points.

The real beneficiary of the ongoing Palestinian violence is Yasser Arafat, who has been able to divert attention away from his corruption and to provide an alternate target for those extremists among his own people who might otherwise have arisen against him.

Had Arafat signed a peace treaty with Israel, as offered to him two years ago at Camp David, he would have had a state by now which - - unfortunately for him -- would have meant that he would have to account for his actions before an electorate.

In view of the way Arafat has led his people from the possibility of peace and independence to bloodshed and poverty, it's unlikely he and his colleagues in corruption would ever be re-elected.

As Cheaib puts it ever so well, Arafat has played his cards the way he knows best. Once again, he has brought conflict into the region as he did in Jordan in the '70s and in Lebanon in the '80s. Once again, he has stepped back from the brink of peace, choosing instead to send out the suicide bombers.

And as the cycle repeats itself wherever Arafat has settled, his people's children become "martyrs" while he pockets the cash and sheds crocodile tears.

-- Evelyn Silver, Hamilton.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Community colleges on threshold of change

2008-02-11T21:04:00.002-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Sep 12, 2002

Ontario community colleges are on the verge of a major change to their roles and mandates. The provincial government has recently declared its intention to transform these colleges into more polytechnic-like institutions that would have the capacity to offer four-year bachelor degrees, be more involved in applied research, and also be able to secure outside sources of funding for various programs and create new centres of excellence.

In her April 26, 2001, statement to the Ontario Legislature, Diane Cunningham, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, declared her ministry's newest commitment to Ontario's 25 colleges of arts and technology by saying the government wanted them to become "more flexible, entrepreneurial, responsive and market- driven."

Cunningham's statement came on the eve of the provincial government's $1.2 billion investment into new college and university physical infrastructure to afford post-secondary institutions a smoother transition into the 2003 double cohort, when both Grade 12 and Grade 13 Ontario students will converge on those institutions -- the result of phasing out Grade 13 at the end of this academic year.

All of this comes as part of this revolutionary new charter that calls for a new college system. It would pave the way for its member institutions to become more responsive to the new and rapid technological advancements. This move is predicated by a thriving Ontario knowledge industry that holds great promise to make this province a major global contender in innovation, and strategic and entrepreneurial leadership.

However, the new charter falls short on suggesting ways and means to empower these institutions to re-invent themselves and move into university-style knowledge manufacturing through academic research and theoretical formation -- from the present college-style combined knowledge and skills teaching.

Furthermore, the new charter does not even discuss the implications of such a drastic move and how the government is going to allocate the necessary resources to help these institutions succeed in this endeavour.

There are also other issues that stand in the way for the mandated transition to take place.

Some colleges have shown a high degree of success anticipating change by laying the grounds for a flexible infrastructure that can withstand the pressures of this rapidly changing world of knowledge. Other colleges have been trailing behind due to their rigid and hierarch management style which does not support creativity and innovation.

To be innovative, an institution must have the necessary flexibility, change and knowledge management, entrepreneurship, risk- taking and an open environment that is conducive to fast resolutions of potential issues that can arise in a fast-paced and changing learning environment. Innovative organizations are driven by the originality of their field workers who are in the 'trenches' and in direct contact with their clients who can be supported by a first- class management that has vision and is determined to change the status quo to the better instead of spending the majority of its time reacting to change, rather than anticipating and preparing for it. A first-class management that is not afraid to experiment with new and "out of the box" programs and initiatives can bring excitement and raise the level of interest throughout their institution.

For a smooth transition to an advanced status in higher learning, colleges need to construct an infrastructure that can strike meaningful, long-lasting relationships with industry, to open these colleges to new global contacts and strategic alliances with the outside world.

Some colleges have been unable or reluctant to forge and sustain viable links with industry beyond the co-operative education model, or the donation of some lab equipment, or landing a corporate training contract.

Community colleges have the potential to offer industry low-cost research and development programs that can benefit not only both parties but also the students, who can gain a lot of knowledge, acquire new, real life skills and benefit from possible top-notch employment.

Ontario community colleges and universities have, for a long time, shied away from meeting and discussing issues of mutual interest. So far, both parties have failed to realize they have much to offer one another in terms of cross-programming, research, curriculum and professional development, co-operative learning, collaboration, outsourcing, and other activities and projects that can pave the way for more vibrant learning communities to emerge.

Then they can take a strong hold in a country that is built around collaboration and the sharing of ideas from all segments of society.

Institutions of higher learning, including universities, must contend with these issues. They must try to resolve them so our children can enjoy and benefit from a valuable education -- one that can offer them the advantage of finding the right career at a time of highly competitive job markets that demand much higher knowledge and more varied skill sets than ever before.

Ali Cheaib of Hamilton is a professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Arabs are under attack; After 9-11

2008-02-11T20:56:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Date: Sep 14, 2002

RE: 'Enduring Arab backlash not surprising' (Sept. 11).

Spectator columnist Andrew Dreschel has levelled an assault on Muslims and Arabs which includes, among other things, support for stereotyping, intolerance and what, in my opinion, amounts to hateful speech and racism.

Dreschel cites "the hypocrisy and hedging -- not to overlook pure pleasure in some quarters -- with which the Sept. 11 attacks were greeted in parts of the Islamic world." He then defames most Arabs and Muslims and slaps the face of human-rights and anti-racism proponents by going on to say: "... the fact that our distrust (of Arabs and Muslims) isn't greater is a testament of our culture's tolerance and patience with a part of the planet that is obviously still in decline from its medieval glory days."

That hardly speaks to tolerance.

And his references to hate in "that part of the planet" for the American establishment and the state of Israel are a clearly one- sided view of the Arab-Israeli conflict still awaiting a final and just solution based on the numerous United Nations resolutions.

The Middle East has been in a state of war since 1948 -- the year Israel was created. Since then, the West and the U.S., in particular, have given Israel unwavering military, economic, media - - and even Hollywood -- support, especially during the most atrocious times of war, when tainting the enemy with all sorts of negative characteristics is crucial to win public support.

The West is viewed with a suspicious eye by most of the Arab and Muslim world because it has endured so many covert and overt operations to keep it ruled by dictatorships.

The Arab world sees the West using and abusing Muslim resources for the sake of affording Western citizens a cheaper price at the gas pumps while leaving generations of Palestinians, Iraqis, Kashmiris, Chechnyans, and others without any viable prospects for a dignified and sustainable future.

Some Arabs and Muslims would argue that Dreschel's "modern" societies would have never seen the light of industrialization and great scientific achievements had it not been for the stupendous observations, discoveries, and futuristic scientific and philosophical genius of Muslim and Arab scholars. Or without the constant exploitation of the rich oil reservoirs of Arabia that have been fuelling Western industries for the longest time and still account for more than 60 per cent of the West's energy consumption.

Arabs and Muslims in Canada and elsewhere were horrified by the 9- 11 tragedy. They were hit in the core of their inner selves to learn that a few deranged and misguided criminals had perpetrated one of the most heinous crimes in history. Dreschel cites a poll indicating that some 60 per cent of Arabs and Muslims refuse to accept that the 9-11 crimes were perpetrated by their kinsmen. But such denial doesn't mean that they have -- and are ashamed of -- some disgusting and awful relationship with al-Qaeda.

The sad scene of a few ignorant idiots (out of 1.2 billion Muslims and Arabs) in the streets of Pakistan and Gaza, applauding the killing of innocent civilians, was sensationalized, while the many outbursts of official and public condemnation from all over the Muslim and Arab world were virtually disregarded. Some suggest this was indicative of a media attempt to highlight negativity instead of focusing on demonstrated Muslim support for the families of the 9- 11 victims.

Perhaps the most heart-wrenching, post-9-11 development are the calls for ethnic profiling, sure to make the lives of most, if not all, Canadians with darker complexions true nightmares. Racial profiling cannot always be conducted according to one's place of birth listed on his/her travelling document. This inhumane practice can make an immediate suspect of a great many innocent Canadians who have yet to gain their basic rights in a normal life and enjoy "no more staring at the colour of my face" in a country they love and cherish, and would fight for and protect with their own flesh.

The Spectator is one of many organizations and individuals in Hamilton searching for ways to eradicate racism and strengthen the community through positive and responsible dialogue between its ethnically and religiously diverse people. That should be on everyone's agenda.

-- Ali Cheaib, president,

Hamilton Chapter,

Canadian Arab Federation.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

It's not for U.S. to rid Iraq of Saddam but his own people

2008-02-11T20:52:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib
Date: Jan 17, 2003

Can someone please explain to me what the United States means when it vehemently requests of Iraq to "proactively co-operate" with the United Nations weapon inspectors?

The latest rhetoric on Iraq is disgusting. What the U.S. is essentially saying is that although Iraq seems to be fully co- operating with the latest UN resolution, they have to do a lot more. Well, what more can the Iraqis do?

To the Iraq-crazed U.S. administration, proactive maybe means that the government of Iraq has to roll out the red carpet and throw daily cocktail parties every time an inspection team enters a new location.

Or better yet, why not have the Iraqis borrow some of the stockpiled weapons of mass destruction, including some nukes, from Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon just for a few hours to make the U.S. feel better and find the ever-elusive smoking gun they are so in need of to jump into Baghdad.

The U.S. administration's worst nightmare is exactly what they want us to believe they want: a more co- operative Iraq.

It is true that the military campaign against Iraq has not officially started yet but another more important war has been raging for some time between the two countries.

Experts in the rapidly growing field of strategic studies refer to it as information warfare. U.S. strategic planners' immediate objective for this type of warfare is chiefly to win more public opinion in friendly Western countries like Britain, Canada, Germany, and France in their quest to bomb Saddam Hussein out of Iraq.

U.S. attempts to get more parties on board is easier said than done as more governments and citizens are voicing their distrust and discontent with American tactics that can be safely described as pure bullying. It is proving to be much more difficult than ever before for British Prime Minister Tony Blair to sell Bush's war on Iraq even to his own cabinet, let alone his party and constituents.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schrder seems to be in a similar spot since his people voted him back in largely on the promise that he stays away from any future attacks on Iraq.

The same goes for French President Jacques Chirac, who has yet to find a way to appease the U.S. without risking a public outcry.

The majority of Canadians are against a war on Iraq if not backed by a unanimous UN resolution and solid evidence of the existence of weapons of mass destruction. Prime Minister Jean Chrtien is right in his reluctance to blindly endorse the American plan of action. It is quite possible, as the U.S. war drums become noisier, that our government will cave in and support Bush in his war against Iraq.

The odds of our troops joining in the killing frenzy are quite high, even when Iraq has done us no wrong and even when in our heart of hearts we doubt U.S. intentions.

We live in a world that is being threatened by the aggressiveness and irrational behaviour of an injured superpower. The U.S. administration seems to be hijacked by a posse of fanatics using the post-9/11 world order to bully other nations and force them to follow an antiquated moral compass that can only lead to more death and destruction.

The people of Canada respect U.S. safety and security needs and have courageously stood by their neighbour and empathized with the victims of the 9/11 attacks in many ways. But, by the same token, we cannot -- and must not -- give our neighbour a carte blanche to wreak more havoc on a country already devastated by 12 years of heavy economic sanctions that have left tens of thousands of Iraqi children to ail and die in the worst of health conditions.

Saddam may be the worst of men. However, it is up to his people to depose him. Yes, we can help and empower them to do so but that may take more creative thinking.

Let us first help the Iraqis feed themselves properly. Let us help them get better educated. Let us improve their crippled health and sanitary infrastructures. Let us Canadians, once again, show the whole world our dedication to peace and basic human rights and stop this travesty from gaining more momentum.

Ali Cheaib of Hamilton is a professor of computer science and information technology at Mohawk College and an active member of the Arab and Muslim community.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Parties woo Arab community

2008-02-11T20:47:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Dan Nolan
Date: Sep 22, 2003

Mohammed (Mike) Reda is the kind of voter an Ontario political party would love to have.

A successful businessman who owns a chain of 18 convenience stores in the Hamilton area, he sees his vote as a cherished right and says nothing will keep him from the polling booth on election day.

"I feel it is my national duty to vote and I feel every Canadian should vote, no matter where they are from," says Reda, 50, who got his citizenship in 1995, three years after emigrating from Lebanon. "I want my vote to count."

The strong possibility he is one of a huge block of votes that will support a particular party because good things are said about it in the local Lebanese community is even better for the party's electoral chances.

There are about 5,000 Lebanese-Canadians in the Hamilton area, but the expected block vote doesn't end there. They are part of the 12,000 people who are members of the Arab-Canadian community in Hamilton and they all get together to play, pray, and talk politics. In many cases, elders or those influential in the Arab community are listened to as to which party should receive a person's vote. "Many politicians are very interested in talking to us so we can support them in one way or another," said Ali Cheaib, a native of Lebanon who is president of the Hamilton chapter of the Arab-Canadian Federation.

"People trust one or two people in the community and, in some cases, take their word for granted," he admitted. "But we hope as the community matures, people will make their own judgment."

New Canadians have long had a special role in Canadian politics. They've been approached and stroked for the last century by parties to help build or maintain an electoral base. Elections Ontario, recognizing the diverse makeup of the province, has launched two initiatives to ensure new Canadians whose mother tongue is not English can understand the election process and vote. It has produced householders in 17 languages and will have voting instructions posted in 15 languages on Oct. 2.

Meanwhile, the Conservatives say they'll create an Ontario immigration service to screen out bad elements from coming to the province and focus on bringing in immigrants to fill such things as doctor vacancies. Roman March, a political science professor at McMaster University, said new Canadians are attractive to political parties because they can provide huge voting rewards. In some ridings, a specific immigrant population can make up 40 per cent of the population. March said the Liberals have always benefited from immigration, but the Conservatives have learned a few lessons. Out west, he said, Ukrainians turned against the Liberals over the issue of the former Soviet Union and the Tories have attracted Pakistanis who don't like to see the Liberal government be too friendly with India.

"In Hamilton, the Liberals have been able to maintain that ethnic support, although it is weakening," said March. "But the Liberals still have the majority." He said the Conservatives haven't done themselves any favours with their immigration policy, which hasn't been well received by new Canadians. Still, the party has attracted two members of the Pakistani community to run as candidates in Hamilton.

March said the Conservatives have opted to maintain their core base of supporters who believe crime is linked to immigration. "They've written off the immigrant community. They're falling back on their small town base."

Mark Mullins, Conservative candidate for Ancaster-Dundas- Flamborough-Aldershot, denies that.

Premier Ernie Eves, at a Spectator editorial board meeting, also said there was nothing negative about the policy.

dnolan@thespec.com or 905-526-3351.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Apology can end the discord

2008-02-11T20:44:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Ali Cheaib, Hamilton
Date: Mar 31, 2005

RE: 'A whiff of agenda bias,' (letters, March 29)

Contrary to Canadian Jewish Congress CEO Bernie Farber's claim that there was nothing wrong with the Hamilton police chief's recent trip to Israel, the controversy actually stems from the fact that it was paid for almost entirely by a special interest group.

The trip surely was not part of a Hamilton police service or other provincial or federal law enforcement agency's program to hone our chief's skills to fight problems facing our community, such as the spread of crack cocaine, violence and prostitution in our streets.

Brian Mullan's trip was not part of a training program at world- renowned law enforcement institutions like the FBI or Scotland Yard.

Mullan and his colleagues' infamous visit to Israel was intended to be used as propaganda by Canadian supporters of the Jewish state, to help it gain international legitimacy for the effort to fight Palestinian resistance to a rather nasty occupation.

Israel's police service and internal security apparatus (Shabbak), infamous for having some of the world's highest violators of human rights, has consistently been accused by human rights advocacy groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch of deploying physical and mental torture to extract information from Arab detainees.

Is that the model Hamilton police service wants to emulate?

I truly doubt that and consider the entire trip to have been ill- advised. As such, we expect the chief to issue a public apology in due time to, once and for all, put this issue to rest.

I truly hope this will never happen again, as Israel is Israel and Canada is Canada and the two have two totally different sets of moral values.

* The writer is president of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs (HCCA).

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

The desire to live in peace

2008-02-11T20:40:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Harold Pomerantz, Dundas
Date: Apr 1, 2005

Police chief Brian Mullan has nothing to apologize for. He has no one but his own police board to consult when he undertakes any trip on police business.

That takes a lot of nerve, or "chutzpah," for individuals or groups to believe they can veto the travel plans of the police chief travelling with other senior police officers from across Canada.

I suppose Ali Cheaib, president of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs and Ann Holubeshen who writes "for the Palestinian community of Hamilton" will now want the police chief to visit the leaders of Palestinian terrorist organizations for the terrorists' perspective to fighting terrorism.

Despite Mr. Cheaib's contrary opinion Canada and Israel have very much in common. They are both democracies committed to fighting terrorism. There is an active free-trade agreement between them. The citizens of both countries would like to live in peace and safety.

Israel has been fighting for its survival for 50 years and despite opinions to the contrary, Israel has supported the human rights of its citizens and even its enemies.

When violations are found, the offenders are punished by an independent judicial system.

Canadians visiting Israel would feel at home there. They too form a multi-cultural society which should be able to live without fear that they may be blown apart by a terrorist's bomb.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Hamilton Arabs, Muslims and Jews get together to ... just talk

2008-02-11T20:35:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Lorne Finkelstein and Ali Cheaib
Date: Feb 20, 2006

Hamiltonians are not immune to the impact of events occurring in the Middle East, so far from Canada. That was exemplified by the breakdown of civil debate at a public meeting in September of the Hamilton police board. The subject was a trip to Israel by Police Chief Brian Mullan.

But out of the ashes of that dreadful example of vile rhetoric was born a new committee, subsequently called the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim & Jewish Dialogue.

The invitation by one of the authors of this article, Lorne Finkelstein, to several community leaders of these groups to come together was quickly and courageously accepted. Within a few days of that meeting, this new committee was formed.

The members include the following people:

* Ali Cheaib - president, Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs

* Gerry Fisher - executive director, Hamilton Jewish Federation

* Javid Mirza - president, Muslim Association of Hamilton

* Khaled Balika - vice-president, Muslim Association of Hamilton

* Hussein Hamdani - Founder & Chair of Ihya Foundation

* Lorne Finkelstein - Hamilton Jewish Federation representative at Strengthening Hamilton's Community Initiative, the city's anti- racist group chaired by the mayor.

While our members disagreed about what ultimately caused the unruly behaviour at that police board meeting, we all agreed the nature of those discussions was intolerable. Despite our differing views, we all understood that reasonably discussed opinions on either side of the debate were prevented from being expressed at that meeting.

We immediately established that events in the Middle East, while important to all of us, must not interfere with how our communities function together as Hamiltonians and as Canadians. We vowed that our divergent political views would not divert us from developing a framework to promote respectful dialogue amongst ourselves and our organizations. We unanimously rejected any use of inciteful and demonizing rhetoric.

After our first meeting's results were reported back to our respective organizations, we received their approval and support to proceed. We have met monthly since September 2005, despite some members of each of our communities expressing their skepticism and even disapproval of this committee's purpose.

We have learned much about and from each other. Members of the organizations represented by Ali Cheaib, Javid Mirza and Khaled Balika include Arabs, non-Arabs, Muslims of different sects and Christians. The Jewish members of the organization represented by Gerry Fisher also have differing views on issues.

These leaders must balance the diverging experiences and opinions of their memberships. Hussein Hamdani's Muslim organization of young people is dedicated to respectful dialogue with others. Lorne Finkelstein is consolidating the various political positions within the group to present them in a unified format.

Our personal respect for each other has allowed us to understand each other's differing viewpoints. We have come together for dinner and a few of us have met for coffee just to get to know each other better.

We have dealt with sensitive issues, always in a respectful manner. One such issue is being discussed now and we are optimistic that we will develop a decision about this topic that will satisfy the sensitivities of most of our members.

After we developed confidence in each other, we agreed it was time for the executive members of our organizations to meet each other. A little over a week ago, on Feb. 7, our committee sponsored a first for Hamilton, and as far as we are aware, a first for Canada. We held a "joint executives" meeting.

The executives, or their delegates, of the Muslim Association of Hamilton, the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs, the Hamilton Jewish Federation, and Ihya Foundation came together to meet each other, learn about the organizations' roles, and the background of each of the 20 delegates to this meeting.

The Jewish delegates learned about the diversity of each member of the Arab and Muslim groups and what issues are sensitive to them.

The Arab and Muslims delegates learned about how Hamilton Jews perceive "demonizing" rhetoric against Israel, in contrast to appropriately discussed opinions, as a form of anti-Semitism.

We all agreed the dialogue committee had initiated the format for raising and discussing issues sensitive to our communities and that this committee should continue as the frontline in developing discussion points for the "Joint Executives" members to discuss when such sensitive issues arise.

Everyone verbalized the need for these organizations to continue such respectful dialogue and the need for our communities to work together frequently.

Our mutual hope is that repeated Joint Executives meetings will occur regularly, to allow these representatives to get to know each other personally, as our dialogue members have.

We have learned that it is through such personal contact we eventually develop the mutual trust and understanding that is required when sensitive topics arise.

We all have our own passions about Middle East events, but we all agree these events must not disrupt our own relationships in Hamilton.

We understand that some members of our own communities may have skeptical views about our activities.

Most importantly, we all agreed there is no place for inciteful, hateful rhetoric.

The successful completion of this collaborative submission speaks volumes about how our committee has put aside our political differences in favour of strengthening ties between our respective communities.

Lorne Finkelstein and Ali Cheaib write on behalf of the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim, and Jewish Dialogue.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Group merger forms Centre for Inclusion; Will focus on fighting racism using education

2008-02-11T20:27:00.000-05:00

What began as a rallying cry against racism in the wake of a shocking hate crime has been transformed into a permanent centre for respect, justice and inclusion.

The Strengthening Hamilton's Community Initiative has officially become the Centre for Civic Inclusion.

The accomplishments of the old and the vision for the new were celebrated at a community roundtable last night.

"This is a kind of birthing," said Winston Tinglin, a founding member of the SHCI who chaired the transition committee.

SHCI and an immigrant resource centre in the works at the Settlement and Integration Services Organization (SISO) since 1998 have merged together to create the new project.

"The resource centre was a big piece of what SHCI wanted to do in the future. It made much better sense to merge the two ideas because they're so complementary," said Tinglin.

"This is a great convergence," echoed Dr. Gary Warner, who has been involved with both initiatives. "Both will be enriched by the blending of the two."

The first charter memberships were signed by participants at last night's meeting, which opened and closed with traditional native ceremonies.

The centre will focus on anti-racism through public education and helping organizations build inclusiveness, said Tinglin.

The new centre recently got a $125,000 grant from the city. An interim governing committee is in place and plans are in the works to hire an executive director next month. A permanent location has not been determined, but the centre will be temporarily housed within the SISO offices in LIUNA Station.

SHCI was formed out of the arson attack on a Hindu temple in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Since then, its work has led to the creation of the Youth Anti-Racism Network, the Hamilton Media Advisory Council and the Hamilton Police Service Diversity Advisory Council.

The initiative has also worked with faith, race and ethnic groups to identify barriers and train leaders.

"This is an earnest and honest attempt to relate to each other as human beings," said Mayor Larry Di Ianni, who chairs SHCI's community roundtable.

"This is not going to solve all the problems of the world or of the city, but we're going to try."

Founders of SHCI -- former mayor Bob Wade, Javid Mirza, past president of the Hamilton Muslim Association and Ali Cheaib, president of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs -- were recognized for their contributions.

"People who traditionally don't talk are now talking to each other," said Cheaib.

Jews, Muslims unite in song; Peace concert Nov. 12 at Hamilton Place

2008-02-11T20:19:00.001-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont.
Author: Sharon Boase
Date: Sep 23, 2006

After the bloody and bitter war between Israel and Lebanon, Jews and Muslims in Hamilton have turned to their youngsters to renew their hope and show them the way forward.

A newly formed choir of Arab, Muslim and Jewish children is in rehearsals, practising songs of peace, unity and friendship that they will perform Nov. 12 at Hamilton Place.

They will open an evening promoting peace between Jews and Muslims featuring Judea Pearl, father of slain Jewish American journalist Daniel Pearl, and Islamic scholar Akbar Ahmed.

With the start of the holiest of Islamic and Jewish holidays expected to coincide this weekend (Ramadan begins when the new moon crescent is seen), the choir's rehearsals have taken on a powerful symbolic significance.

"When I met the parents of these kids who were there for the first meeting, I was amazed at how excited they all were," said Dr. Lorne Finkelstein, a key organizer in bringing the Daniel Pearl Dialogue for Muslim-Jewish Understanding to Steeltown.

"To me, the message is that the voices of our children will drown out those people who still want to talk with anger and inciteful rhetoric," Finkelstein said.

Founder of the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim & Jewish Dialogue, Finkelstein turned to a fellow committee member, Arab community leader Ali Cheaib, to help assemble a choir that would reflect the diversity of Hamilton's Muslim community.

At first, Cheaib ran into roadblocks. The families he approached were all still glued to their TV sets, trying to grasp the devastation that had been wrought on Lebanon. They didn't have a problem with their kids singing with Jewish kids, Cheaib said.

They had a problem with their kids singing. It just didn't seem right. So Cheaib turned to his friend Morteza Jafarpour, executive director of the city's Settlement and Integration Services Organization.

"It's not about religion or ethnicity or what part of the world you're from," Jafarpour said. "These are children and they are together having fun and, deep down, they don't care about who is what."

Laura Wolfson, an educator and cantor at Temple Anshe Sholom, is leading the 26-member choir. She said that, while working with the youth, she finds herself thinking again and again of the adage that children are our future.

"They are inheriting a world where there are so many tensions -- and none more than now," Wolfson said. "But it's harder to hate someone in your heart when you've met them and had fun together. It's easy to hate a people when you don't know that people."

'Things are really bad here but my family and I are fine,' says Hamilton man awaiting rescue

2008-02-07T14:30:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Author: Rakshande Italia Date: Jul 19, 2006

A Hamilton champion of Arab-Jewish dialogue finds himself in the midst of the latest war between the two sides in Lebanon.

Ali Cheaib and his wife, vacationing in Lebanon, are scrambling for their lives, awaiting rescue by ships chartered by the Canadian government.

The president of the Hamilton chapter of the Council of Canadian Arabs finally responded Monday to several frantic e-mails from Gerald Fisher, executive director of the Hamilton Jewish Federation, saying he was "safe."

"Things are really bad here but my family and I are fine," the Lebanese Canadian wrote.

"We have fled to safer areas because we are awaiting orders by our government."

The federal government is sending seven ships to rescue nearly 25,000 Canadians.

The e-mail goes on, "Power cuts are the order of the day which have prevented me from from checking my e-mail."

It ends, "Hope to see you soon."

That last line is especially important, said Fisher, who is praying for a happy ending to the Cheaib story.

Ironically, the Middle East conflict has brought the two Hamilton communities closer.

And if communication and open dialogue between the two was the goal of the local Muslim and Jewish associations, they seem to have achieved that -- even as grenades and rockets on both sides have killed hundreds in the war.

Almost a year ago, the Muslim Association of Hamilton and Hamilton Jewish Federation decided on an inter-faith committee that would foster mutual respect and understanding despite the venom often spewed abroad.

"We've had a dialogue with many members of the Muslim community and I've become fond of them," said Fisher, who added that the Muslim Arab Jewish committee meets often to discuss international events and their local ramifications.

The committee met Monday and decided to portray a unanimous front.

A joint statement released yesterday reads, "To most Canadians, the current violence in the Middle East seems to be a world away. However, for those of us with family friends and loved ones in danger, this frightening situation exists right in the middle of our hearts."

Javid Mirza, one of the local community leaders present at the meeting, said differences on the political situation exist, as will different opinions, but despite that they should communicate with one another.

"We are also concerned that the escalating violence in the Middle East somehow could manifest itself here in our Canadian homes and neighbourhoods, and we want to prevent that at all costs," said Ejaz Butt of the Hamilton Muslim Association.

However, the organizations have different views on the way the Harper government has handled the situation there.

While Butt said Harper should have taken quicker action, Fisher doesn't wish to comment on the government's handling of the situation.

But many in the local Lebanese community are upset that Harper called Israel's response to Hezbollah "measured." A local Hamiltonian and McMaster student, Tarek Karam, of Peace Cry, held a peace march yesterday and has pictures of dead bodies on a website with the question, "Measured?" Similar marches by the organization were also held in Montreal and Australia, protesting Canada's stance.

"One day after Harper said the attacks on Hezbollah were measured, we had seven Canadians killed in the war," said Karam.

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

THE ANGRY PEACEMAKER: Ali Cheaib rages at Israel's devastation of his Lebanese homeland. But he doesn't want to let that stand in the way of building

2008-02-07T14:21:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Author: Dana Borcea Date: Aug 24, 2006

A few days after his evacuation from Beirut, Ali Cheaib is holding court in his east Mountain living room.

He's called yet another meeting to discuss how to help those he left behind.

Men shuffling papers shake their heads gravely.

Behind them, women huddle around the television, stunned by pictures of rubble transmitted live from Lebanon.

Everyone here worries about a loved one back home.

The room is heavy with anxiety. But also expectation.

Then the bombing stopped and the rebuilding began.

Now what?

As one of Hamilton's most vocal and visible Arab leaders, Cheaib is charged with answering that question for a stunned and devastated community.

The list begins predictably enough.

Lobby governments to work for a lasting peace. Collect aid. Help settle evacuees coming to Hamilton.

But for Cheaib, on vacation from his teaching duties at Mohawk College, the list goes on.

The president of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs now has to sit down to talk with people some consider enemies.

Last September the Hamilton Police Services Board called an open forum to help air citizens' views on police Chief Brian Mullan's controversial trip to Israel.

As the meeting spiralled out of control, Cheaib locked eyes with local Jewish leader Lorne Finkelstein, standing quietly nearby.

The two were acquainted through the Strengthening Hamilton's Community Initiative (SHCI).

The anti-racism committee was launched after the torching of a local Hindu temple in the days following the 9/11 terrorist attacks and gathered leaders from around the city to promote tolerance.

Cheaib and Finkelstein, a local cardiologist representing the Hamilton Jewish Federation, had butted heads around the SHCI table.

"I can't exactly label it," Finkelstein later said. "But there was a definite tension."

At the forum, both men dropped their heads in shame as shouting from both camps filled the room.

* * *

The next day, Cheaib and other faith leaders met with Finkelstein in his downtown office. By the end of the meeting the half-dozen men had formed a new group called the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue.

They agreed to help their respective communities start trading perspectives instead of insults.

They committed to clearing the swamp of the suspicions that separated them.

To melt their mutual coolness, Cheaib and Finkelstein started meeting privately for breakfast on Sundays.

Over coffee and pastries -- croissants for Cheaib, chocolate cupcakes for Finkelstein -- the two men made inroads.

Cheaib heard about Finkelstein's experiences with anti-Semitism in Canada as well as "why so many Jews hold Israel close to their hearts."

"The Holocaust has changed their level of trust toward others," Cheaib later explained. "Israel gives them a sense of belonging and security."

Cheaib adds this is a difficult notion for many, including himself, who come from a region where Israel's 1948 declaration of independence is commonly referred to as nakba -- the Arabic word for catastrophe.

When talk turned to politics and Cheaib found himself raising his voice or Finkelstein's breathing grew too raspy, they would pull back a little.

"Sure we disagree about everything, but it's not an exercise in futility," insists Cheaib, who seemed to almost enjoy the sparring.

"It's nice to disagree with someone. And it's nice to be listened to."

The two men grew closer. They made peace.

And then a war broke out.

* * *

This summer, almost two decades after fleeing his troubled homeland, Cheaib, 40, returned to Lebanon for a family vacation only to find himself trapped in a war all over again when fighting erupted between Israel and Hezbollah militants July 12.

Cheaib spent the next two weeks holed up in a highrise in Beirut with his wife, mother and two nephews.

As jets flew overhead and bombs exploded within earshot, the family made as many as a dozen trips a day down the stairs to a makeshift basement bomb shelter.

Cheaib spent much of his time glued to his computer trying to connect with the outside world.

Among those trying to reach him was Finkelstein.

When bombs started falling in Beirut, Finkelstein sent his new friend several anxious e-mails expressing his hope for Cheaib and his family's safe return.

Privately, he had another wish.

"I just hoped he wouldn't come back filled with hate."

* * *

Cheaib does not hide his resentment.

He speaks openly about his anger against Israel and the devastation it has brought his homeland. He is also keenly aware that for many, the miseries of war fuel hatred, annihilate hope and cement suspicion.

But Cheaib insists he won't fall prey to that cycle.

"Now I know the dialogue has to continue because I have seen the alternative."

On Monday, the dialogue group met for the first time since Cheaib's evacuation.

It was business as usual. The group spent two hours working out logistics for an upcoming event. In November the dialogue group is bringing Judea Pearl, father of the murdered Jewish journalist Daniel Pearl, and Islamic scholar Akbar Ahmed, to Hamilton for a presentation on the divisions between Jews and Muslims and the dialogue necessary to overcome them.

The men hashed out venue and budget issues but ignored the elephant in the room.

The subject of Cheaib's recent ordeal in a war that has claimed almost 1,500 lives was off-limits. Members have pledged not to allow events in the Middle East to colour their work.

But Cheaib knows it's a bullet they cannot dodge forever.

Soon he will meet privately with some of the members, including his new friend and ardent Israel-supporter, Finkelstein, to tackle the subject of war head-on.

"We have two emotionally charged communities here," says Cheaib. "And we have to be aware of that."

* * *

Sitting on his plush living room couch, Cheaib is trying to focus on a conversation. But his six-year-old nephew, Rami, distracts him as he clambers on his lap, vying for attention.

Rami plays with the three stubs on his uncle's right hand and giggles.

Cheaib lost the fingers as a teenager in Beirut when he was caught in the crossfire of a shootout while sitting in the passenger seat of a car.

"It always makes him laugh," says Cheaib, a mischievous grin spreading across his moon-shaped face as he wiggles the stubs to his nephew's delight.

This is not the first time Cheaib has transformed war into spectacle for his nephew.

Last month, when they were trapped in Beirut together, Cheaib told Rami the explosions were fireworks, set off in honour of his favourite soccer team.

"Italia!" he would shout, raising his arms over his head, whenever the rumbling threatened to frighten the little boy.

He complains his nephew, who barely leaves his side, exhausts him. But within minutes, it is Rami who falls asleep inside the fold of his uncle's arm.

* * *

Cheaib demonstrated his leadership qualities early in life.

He was born into a prominent Shiite Muslim family, but attended Catholic schools where he received a French education.

The son of a Lebanese colonel, Cheaib took after his father as a go-to person for people needing connections and help.

His wife Ghada, a Hamilton settlement worker, remembers watching her then-fiance scrambling in Beirut from bakery to bakery to find bread for friends and family when food was scarce during Lebanon's protracted civil war.

His drive to help others is a quality few who know him fail to mention.

Cheaib eventually fled the war-ravaged country, arriving in Hamilton in his mid-20s.

Ghazi Harb, owner of the popular Lebanese restaurant chain, La Luna, ran a restaurant at King and Victoria streets popular with Lebanese newcomers.

He remembers his first impressions of the recently arrived Cheaib.

"He stood out," says Harb. "He was always surrounded by people."

Cheaib quickly found work as a programmer analyst at Mohawk College and turned his attention to helping other newcomers.

"When people would come to Canada, they would always go to him," remembered Harb.

* * *

When he first arrived in Hamilton, Cheaib was struck by the quiet civility of his new Canadian neighbours. But he was also irked by the subtle bigotry he saw slipping through the cracks.

Back then, some people saw Muslims as "dark skinned, camel herding, terrorists," he recalls.

But it was the attacks of 9/11 and their aftermath in Hamilton that spurred Cheaib into action.

Sickened by the attacks, Cheaib resolved to get the message out that "the mainstream Muslim world was against what happened."

Others disagreed.

When the Hindu temple was firebombed, most believed it had been mistaken for a mosque.

Women wearing hijabs started getting spat on.

"People in the community stopped identifying themselves as Muslim," Cheaib recalls.

Cheaib was heartened by the banner hoisted by other faith leaders that read, "An attack on one, is an attack on all."

But he felt that local Arab Muslims had to do more.

"As a community, we were not active at the time," says Cheaib, who decided then and there to step up and be counted.

"9/11 created leaders," says Abbas Hamade, a trustee and former president of the Hamilton Islamic Centre, a mosque on Upper Gage Avenue which boasts the city's largest Lebanese membership. "It brought our hidden leaders to the surface."

"They preached about the importance of coming out and being visible so that we are not looked at as a people who do not want to participate in every aspect of life. Cheaib helped to show people that we were secluded, that Hamilton did not know who we are."

* * *

If 9/11 helped forge Cheaib's leadership, the recent war in Lebanon will certainly test it.

Not everyone in his community supports the idea of the dialogue group.

Some even flat-out oppose it.

"The war has weakened the support for the dialogue group from both (Jewish and Arab) sides," he says.

He's heard mounting cynicism from some within his community who are doubtful that "any of this will make a difference."

But despite their objections, Cheaib is eager for Hamilton to see Arabs reaching out and building bridges. He says he is doing it for them.

He also appears to be putting his foot down and saying, "we're going to try this my way now."

Cheaib does not shy away from his contempt for Israel's role in this war and even praises Hezbollah's recent resistance.

And he plans to express those views when he sits back down with his friend Finkelstein and others from the dialogue group.

The point, he says, is to keep talking.

"How is this ever going to end? By putting more walls up?," he asks. "People have to understand that we cannot cancel each other out. If we're saying we're Canadian and we want to do it differently, we should be creative enough to figure out how."

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

Lebanon evacuation costs hit $85m

2008-02-07T14:12:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Author: Daniel Nolan Date: Sep 21, 2006

The evacuation of about 15,000 Canadians from Lebanon during the Hezbollah-Israel conflict is reported to have cost taxpayers $85 million.

Canada hired several ships and chartered aircraft to ferry about one-third of the estimated 50,000 Canadians living in Lebanon to safety between July 19 and mid-August.

But sources have told CTV News about the cost and also that about 7,000 evacuees have returned to Lebanon since hostilities ended between Israel and the guerrilla group. The government won't comment.

The revelation has led Halton Conservative MP Garth Turner to call for revamping citizenship rules because taxpayers "have every right in the world to be ticked at what happened."

The head of the Hamilton Council of Canadian Arabs, who is from Lebanon, said Turner's comment have racist undertones and that he wouldn't be making any remarks if "it wasn't Arabs/Muslims."

"Some of these people want to treat us as second-class citizens," said Ali Cheaib, who was visiting Lebanon at the time of the outbreak of hostilities and was evacuated by ship at the end of July.

Last night, Turner dismissed the accusation that his comment was racist with a profanity.

"There's nothing racist about this at all," he said. "This is an issue of dual citizenship that we haven't looked at before because we have never run into this kind of problem before. It could have been a number of countries where we have dual citizens."

About 50 families -- 200 people -- made their way to Hamilton from Lebanon. The Settlement and Integration Services Organization made plans to deal with 1,000 evacuees.

Cheaib said he's aware of one man returning to Lebanon since hostilities ended because he had unfinished business.

As a rule, Canada asks citizens to reimburse the government for their evacuation from foreign lands but decided in this case taxpayers would foot the bill.

Turner noted he'd raised questions about spending taxpayers' money to rescue those in Lebanon during the evacuation. He said the latest revelation raises new questions.

"Do we have a responsibility to rescue anyone with a maple leaf passport, even if they have moved out of Canada and will never return?" he asked.

"The money is gone. Let's move on. Let's examine this issue of dual citizenship so we don't have this situation happening again somewhere else in the world. I'd say the course of action now is to get this issue into a House of Commons committee ."

Cheaib said many Lebanese-Canadians try to maintain a home or apartment in Lebanon because of an attachment to their mother country. He said many make one or two return trips a year.

Cheaib said evacuees were not put up in luxury hotels, but spent nights in gyms on mats. He said they were crammed in ships, transferred from one location to another and returned to Canada on cheap flights.

He said he travelled to Cyprus on a vessel chartered by the Canadian and Australian governments. The ship could only hold 250 people "and it was not a luxury cruise by any stretch of the imagination."

"That was fine with me," he said. "I'm very thankful to the government for doing what they have done."

Cheaib said if anyone questions the cost, maybe Canada should look at billing Israel, which shelled and bombed Lebanon to get at guerrillas.

"They should not only be given the bill for this, but for the rebuilding of Lebanon," said Cheaib.

"I think our friend Garth should maybe try to find a creative solution along those lines."

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator with files from Canadian Press

Two men, one goal: No hatred

2008-02-07T14:09:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Author: Jon Wells Date: Nov 10, 2006

Thousands have died, and continue to die, from terrorism and warfare since 9/11. But it is one father's anger over a single death that is the reason a Jew and a Muslim will take the stage at Hamilton Place at 7 p.m. Sunday.

In the audience will be people of all faiths, including two local men who have been on their own journey of understanding, have also been trying to bridge a seemingly unbridgeable chasm.

The roots of Sunday's event started the day Judea Pearl learned the fate of his son, Daniel. Judea was at his home in Encino, near Los Angeles. Danny, a journalist with the Wall Street Journal, had gone missing while on assignment in Pakistan in late January 2002.

A month had passed, and now, in February, out the front window Judea saw the FBI agent walk up to the door.

Nothing new about that -- ever since Danny disappeared, agents babysat Judea and his wife, Ruth, gave them updates. Perhaps Danny would be spared by the Islamic militants who abducted him in Karachi.

This time, though, Judea reflected, the agents wore long faces.

Danny had been murdered, beheaded, his body cut into ten pieces. Among his last words, on video, were: "I am a Jew." He was 38 years old, his wife was expecting their first child in a few months. It was a boy.

How does a father deal with unspeakable loss and rage? Crawl inside himself? Judea did not hide. Nor did he disappear into his work -- he is a science professor at UCLA, an expert in artificial intelligence.

"I wanted to take revenge against the hatred that took his life," Pearl told The Hamilton Spectator in an interview from his home. "I'm not a pacifist. But the most effective way is education and dialogue."

He put his face and name out there for everyone to see, launching the Daniel Pearl Foundation, and a series of public dialogues with a prominent Muslim scholar and statesman named Akbar Ahmed. The Daniel Pearl Dialogues have taken the pair to 12 cities in the U.S., Europe, and Canada. At each appearance both men give presentations, then sit down to talk, and finally have a question and answer period with the crowd.

" I feel compelled to do it, it's not a matter of choice," said Pearl. "Danny was a beacon of humanity and good will, I feel his spirit needs to have continuation."

The Hamilton Place dialogue is open to anyone to attend, and is free. The evening will open with song from a children's choir of all faiths and backed by the Hamilton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra.

The journey Pearl and Ahmed have taken, trying to understand each other as they try to educate, has a parallel in Hamilton with the one taken by Ali Cheaib and Lorne Finkelstein, leaders in the local Arab and Jewish communities.

Last year amid increasing religious tension in the city, they met with local faith representatives and formed a group called the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue.

Cheaib and Finkelstein started to meet privately on their own for breakfasts to talk. The relationship was going well when Cheaib went on a family vacation to Lebanon last summer. In July, Israel bombed Hezbollah militants, Cheaib was caught in the line of fire, trapped in a high-rise in Beirut with his wife, mother and two nephews.

Cheaib made it home alive. The harrowing experience did not get in the way of his relationship with Finkelstein. Within a few weeks of his return he visited Finkelstein at his home for a chat. Their shared goal is not to fundamentally change each other's views, but to talk with civility and understanding, and address Hamilton-based issues, as distinct from crises in the Middle East. Their group worked together to bring Pearl and Ahmed to the city.

The lofty goal of the dialogues is to tangibly increase understanding and harmony between Muslims and Jews, the western world and the Islamic world. Current events would seem to keep eroding hope -- like news of the 18 civilians in the Gaza Strip killed by Israeli artillery shells Wednesday, which prompted threats by the Hamas military wing against not just Israel, but the U.S.

Finkelstein said some in the local community might feel less motivated to go to the dialogue because of the news, but it should not stop them from attending. "The fact is, we live here, people of all religions, and we should follow (Pearl's and Ahmed's) example."

As if to underscore the enormity of the challenge, even the very concept of the Pearl-Ahmed dialogues has come under criticism. Some charge that in their moderate tones, Pearl and Ahmed are merely preaching to the converted -- extremists in the Muslim world don't want dialogue, yet they are the ones that need to have their minds changed, and their power marginalized.

Ahmed well knows the challenge. He has a sterling resume of moderation, been called by the BBC "the world's best known scholar on contemporary Islam," was a former High Commissioner of Pakistan to Great Britain, and he met with President George W. Bush to discuss Islam. But this is all just fuel for Muslim extremists, who ridicule him as an "Uncle Tom" for his close western ties and his relationship with Pearl. There have been death threats. His wife worries about his safety, wishes there were more Muslims to take up the moderate cause.

"Men of violence will do their job," said Ahmed in an interview from his home near Washington D.C. "And I will do mine."

Pearl has received no threats, but criticism in some conservative quarters for giving Ahmed a visibility and authority he doesn't deserve because he doesn't represent mainstream Muslim thinking.

This question -- just what is mainstream Islam? -- is a key debate point between the two men. Ahmed believes that most in the west don't understand Islam, don't understand that the majority of Muslims are moderates like he is, people who don't advocate jihad and terror.

The west must recognize this reality and court moderates more intelligently, he suggests. Moreover, the west hurts itself by allowing its own fringe voices to be heard insulting the Prophet, Islam. It feeds into the extremist camp.

"And that makes my job harder," he said.

Pearl, who calls himself a secular Jew, counters that it's a contradiction to argue that most Muslims are moderate, while at the same time warning that if you rub the Islamic world the wrong way it will embrace terrorism.

"I don't know which view in the Islamic world is dominant, I tend to believe that the extremist, anti-pluralistic stream is quite strong," said Pearl. "But I also believe that the inclusive, pluralistic stream can be strengthened, and nothing is gained by pointing Muslims into the extremist element."

Pearl and Ahmed believe they are having a positive impact as word of their dialogues spreads. Finkelstein said he's received e-mails from people of all faiths from places as far flung as Nova Scotia and Santa Monica, Cal. about Sunday's event in Hamilton.

Pearl and Ahmed are two men coming from entirely different faiths and backgrounds, but since first meeting through the dialogues, have forged not just mutual respect, but friendship. And it all happened because of Daniel.

"Danny Pearl is now a symbol for peace and reconciliation," said Ahmed. "(The dialogues) immortalize him, help to convert a terrible tragedy into a triumph of the human spirit."

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

World must keep its faith in friendship; Without it, 'the shooting continues'

2008-02-07T14:06:00.000-05:00

The Spectator - Hamilton, Ont. Author: Sharon Boase Date: Nov 13, 2006

Carrying a laptop and his violin, journalist Daniel Pearl roamed the world, looking to spread understanding and friendship from the Balkans to the Middle East to South Asia.

But one day four years ago in Karachi, Pakistan, Pearl's goodwill failed him. He was murdered by a group of Islamic militants. A videotape taken before he was beheaded had Pearl saying, "My father is Jewish, my mother is Jewish and I am Jewish."

"His murderers schemed to sew fear and division among us," Daniel's father, Judea Pearl, told about 800 people gathered at Hamilton Place last night. But his captors -- indeed, all those who would spill blood to make a point -- failed to appreciate the human drive for friendship and understanding. "Friendship is what makes us human and we need to cling to this in this violent, uncertain time," said Akbar Ahmed, Pearl's friend and partner in an ambitious series of interfaith dialogues across the United States, Europe and Canada.

Pearl, a computer scientist at UCLA, and Ahmed, chair of Islamic Studies at Washington University, have visited a dozen cities with the Daniel Pearl Dialogue for Muslim-Jewish Understanding.

When Pearl learned of his son's beheading, at first he wanted revenge, he told The Spectator last week. But he knew the only way forward was through dialogue and understanding.

Lorne Finkelstein, founder of the Committee for Hamilton Arab, Muslim and Jewish Dialogue, worked with fellow committee member Ali Cheaib to bring Pearl and Ahmed to Hamilton.

Moderator for the event was The Spectator's editor-in-chief Dana Robbins, who thanked the crowd for attending. "You believe in building bridges, not digging trenches."

The evening was opened by a choir of Arab, Muslim and Jewish children. The young performers brought the crowd to its feet with a standing ovation.

Ahmed said although dialogue is critical, it alone isn't enough to forge peace. Dialogue must lead to understanding, which must lead to friendship. "With friendship, everything changes," he noted.

"If Israelis and Palestinians met as friends, everything would change. Without friendship between them, the shooting continues."

Credit: The Hamilton Spectator

2008-02-05T13:30:00.000-05:00

ألى رفيق

2008-02-05T13:26:00.001-05:00

ألى رفيق

تتنزل باقات العيون في لحظة وداع

والشارع ابيض من شدة القهر

سنونو سوداء ترشح دماً

شيخ جليل يلهو في الحقل...

أسدلت العذراء جناحها

تبدلت العيون والسواقي

سنبلة قمح تنتحب على ضريح فراشة

سقوط وسقوط ألى سطح الأرض...

تلبس الوردة أشواكها

يسهل الموت ويفنى الغنم

أصوات في عوالم بعيدة

يرشح عشقاً ورد الليمون في صيدا

تتيتم الحقول وترفض البذرة الأرض...

سكون روما في قبضة طفل كبير

تجري الرياح في عروق الأسفلت

تلتهب أمواج البحر خافقة

تركض بيروت في وجه الشمس

تنضح البراكين عسلاً وردي اللون...

يلتفت غصن الزيتون

تسرع النحلة نحو المغيب

يضيع في كومة القش طفل عتيق

تلملم العنكبوت ثناياها

تشرب السّم كليوباترا

تدق الساعة معلنة الرحيل

توقف الأرض دورانها...

علي

نورٌ و سحرٌ وهمسٌ وجذلى البيت العتيق

2008-02-05T13:17:00.001-05:00

نورٌ و سحرٌ وهمسٌ وجذلى البيت العتيق

نورٌ و سحرٌ وهمسٌ وبيتٌ عتيق

وطفلة حلوة جذلى تلهو على كتف الشمس

تلهث خلف خيال اللون

تضحك كوردة البيلسان في أعالي الجليل

تلهو وتلهو وتقفز من كرم اللوز ألى حقول العنب والتين

والفراشات البيض

تضحك وترقص وتسابق طيور السمّن في العيد

دجاجة رزّية تتمخترعلى أضلع الأرض

والديك المنتشي ينفض جناحيه معلناً فوزه الأكيد

عيونٌ وأسرارٌ دفينةٌ و شوقٌ وحنين

ونسور حزن فوق شرفة العمر

قلقٌ وحبٌ وأطفالٌ رضّعٌ مساكين

ومقعد خشبي على باب الشارع القديم

أمسياتٌ وأغانٍ وصوت فيروز الحزين

رياحٌ وسفنٌ وبيادر عدس وطحين

وجذلى العمر القديم

طفلةٌ سرقها الموج ،وجارت بها السنين

شرفاتٌ حزينةٌ ودمعٌ وشوقٌ وعيون

تلال خشب رمادي اللون، عقيم

نحيب شمس تغرب عن قلبٍ أصفر سقيم

وجعجة أناس من ألف دينٍ ودين

وجذلى العمر القديم

تمضي وتمشي وتطوي السنين

عينٌ على الشمس

وعينٌ على مستنقع العمر الطويل

مشت، ومشى معها أسطول عشقٍ كبير

آمالٌ معتقةٌ وماضٍ أبيضَ جميل

أسرارٌ بيضٌ وعيونٌ وتلاوين

خيال شمسٍ وفارس مقدام، أصيل

سحر قمرٍ ممتلىءٍ بالحب، عظيم

عرس وطبلٌ جنوبيٍ أسمرَ، ضنين

عادت الطفلة الجذلى تلهو

عاد الجنين

يلهث من على شرفة العمر القصير

في فمه ماءٌ

وفي قلبه شوقٌ دفين

عينٌ على القمر الفضيّ

وعينُ على باب البيت العتيق

علي

سوريا الأسد وحلفائها الميامين

2008-02-05T00:08:00.002-05:00

سوريا الأسد وحلفائها الميامين

مما لاشك فيه أن القيادتين الحاليتين (الصغرى والكبرى) للطائفة الشيعية في لبنان تترتكبان الكثير من الأخطاء السياسية والأجتماعية (النسيج اللبناني الهش) التي تعرض الطائفة الشيعية جمعاء لمخاطر وهزات هي بغنى عنها، خاصة في هذه المرحلة المتوهجة من الصراع الدولي مع النظام السوري ولعبة القط والفأر مع الجمهورية الأسلامية في أيران.

فلم يكد اللبنانيون يلتقطون أنفاسهم المجهدة بعد ظلام وجود عسكري وأمني دامس وما تلاه من عاصفة اغتيال الرئيس رفيق الحريري ،وما نتج عنها جميعاً من متغيرات عظيمة، حتى انبرى التيار الشيعي اللبناني للدفاع المستميت عن النظام السوري الذي أدهشتنا "مقوامته" العتيدة "للأمبريالية الأميريكية والصهيونية" وما أليه من أوصاف تعودنا سماعها من أبطال العروبة والصمود والتصدي اللذين ما أن غمز المجتمع الدولي من خلال ال1959 الى ضرورة ترك "ساحة المواجهة" حتى فروا كالفئران المذعورة تاركين وراءهم عملاء لهم من كافة الطوائف والمذاهب كانوا في الماضي أبطال المنابر الخطابية وأصحاب المجد والسلاطين ليضحوا اليوم أضحوكة ذاك "الخط" المقبور.

لكن ما يزعج المرء أكثر وأكثر هو قصر نظر البعض في الطائفة الشيعية وغلوهم المبالغ فيه لأهل البلاط الدمشقي حتى تخالهم لا يلوون على عمل شيء من دون الرجوع ألى سلطان هو بنفسه أقصر نظراً منهم، عصي الفهم، صلف العبارة، سليط اللسان، وأحمق.

من هذا الذي يستسيغ أن يتحالف مع نظام أبله؟ نظام أكل عليه الدهر وشرب وثمل. نظام مهترىء من رأسه حتى أخمص قاعدته المصفقة دوماً للسلطان. نظام لا يؤمن بحرية الفكر -لا بل يخافها. نظام عليل يسجن ويقتل ظلماً وافتراءً الآلاف المؤلفة من مواطنيه لأسباب تافهة. نظام يعتمد على سلبية الفكر والحركة وفساد الأدارات العامة واستشراء العمل المخابراتي كضمانة وحيدة لحمايته من أعدائه في الداخل والخارج. نظام أبله يطلع علينا مسؤوليه الكبار يقارعون الحجج والبراهين بسذاجة ما بعدها سذاجة وبخطاب شعبي محلي ضيق لا يفهم منه الغرب والعالم شيئاً ألاّ أنه خطاب معاند ومعارض يذكرهم بصداّمية جاهل آخر من جهلة الأنظمة العربية التي لا تحسن قراءة التاريخ. نظام أدرك أحد أركانه السابقين حتمية هلاكه فأهلك نفسه بنفسه، وكأني به يطلق على رأسه رصاصة الرحمة ليعلن لقيادته عن قرب موعد الرحيل –رحيل نظام عربي ستاليني آخر ألى ما وراء الشمس الحارقة.

ألى جهابذة المجتمع الخطابي الشيعي تحديداً ومن ينصبون أنفسهم قيادات (على رأس) الطائفة اليوم أتوجه باللوم والعتب والحنق من ممارساتهم الخاطئة وتغليبهم مصلحة الخارج على مصالح وطنهم. فبأي كتاب يقرأون، وبأي ضمير يستترون، وبأي منطق يتمنطقون؟ هؤلاء اللذين خلقوا بمساعدة الخارج منظومات أعلامية ودينية وأقتصادية وصحية وتعبوية في غياب دولة القانون والمؤسسات خلال سنوات الحرب وبعدها، ووضعوا كل رأسمال طائفتهم في جعبة النظامين السوري والأيراني أصحاب المصالح الدولية المعروفة، لنصبح اليوم "على الأرض يا حكم".

ألى القيادات العتيدة صاحبة النظرة الثاقبة تلك أقول:

تتحالفون مع من، وضد من؟

تتحالفون مع من سلب خيرات بلدكم وجرده هويته ومنعه لأكثر من عشرين عاماً من أن يكون عضواً فاعلا في عصبة الأمم المستقلة كغيره من بلاد العالم. لبنان الريادي في شتى حقول العلم والمعرفة والثقافة وصاحب الأعلام الحر المميز بشهادة الأخصام قبل الأصدقاء. لبنان الوطن الحر المستقل صاحب الدور الحضاري في منطقة من العالم لا زالت العنكبوت الصفراء تعشش في داخله، وتقضمه الهوينة.

تتحالفون ضد أبناء جلدتكم من أصحاب الرأي الحر الذين ما فتؤا يلاطفونكم ويتفهمون مواقفكم -التي أنا أبن بيئتكم لا أفهمها ولا أقبلها ولا أجاريكم فيها. تتحالفون مع الباطل فتظلمون أنفسكم أولاً، وأبناء وطنكم ثانية وتفرغون المقاومة المجيدة التي أعلينا عمرانها جميعاً من مضمونها الحقيقي لتضحى شماعة تعلقون عليها مواقف بالية غير منطقية تؤسس لمواجهات مذهبية أنتم أول الخاسرين فيها.

تتحالفون مع من وضد من؟

تتحالفون مع من يصافح عدوكم وعدو العرب علّ المصافحة تجيء بجولان قد عفن صخره من قلة الحركة وكثرة السكون. تتحالفون مع الغضنفر الذي استشاط غضبا عندما عالجت القاذفات الصهيونية أرضه في عين الصاحب ومن قبلها تلال "الرادار" في جبل لبنان ليخرج من "المواجهات البطولية" تلك أكثر أصراراً على فتح جبهة الجولان المحتل ليقارع العدو بمقاومة عنيدة وشرسة كأختها اللبنانية.

تتحالفون ضد شركائكم في المواطنية وأهلكم في الوطن الواحد الحر النبيل. تتحالفون ضد مصالح وطنكم وتسيرون زرافات ووحدانا في استعراضات قوة هي أشبه بعرض خوف ورعب من المستقبل، وعدم التسليم بنهاية مرحلة وبداية أخرى تكونون فيها شركاء فعليين في مشروع نهضة أجتماعية وأقتصادية يكون فيها المعول والقلم والحاسوب أمضى وأفعل وأنجع من آلاف الصواريخ التي لا ولن تجر علينا غير الويلات والحروب بعد أن تحرر أكثر من 99.99% من مساحة الوطن.

ألى القيادات العتيدة صاحبة النظرة الثاقبة تلك أقول:

بئس هكذا تحالف وبئس هكذا متحالفين... وبئس هكذا قيادات وبئس هكذا منقادين...

*علي حيدر شعيب – أسثاذ في هندسة المعلوماتية - كندا

المحظور المقدس

2008-02-05T00:02:00.002-05:00

المحظور المقدس

من المتعارف عليه في محافل العلم والمعرفة، وبخاصة حقلي الفلسفة وعلم الأجتماع، أن الأنسان هو كتلة من الأحاسيس وألأنفعالات التي تتفاعل مع الجسد ومكوناته البيولوجية لترسم الشخصية الخاصة للفرد. لكن هذه التفاعلات والأنفعالات والتهيؤات لا يمكن أن تأتي من فراغ. فهناك مكونات وعوامل أساسية تتداخل فيما بينها لتشكل فكراً معيناً تتوارده العامة وتلتصق به وتجعله يدخل في صميم وجدانها ليشكل المعتقد الرئيس في حياتها. والفكر هذا قد يفقد "المكون الفكري الخالص" في اللحظة الذي يتحول فيه ألى معتقد جامد غير قابل للتطور الدياليكتي الذي صاغه في مراحله الأولى. لذا نجد أن الفكر الذي يتحول ألى معتقد جامد يعتنقه الفرد والمجتمع ويتحلقون حوله لحمايته من "شر" أي فكر آخر مستجد يفقد خاصية الفكر نفسه ليصبح المعتقد الناشىء عنه أشبه بالولد السفاح أو الأبن الحرام الذي يتطور بشكل زمني وعددي ولكنه لا يتطور فكرياً أو نظرياً.

التاريخ الأنساني حافل بتجارب أنتجت أفكاراً ونظريات منها ما تتطور ومنها ما انحرف عن مساره المرسوم في البعد النظري عندما أدى تطبيقه ( أو الأعتقاد بالقدرة على تطبيقه) ألى نشوء تيارات ومدارس متعددة لذلك الفكر كل منها يدّعي حقيقة التمثيل الأصيل والأوحد مما يعني فعلياً الأنتقاص من قيمة ومستوى التطبيقات أو المدارس الأخرى الناشئة عن الفكر نفسه. والتاريخ الأنساني يزخر بالتفاعلات هذه من أفكار تحولت ألى أديان أو أحزاب وطوائف وتجمعات بشرية تمحورت وتمترست حول تفسير معين للفكر الأصلي وتفريغه من مضمونه الفلسفي والأجتماعي في مستوعبات من معان وتفسيرات وأيدولوجيات وعناوين كبيرة وكثيرة هدفها الرئيس التعبئة الجماهيرية المستديمة أما للوصول ألى السلطة أو للمحافظة عليها وتمتين أركانها.

من أوائل الترجمات الفعلية لما سبق هو ما حصل للفكر الفلسفي الميتافيزيقي اليوناني الذي بدأ بالأنحسار الفعلي عند دخول الأمباراطورية الرومانية في الفكر المسيحي وما تلاه من هجوم صاعق على كل فكر آخر لا يستند في أصله وفروعه على التفسيرات الجامدة للنص اللاهوتي نفسه. فكان أن استحوذ المعتقد اللاهوتي الجامد على الفكر المسيحي المنفتح على الكون كله من أنسانه ألى أصغر شيء فيه. كما جرى أيضاً أجتياح الفكر الفلسفي خاصة فيما خص النواة الميتافيزقي المعرفي ليدخل الدين المسيحي حينها في دوامة من الأوكولتية التي روجت لمعتقدات وهمية مثل علم الغيب والتبصر في المستقبل الأنساني ومحاكاة الطبيعة والأشباح واستحضار الموتى، ألى ما أليه من أوكوليستيات لا تمت للفكر الفلسفي الميتافيزيقي بشيء.

لم يكن الفكر المسيحي هو الضحية الأولى أو الأخيرة للأجتياحات العقائدية للفلسفة المعرفية والعلوم الأنسانية لا بل أن الفكر اليهودي من قبله يزخر بنماذج من تفريغه من محتواه الفلسفي وتحويله ألى عقائد واهية ونصوص توراتية ينحدر الفكر فيها ألى درجة السفاهة والسفالة في بعض القصص عن الأنبياء ونزواتهم وتحولهم ألى حيوانات ونباتات وما أليه حتى أضحى الفكر الأنساني الموسوي لا يشكل سوى الجزء اليسير من حركة المعتقد التلمودي والتوراتي العام. كما لم يسلم الفكر الماريكسي-الهيغيلي من تلك الشوائب العضوية في تفسيرات النص الفلسفي الأجتماعي الذي في معظمه لم يكن يتوخى، أو لم يعط، صك كفالة للتطبيقات الجاهزة والمعلبة الذي أنتجت التجارب الشيوعية التي انتشرت في أصقاع الأرض ومنها ما سمي باللينينية والستالينية والماوتسية ومنها الأخر ما عرف بالتروتوسكية والكاستروية، واليوم بالكانمونية (نسبة ألى ديكتاتور كوريا الشمالية، كان مو) التي أفرغت الفكر الماركسي الخالص من مكوناته الأنسانية في الدرجة الأولى، وجعلت منه عقائد ومضارب مشتتة لا يجمعها سوى الأنتساب اللفظي للفكر الماركسي الأصيل.

أما الفكر الأسلامي الخالص فحدث ولا حرج...

فهناك الكثير الكثير من العقائد والبدع والتجمعات والتفسيرات والأنقسامات التي ،أما عن قصد أو عن غير قصد، تفرغ الفكر الحنيف من مضمونه الفلسفي الأنساني لتحيله ألى مجموعة كبيرة من المعتقدات والبدع والتفسيرات البعيدة عن روح الأسلام بعد الأرض عن الشمس. فهناك في الماضيين البعيد والقريب الفرق "الأسلامية" المتناحرة فيما بينها والتي يجمعها أيضا الأنتساب اللفظي للفكر الأسلامي السامي. لتجدها تمحص في النص المكتوب والمتواتر لتجد تفسيرات تساعدها في رحلتها نحو الشمولية والظلامية والتكفير المنظم للآخر ونعت "المسلم الآخر" والمسيحي واليهودي والبوذي والكافر وكل من لا يلف لفها بأقسى الصفات الغير أنسانية والنعوت الباطلة الخارجة عن جوهر الأسلام الحنيف الذي دعى الناس الى التعامل والتفاعل تحت عباءة الأنسانية البحتة والأحترام المتبادل وحرمة تكفير الأخر لمجرد أنه لا يدين لنفس التفسير الحرفي أو المحرف للنص القرآني الذي لا يجوز فهمه كجزء من كل، وأنما كمنظومة فكرية واجتماعية متكاملة قابلة للأجتهاد والتطور المعرفي.

لكن أخطر ما يواجه الفكر الأسلامي الحنيف اليوم هو محاولات الفرق الأسلامية المتعددة المستديمة لنشر ثقافة الموت ووضعها في قالب "استشهادي" خدمة لمصالحها الخاصة والتي غالباً ما تكون تحت سيطرة دول ونظم سياسية معقدة تتوخى من المعتقد الديني قدرته على تجييش العامة من الناس ووضعهم على أتم الأستعداد لخوض معارك جديدة ومستجدة كرمى لعيون هذا القائد العظيم هنا أو المرجع الديني العظيم هناك. من هنا يضحى المعتقد الديني وسيلة من وسائل أفراغ الفكر الفلسفي الأنساني من مضمونه الأساس ووضعه في قالب ديني تعبوي "أستشهادي" خالص يكون من أهم تجلياته أن تصبح القيادة الدينية والحاكم بأمره الديني مصدر الألهام والقرارات المصيرية الأوحد، وأيضا مصدر "الفكر" الأوحد، حيث أن عبقريته "العلمية" تجعل من أمكانية وقدرة الفرد على صياغة فكر خاض فيه ضرب من ضروب الخيانة والعمالة والزندقة.

وما يجعل الطامة أكبر أن العبقريات الدينية الأسلامية اليوم هي بحد ذاتها منظومات ليس فقط أيدولوجية وأنما هي أيضاً جزر أقتصادية وسياسية وتثقيفية وأجتماعية وأمنية وعسكرية مستقلة لها جيوشها ومنظّريها ومدارسها وجامعاتها ومصادر تمويلها الخاص. هذه المنظومات العقائدية — البعيدة بغد الأرض عن سماء الفكر الأسلامي الرحب والمنفتح على تجليات العصر— هي بحاجة دوماً وأبداً لعدو ما. فالعدوّ ليس فقط حاجة أساسية لبقائها وانتعاشها وأنما ضرورة فعلية لصيرورة العمل العقائدي الذي لا يحتمل الخمول أو الهدن كي لا يتوقف المد الجماهري الذي تستمد منه ظروف بقائها وديمومتها. لذا نرى أن هذه التجمعات العقائدية تنتقل من عدوّ ألى آخر ومن معركة ألى أخرى ومن تحالف ألى تحالفات أخرى، حتى ولو كانت التحالفات تلك تفتقد ألى أبسط أصول النص الشرعي الذي يمنع اجتماع الحق مع الباطل، والقاتل مع الضحية، والمسيء مع الشريف، والمفسد مع المصلح.

لكن الأخطر والأدهى من كل ما سبق أن يصل الخطاب العقائدي الشمولي والظلامي ألى مراحله القصوى عندما يشعر بأنه محاصر وأن حركته ومساحتها بدأت تضيق عليه. عندها تصبح المواجهة عملية بقاء أو ارتحال لأن العقيدة تلك لا تحتمل الوسطية ولا تتقبل الأسستسلام أو التسليم بالفشل. فالأعتراف بالفشل هو في قاموسها الخاص عملية انتحار جماعي لما قد يشكل ذلك من خسارتها أولاً أمام جمهورها الذي يشكل لها خط دفاعها الأول، والأوحد. لذا، أهم ما قد تفعله القيادة العقائدية تلك هو أن ترفع سقف المواجهة ألى المحظور"المقدس". والمحظور المقدس في المفهوم العقائدي لتلك الجماعات الظلامية هو التصدي وبكافة الأشكال والطرق والوسائل المتاحة لكل من تسوله نفسه أن يقترب من كل وأي من المواضيع المشمولة بالمحظور المقدس.

أذن، رفع أسقف المواجهة ألى درجة المحظورات المقدسة يشكل في المقام الأول أعلان فشل ذريع، وعلى كل المستويات للأستراتجيات والتكتيكات المتبعة من تلك الفئة الضالة، وهو أيضا صرخة استنجاد وتحذير للجماهير العريضة بضرورة الألتفاف الفعّال حول القيادة العقائدية التي تستشعر خطورة الموقع الذي تجد نفسها فيه، وهو بالطبع موقع لا يستهان به أبدا. أما في المقام الثاني، فيشكل أعلان المحظور المقدس حالة من الأستنفار الداخلي والخارجي الذي يتردد صداه وبقوة في كل صقع جغرافي وجدت فيه الحالة العقائدية نفسها ليشكل أعلان كبير للحاجة الماسة ألى المساعدة الفورية لرد الهجوم بهجومات أو معارك في بقاع وتجمعات أخرى علها تساعد في مكان ما على أضعاف اندفاع العدو، أو الأعداء. كما يشكل الأعلان الكبير للمحظور المقدس، في المقام الثالث، أن المنظومة تلك هي مستعدة للتفاوض مع أعدائها العملاء والخونة شرط أن تخرج من المعركة بأقل ضرر ممكن على منظومتها العقائدية ونيتها التحتية، وأن يتم الأخراج والتظهير الأعلامي بأن المنظومة هي فعلاً قد انتصرت على أعدائها الأشرار وها هي آتية بلا ريب بالنصر المبين،أحقاقا للعهد المبين.

أذن، ما يجمع العديد من القوى والتجمعات العقائدية الأسلامية وغير الأسلامية، الشرقية منها والغربية، هو عدم الثقة بالأخر والحاجة المستدامة للتعبئة الجماهيرية ولأستهتار الفاضح بالفكر الأساس وجوهره الأنساني لتضحى منظومات مستقلة متناحرة.

لكن الحزين في هذا أن الجماهير العريضة والمندفعة لنصرة القائد، ظالما كان أو مظلوما، هي نفسها من يدفع فاتورة الأيدولوجيات الظلامية تلك، وهي بحد ذاتها تصبح وقودا تستغل جهلها وجهالتها القيادات العقائدية لتسعَر بلحمها ودمائها نيران الحروب المتنقلة دوماً وأبداً.

*علي حيدر شعيب – أستاذ في هندسة المعلوماتية وكاتب

"الدينوسياسية" وأشكالية التعامل معها

2008-02-04T23:42:00.001-05:00

"الدينوسياسية" وأشكالية التعامل معها

لا بد من طرح بعض التساؤلات على المواقف الأخيرة المتصلبة لبعض الزعامات الدينية الحزبية في لبنان والمنطقة والتي يحاول الكثير من المحللين استشرافها وفهم أبعادها في ظلّ التوترات الأقليمية والعالمية، وخاصة في ما يخص اختلاط البعد الديني بالسياسي والأيدولوجي وما يكتنف هذ الأمر من أشكالية تجعل من المواجهة السياسية الخالصة للبعد "الدينوسياسي" هذا مسألة فيها نظر وخطر، ومجازفة ما بعدها مجازفة في المجهول-المعلوم.

فمن المتعارف عليه عالميا في حقل السياسة والأجتماع، أن السياسة هي علم وفن تتداخل فيهما الأستراتيجيا والتكتيك، ومن أدواتها الأساسية خداع الخصم والكذب وممالأة العامة والحلفاء والأنقلاب على المسلمات حسب مقتضيات المصلحة السياسية -ألى ما يصل ذلك، في أحيان كثيرة، من أعمال منافية لكل ما هو أخلاقي وأنساني، ويحمل في طياّته سموم حروب صغيرة وكبيرة.

ومن المعلوم أيضاً، أن الزعامات السياسية في العالمين العربي والأسلامي تنضح بالأنانيات وأحادية القرار وحماية الشخصية السياسية للقائد حتى تصبح فوق كل الشبهات ويصبح نقدها أو انتقادها ضرب من ضروب العمالة والخيانة يستحق صاحبها أن يختار بين ثلاثة أمور أحلاها مرّ: فأما أن ينزوي جانبا ألى هامش المجتمع ويريح الزعيم وحاشيته من لسانه "السليط"، أو أن يكمل اللعبة فيغتال، أويُّدكُ في سجن ما لسنوات عديدة حتى يأتي حاكم أونظام آخر ويرده ألى بيته وعائلته هرماً، عليلاً، وغير ذي نفع لمجتمع نسيه، فتجاوزه. أماّ الحل الثالث، فهو أن يختار النفي "الطوعي" ليحاول العيش بسلام في أرض غريبة لا تشاطره قضاياه المّلحة، ولكنها توفر له الحرية والكرامة الأنسانية ليبدع فيها وتبدع به.

لكن كل ما تقدم يسيط بالمقارنة مع ما قد يحصل للمرء أن قرر أن ينتقد زعيم طائفته الدينوسياسي والمقدس الذي يبعد عن الخطاْ في السياسة بعد الأرض عن الشمس في هذا الزمن المتوحش والذي تسوده لاعقلانية التمذهب والتمحور والأنجرار وراء الزعيم الروحي ظالماً أو مظلوما. فالزعيم الديني، اليوم، يتمتع بقدرات خارقة يندر وجودها عند أي زعيم سياسي تقليدي: فالزعيم الروحي المنزه عن الخظأ –والشبه معصوم- يهدد ويتوعد الأخرين بحرية وبثقة بالنفس وبالعالم وبقدراته التهييجية والتجييشية حتى أذا قال "كلمتين أوأقل" ينزل مقدسيه ألى الشارع غير عابئين بما قد يحصل لهم أو لغيرهم من أبناء وطنهم من آلام ومحن.

فالزعيم الدينوسياسي الشبه معصوم هو أقوى من أي ملك متوج، وفي يده الحل والربط والخير والبركة خاصة أذا ارتبطت بركاته بمنظومة أمنية وعسكرية وطبية وثقافية واجتماعية وأعلامية وأقليمية كريمة معطاءة باستطاعتها مضاهاة دول المنطقة بالتقديمات المادية والعينية. فما بالك لو سارت المنظومة تلك في فلك فكر ديني عقائدي يتوسم الشمولية في الحكم المرتبط برجل دين أوحد لا يستطيع أن ينازعه أحد في حرية الأعتراض، وحيث عليك، كأبن تلك المنظومة، أن تمتثل لها بالكامل- أولا تكون منها أبداً، وهنا الطامة الكبرى وبيت القصيد!

فأن تكون أنساناً وسطياً على تماس مع نفسك وقدراتك الشخصية أولا،ً معطوفة على نسبة لا بأس بها من العلم والثقافة والخبرة والقدرة على دراسة الواقع السياسي والأجتماعي من دون الركون لشهوة التعصب والأنغلاق المذهبي ، تكون - ومن دون أن تعلم- قد دخلت في المحظورات الأجتماعية الكبرى الذي قد يصل ألى حد النفي من المجتمع المذهبي الذي تعيش في وسطه. فأنت تصبح في لحظة نقدك أو انتقادك للزعيم الدينوسياسي (حتى وأن اقتنع من يسمعك بصوابية موقفك) من المغردين خارج السرب، ومن المتجاوزين للمسافة الضيقة جيداً ما بين حق الأعتراض على الأستراتيجيا أو التكتيك ولعنة النقد العلمي والمنطقي المبني على دراسة معمقة وخبرة معاشة للتهج العام لسياسة التمذهب. أما أن تماديت ووصلت ألى درجة الحديث "للآخر" من غير مذهبك عماّ آلت أليه أحوال جماعتك، فهنا تقع في هاوية الزندقة والعمالة والخيانة التي ما بعدها خيانة.

هذه الأشكالية حاصلة اليوم، وبشراسة غريبة، في المجتمعات التي تختزن عقلية الفكر الأوحد والأيمان التام بقدرات القائد الروحي الخارقة -والمدعومة بماورائيات المخزون الديني الثقيل الذي يؤمن بوجود مخلص سيظهر في أيامنا هذه- والذي هو ألى جانب فئة الحق، التي هي بالطبع الطائفة وبالتحديد المذهب و بتحديد أكثر: الفرقة التي لا تخطىء أبداً. هذه الموروثات الدينية والأجتماعية تعطي الزعيم الروحي ،الذي هو بنفسه من أهل الألم والتضحية ونكران الذات الدنيوية، تفويضاً كاملا للتحدث بأسمها وحتى التفكير عنها في الأمور العامة والخاصة ليضحى الفكر الشخصي للعامة منشغلاً بأمور صغيرة تافهة نسبيا لا تتجاوز حدود تدبير حاجات العائلة اليومية من قوت ولباس وطبابة. أماّ الثقافة والمعرفة الممنهجة الصحيحة وتثقيف الذات الأنسانية وانفتاح الفكرعبر ممارسة الحق الطبيعي بالأختلاف والنقد البناء، وغيرها من الأمور الهامة، فتوفرها المنظومة الدينوسياسية-الأقتصادية الهائلة على أحسن وجه بحيث تكون نوعية وكمية التقديمات المادية والمعنوية والفكرية أهم بكثير وأفضل من قدرة الدولة الهزيلة التي يعيشون في كنفها أو قدرة الفرد نفسه على الولوج نحو فكر استشرافي معاصر، ليصل من خلاله ألى فهم أفضل لموقعه في الكون والرسالة المعقولة والأنسانية للدين ووظائفه السامية في المجتمع.

حتى الكتب والمجلات والقنوات الأرضية والفضائية والمواقع الألكترونية وغيرها من أدوات نشر المعرفة ،التي ينهل منها "المثقف" المتمذهب والخاضع خضوعاً تاماً للدينوسياسية، هي في معظمها تدور في فلك الدين وفقهه وآدابه وسياسياته ومعاركه المستديمة. في هذا الجو المعبأً دينياً وسياسياً وعسكرياًً، تضحى أدوات الخصم السياسي شر مطلق وتصبح وسائله أوكار فساد ونشر للرذيلة والكذب الممنهج وجب اجتنابها ولعنتها بمن فيها.

هذا التقوقع الثقافي العامودي يجعل الذات المتمذهبة بحاجة ألى سماع صوتها فقط ليعطيها شعور بالطمأنينة والصفاء الروحي الذي يغذي أيمانها فيما تفعل، أو لا تفعل.

فهل باستطاعة من يريد محاورة الجهة، أو الجهات، هذه أن يتعامل معها من منطلق سياسي تكتيكي بحت، أم يجب مقارعتها بأساليب مختلفة؟ وما هي تلك الأساليب؟

قد يحدو الجو الملتهب دينيا ومذهبيا تلك المجتمعات للأنغلاق السريع على بعضها البعض لتشكل كتلة متراصة من الصعب اختراقها من الخارج أو الداخل، خاصة عندما تنجح في تدبير شؤونها الأجتماعية الملحة في بقعتها الجيوسياسية الخاصة فيها، والتي تستطيع من خلالها أن تتمترس وتتخندق في مواجهة المجتمعات الأخرى التي لا تشاركها نظرتها أو فكرها أو استراتجياتها. هنا، تصبح المعادلة بغاية التعقيد للخصم السياسي لهذه المجموعات المتراصة أن أراد محاورتها ( أو "التشاور" معها ) كمجموعات صاحبة أفكار متنوعة، ليقايدها في نقطة مهمة هنا أو يسايرها في أماكن أخرى هناك، وهكذا...

كما يجعل التداخل بين فهم تلك الجماعات لمقتضيات الدين وثوابته –خاصة لجهة العمل الجهادي وضرورة استمراره "حتى أحقاق الحق"- من أهم عوامل انعدام الثقة لديهم مع من يريدون التحاور معهم، خاصة أن أتى أولئك من خلال فكر علماني أو ديني آخر لا يتماهى مع فهمهم الخاص للثوابت أو الأولويات أو الأستراتجيات المطلوب صياغتها على الصعيد الوطني والأقليمي. أما التفاهمات والتحالفات مع فئات أخرى لا تشاطرها نظرتها الدينية والمذهبية ،لكنها لا تقف في مواجهة نضالها الجهادي، فهي تصبح معقولة ومقبولة أن أتت لمصلحة الجماعة في المحصلة النهائية. فهكذا نرى تلك الجماعات في بقاع مختلفة من العالم تصيغ تحالفاتها - الغير دينية- مع قوى وأحزاب قد تختلف معها في الأيدولوجيا لكنها لا تقف سداًً في سبيل تحقيق أهدافها المرحلية، بل في بعض الأحيان تشجعه وتثني عليه كما هي الحال مع فلول التنظيمات الشيوعية والناصرية والبعثية التي أضحت بمثابة مشجعين صاخبين بدل أن يكونوا هم أنفسهم في عداد المنتخب الوطني الذي يقارع المنتخبات الأقليمية والعالمية بشجاعة وضراوة.

هذه الأشكالية البالغة التعقيد في العمل السياسي الحالي ،في لبنان وفلسطين والعراق بشكل خاص والمنطقة الأسلامية بشكل عام، يجعل من أفق الحوار والوصول ألى حلول وسطية ترضي بحدها الأدنى جميع الأفرقاء المتخاصمين سياسياً ضرباً من ضروب المستحيلات خاصة عندما يتداخل الديني-الألهي بالسياسي الخالص لتصبح المعركة غير متكافئة ومحكوم عليها أما بالخضوع لسقف ديني لا يرى الحق ألاّ بجانبه، أو الأنجرار ألى فتن وحروب يضطر فيها السياسي الخالص ألى استعارة خطاب ديني-مذهبي-مناطقي خاص به ليستطيع من خلاله الصمود في وجه الخطاب الديني-المذهبي-المناطقي الآخر. وهكذا دواليك، لتنتشر الدينوسياسية في مجتمعاتنا مخلفة من ورائها المزيد من الجهل والتقوقع ومعاداة "الآخر" الذي هو ،في الحقيقة الثابتة، أخوه وحبيبه وجاره، والأهم من كل ذلك أنه شريكه المفترض في الوطن والحياة.

* علي حيدر شعيب. أستاذ في هندسة المعلوماتية وكاتب – كندا.

Faith Journal

2008-02-04T23:13:00.001-05:00

I received a call back in November of 2007 from my good friend and Canadian Muslim activist Hussein Hamdani, a lawyer by trade and devout Muslim with strong liberal views. Hussein asked me if I could appear on a TV show that delves into timely Canadian issues with a religious flavour. The Faith Journal is a production of the well-known Christian Crossroads ministries which is famous for its flagship program: 100 Huntley Street. CTS TV is clearly an Evangelist bastion featuring, among other interesting programming, controversial US neoconservative propagandists John Hagee and Van Impe who consistently spread their venom against Muslims and Arabs with very little concern to human decency and the true spirit of Christianity. To these two small-minded individuals and their followers, the world revolves around Israel and its ability to not only fight the Arab and Muslim world but to also destroy it. They see these horrific events as a precursor to yet another world war which will culminate in the greatest destruction humans have ever seen (Armageddon), and the ultimate coming back of the Messiah. Essentially, these twisted minds would like to make the Israel stronger and more armed to the teeth in preparation for doomsday.

It is brotherly love at its best.

To be broadcast in January 2008, this 60-minute segment of the faith journal was about “Israel after 60 years”. Hosted by eloquent and versatile Richard Landau, the show normally features guests who reflect their religious views vis-a-vis the topic at hand.

Being a secular Muslim (many may think this is an oxymoron), I have always shied away from participating in these shows for various reasons. (1) My inability to not piss off those who may want to look down at me as a “poor Muslim” and immigrant who does not know what life in Canada is all about. (2) I usually refrain from participating in religiously-oriented discussions as I am not well-versed in Islamic thought and its vast applications, intricacies, and modus-operandi. (3) I consider myself a strongly opinionated secular Arab (and Muslim) in a society that is still grappling with this new notion of Islam and Muslims in their midst. (4) I see my role in this environment as one of advocating inclusion and commitment to dialogue with the different groups and individuals that make up this society. (5) To strive towards the establishment of an educated dialogue that is based on the mutual understanding of the different points of view, with the prerequisite respect to these very differences that make Canada so unique.

Again, I have no idea why I said to Hussein Hamdani: “yes, I will do it” given all of the aforementioned reasons, and also the fact that, at the subconscious level, I knew the discussion with Frank Diamant will be an excursion fraught with danger.

Frank Diamant is known –even in some right-wing Canadian Jewish circles—as a bulldog and a “runaway train”. Having watched Diamant debates with Muslim and Arab folks before, I knew that if I could get him to label me an anti-Semite or some other derogatory term that that would in and by itself be a clear indicator he was losing the battle. Professional propagandists like Frank Diamant carry with them a bag of tricks that they pull from one instrument after another based on the situation at hand. But when they invoke all possible means to fully control the debate, they tend to raise their last line of defence and most prised weapon: the anti-Semitic card. This they do to scare off their adversary in attempt to affect their logic through intimidation. In my case, Frank pulled the “you are advocating for the destruction of the State of Israel”, a charge one thousand times worse than the anti-Semitic label. What Frank charged me with confirmed the fact that not only did I beat this guy hands down, but that I reduced his fallacious “it is all the faults of Arabs and Muslims” argument to a mere joke.

Richard Landau’s passage about the program in question illustrates the highly-charged environment this lovely host found himself having to navigate with maximum care and due diligence:

"We had no idea that a friendly discussion over the impending 60th anniversary of the Statehood of Israel would turn into such a fierce and combative discussion. That’s what occurred when we brought together Ali Cheaib, a college professor in Hamilton, Ontario and a Muslim who engages in interfaith dialogue, and Frank Diamant the Executive Vice-President of B’nai Brith Canada. What I had hoped for was an assessment of the past 60 years in light of the anniversary this coming spring. What I got was the now-typical arguments from both sides about this tiny piece of land and who owns it. If you want a primer on the ongoing disagreement about the State of Israel, this engaging half hour will do it for you".

When done, Richard turns to me and says: “you really stood up for yourself.” I do not really know what Richard meant except that he had anticipated this turning into a full-fledged debate by virtue of our backgrounds. He must have known quite well Frank Diamant’s abilities as B’nai Brith Canada top gun to attack like the bulldog he is. He probably thought that Frank would eat me alive! What Richard did not know is that I always carry with me a small canister of pepper spray especially formulated for attack dogs.

Hamilton Next; Focus on the future city

2007-12-16T18:40:00.000-05:00

What should Hamilton aspire to? How does it get there? We asked leaders of the city's many communities and sectors for their perspectives. Ali Cheaib, an advocate for new Canadians in Hamilton, gives his views.

Photo by Ron Albertson, the Hamilton Spectator

The Hamilton Spectator(Dec 12, 2007)

Q. What kind of city should Hamilton aspire to be? What should we look like in 10 years' time?
A. A city is a human-social construct that moulds and shapes the lives -- the very existence -- of its citizens in many ways. A large urban city becomes a being -- complete with soul -- that embodies its inhabitants' similarities and differences, their levels of sophistication and innocence (or naivety), their likes and dislikes. At the end of the day, the city is simply a true image of her people, all of her people, a translucent and permeable image reflecting our very faces, colours, expressions, moods, backgrounds and levels of prosperity.

It is through this unique lens that we should attempt to see the city within which we constantly move. It is through this human representation that we will be able to examine ourselves, and the relationships and experiences that bind us together along with the many roles, responsibilities, visions, challenges, and opportunities that channel our physical interactions.
I would love to see us look at Hamilton of the future as an image of us, all of us. In 10 years, Hamilton will be a softer and gentler community that affords all her citizens equal opportunity and representation regardless of who they are or where they come from.

Q. How do we rebuild the city's economic and/or societal vitality so it can generate a more healthy existence for all its citizens?
A. "Rebuilding" Hamilton is not an option, but is rather a necessary course of evolution. By that I mean that even if we have failed before, as a community, to proactively join other urban centres in their self-initiated transformation, now is the time to do it, and do it well. Rebuilding Hamilton will happen not only with bricks and mortar, but also with the requisite understanding of who we are as a group of people living, working, and interacting on a daily basis. We need to understand that the very health and success of our city hinges on our ability to recreate Hamilton as a centre of excellence in multicultural living, with all of the economic opportunities and social challenges inherent in that concept. The 2001 census revealed that about 24.7 per cent or one in four Hamilton residents was born outside Canada, making it the third city in Canada to hold that designation. The 2006 census tell us that has jumped to an even higher level, with about 25.4 per cent of our popluation born elsewhere. Hamilton will have no choice but to embrace its new designation with an immediate plan to become a more equitable and representative society. It is very unfortunate that in this day and age we are still unable to convince the few remaining bastions of power in this city that they not only need to open up their closed and aging systems and institutions to natural change, but that they also need to embrace change as agents of positive growth and sustainability.

Q. What specific efforts or initiatives will it take to get us there?
A. I am sure that each sector leader will provide you with a personal slant on what these initiatives should be. My take is quite different. I see sectors and service organizations as channels or pipelines and not necessarily "the reservoir." We will need to rebuild the reservoir in such a way that it provides the channels with a higher volume and better quality of goods to flow through. I am talking about a new social project that engages people and institutions in the process of urban renewal.

To figure out what some of these initiatives may look like, we will need to examine how we, as a city, are dealing with issues of immediate concern to us. These issues range from health and education, poverty, immigration and diversity, economic development and downtown renewal, all the way to safety, security, and prosperity.

Let us examine our timid response so far to what the 2001 census numbers have shown about the overall decline in population in Canada.

Simply put, there just are not enough people to fill jobs in the foreseeable future, jobs that sustain local economies, investments, pensions, and systems upon which we all depend for our basic livelihood. Unless this problem is swiftly resolved, the engines of growth will soon stall. What has the City of Hamilton done so far to attract and help settle new immigrants to fill these jobs?

We have an abundant reservoir of knowledge, skills, and talents that as a society we have yet to find a systemic and systematic way to tap into to supplement gaps.

Our timid response to embracing change, using available human resources (including foreign-trained professionals), and better dealing with our city's transformation from a heavy industry based entity to a softer and gentler post-industrial community points to a fundamental lack of vision on the part of politicians and bureaucrats.

We still have in place the same people who, for the last 15 years, have been unable to even devise a progressive road map for downtown renewal. These are the same people who use one excuse after another to not make things happen. These are the same people who either cannot or do not want to understand what constitutes a knowledge-based economy, and how to get there from where we currently are.

An admission of our apparent inability or reluctance as a community to shed our aging skin and replace it with one that truly reflects our changing demographics, challenges, and opportunities is a key requirement to any successful rebuilding process.

That is a prerequisite to even begin talking about meaningful engagement in the new social and economic project this city so desperately needs. This will empower those of us with fresh ideas and drive to excel and innovate, and enter the fray as equals. Then -- and only then -- will the train be placed on the right track to travel to the next station on the road to a more vibrant and prosperous city.

Q. Are there any risks in taking these steps, things we should avoid?
A. The more serious risks present themselves not in charting the course or direction we should take in our quest to renew Hamilton but in the process and methods through which we plan and undertake the journey. The risks of competing visions and agendas, political wrangling, and failure to seize the moment are far greater than any one misstep on the road to success.

Not forced, women choose to wear a hijab

2007-12-16T18:31:00.001-05:00

Ali Cheaib -- The Hamilton Spectator (May 16, 2007)

I am writing about "The big cover up" -- Dianne Rinehart's May 5 column on the hijab (the Muslim head covering) as a form of female enslavement in Islam.
I write not to only contest her argument but to also protest the implied cynicism regarding the "Wear a Hijab Day" at McMaster University and to refute her unsubstantiated claim about the relationship between the hijab and violence.
Another more important reason for this rebuttal is her questionable dismissal of the fact that McMaster University professor Muriel Walker, the woman behind that event, was the subject of a hate crime directly related to her progressive on-campus activities. Hamilton Police Service's hate crime unit is still investigating the incident.
The hateful act was of such severity that it was featured on the front page of the Hamilton Spectator.
I personally do not subscribe to the widely adopted view of millions of Muslims worldwide that a garment to cover a woman's hair should be accorded this high level of emotional attachment. This is especially true to me when compared to the more important humanistic tenets of Islam, such as peacefulness, openness and Jihad of the soul and spirit in the pursuit of higher knowledge that can ultimately lead to social justice.
However, the real issue at hand is freedom. It is clearly about the freedom of women and men to wear whatever they like so long as they are the ones making that decision.
In her piece, Dianne Rinehart, states that one -- just one -- student reported not being pressured to leave her hijab at home. But she fails to mention anywhere in her column the hundreds of reported hate crimes committed against Muslim women in Canada -- including many here in Hamilton -- since the terror attacks on the World Trade Center towers in 2001.
All she needed to do to better ground her argument was to consult Hamilton Police Service's yearly reports on hate crimes in Hamilton, including those that show the highest numbers of crimes were committed against Muslims, to find that her orphan example is nothing short of ridiculous.
Prof. Walker is a secular Western woman who is well versed in Eastern traditions including Asian, African, and Middle Eastern values, customs, and issues. Walker is a well-known academic who specializes in post-colonial literature as it relates to systemic inequality between gender, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientation, etc.
Walker did not wake up one day and decide to make it her mission in life to advocate for hijab wearing by Muslim and non-Muslim Canadians. What she wanted to do is remind us about diversity issues and the rights granted to us in a democratic country in which women and men are free to do whatever they wish so long as they comply with the law of the land.
That's the law of the land -- not the perceptions of a columnist who sees in the Wear a Hijab Day, and the disgusting hate act that ensued, a window of opportunity to indulge in sensationalism and pointed sarcasm.
I really do not understand how this column writer made the link between what Walker is doing at McMaster University and the vicious killing of Zahra Kazimi in Iran or some terrorist plot in England. I also cannot see how what Muriel Walker is doing at McMaster University is relevant to rape and mutilation of Muslim women who refuse to wear a hijab.
And where did that come from in the first place?
Rinehart did not produce even one legitimate piece of evidence that such barbaric acts are actually committed anywhere in the world if a woman refuses to wear a hijab. What makes her argument even more superficial is the controversial source of information she uses as her one point of reference throughout the article.
WFAFI, the Women's Forum Against Fundamentalism in Iran, is a small group of Iranian dissidents with alleged ties to the CIA who operate a commercial-free satellite TV station that beams its signal from Boston directly to Iran for the sole purpose of attacking the Iranian regime. This group is reported to be one of many anti-Iranian government groups operating in the U.S. and Europe.
It is reported they have benefited from substantial funding by the U.S. government; the last publicized instalment came directly from the Bush administration in the form of a $75-million fund to "promote political change in Iran, some of which would go to women's rights groups," as per U.S. State Department spokesperson Amanda Rogers-Harper.
I would like to believe Rinehart may have accidentally tapped into this underground group's website that contains a sea of propaganda-style materials that no serious researcher would ever dare touch.
In the final analysis, the Wear a Hijab Day was never about encouraging women to wear the hijab but rather a modest attempt to bring to our attention what many Muslim women in Canada, who want to exercise their right to wear whatever they wish, may go through on a daily basis.
Sorry, Dianne, but the only "big cover up" can be better traced to a culture of elitism and cliquism by the "enlightened few" who see in their own value system the only source of emancipation, one that the "less fortunate masses" should blindly follow.

Orientalism

2007-03-29T19:38:00.000-04:00

By Ali Cheaib
The Hamilton Spectator
(Dec 28, 2006)

In his recent memoirs, Out of Place, that he wrote while clinched in much pain to his hospital bed during one of many cancer treatments, Edward Said spills out some of the most intimate of personal details from the time he left his family home in Jerusalem to his going back to see it after 35 years of living in exile.

Said explains that, no matter where he would be in space and time, there was always a gut-wrenching feeling of being stranded in the middle of nowhere. Throughout the earthly life he spent searching for his true identity, Said always felt as if he was somehow transplanted into a place alien to his true self -- one that he could never call "home."

This arguably most influential post-colonialist thinker of our time often felt put in a self-imposed state of denial about the individual he really was.

Said's life in diaspora was mired by periods of social, cultural and political instability, during which he eloquently pinpointed the roots of human-made injustice using a revolutionary intellectual expose that has been translated to 40 different languages.

Orientalism is clearly one of the most important and comprehensive critiques of western social political thought. Said traces the roots of an inherently naive and misguided vision toward the East (Orient) that began two centuries ago with Napoleon entering Egypt as conqueror to his subsequent miserable defeat and retreat back to France that many scholars partially attribute to his inability to deal in a dignified manner with the native population.

Only two months prior to his death in 2003, Said wrote that George Bush's quagmire in Iraq and Afghanistan is a pristine evidence of a continued blatant misunderstanding by the west of eastern social, religious and cultural values and institutions.

As we edge closer to signing off yet another chapter in our life, there is this ever-so-elusive nostalgic moment of self-reflection that goes by during --or right after-- New Year's Eve celebration. I call it elusive because seldom are we able to seize that precious moment to try and find answers to a feeling many of us have of truly being out of place.

Especially for individuals who have to leave their original homeland in search of peace, tranquillity and a better future for their families in an atmosphere of freedom, respect and equal opportunity, the true narrative and that precious moment are totally unique. The feeling of being out of place and in constant search of a Canadian identity may be a permanent fixture in their lives, and ultimately that of their children. It is the invisible Cross of Christ they carry on their back that affects their daily movement and casts an uneasy feeling of being unwelcome, unwanted or undeserving of being "Canadian."

What makes this feeling even more chronic is when it is reinforced by a dagger of falsified images, untrue meanings, harmful connotations and abusive language about where they come from and who they are as people. This inserts itself into their inner soul, rendering their potential for becoming active participants in the fabric of Canada's multicultural society a lot more strenuous.

For the tens of thousands of immigrants and newcomers who strive to make Canada home, the new year should at least hold a promise for a new beginning where they are accorded the right to find their true self and gain their deserving place in society.

For example, opportunities for foreign-trained professionals to find suitable jobs void of "Sorry, but you don't have a Canadian experience," or "That's not how we do things around here," or "Why did you people come here in the first place?"

And there are also situations that have much more dire consequences than just being subjected to abusive language or not finding jobs suited to their field of specialty and hard-earned knowledge and skills.

There are tragic stories about Maher Arar, Mahmoud Jaballah, Michael Dixon of Hamilton, and many more marginalized Canadians and their families who may be suffering in silence, as a result of being subjected to demeaning treatment at the hands of those we trust the most to protect us from bad elements.

In 2007, Canadians must ensure the swift implementation of Judge O'Connor's recommendations in the matter of Arar and the RCMP, as well as the LeSage report on police misconduct.

I am positive the majority of Canadians have a keen sense of responsibility, can --and do -- empathize with their new compatriots, and would do their best to make them feel welcome, wanted and treated as equals.

Let us hope and pray, each in our own way, the new year will bring peace, harmony and dignity to every home in Canada so that nobody will ever feel out of place.

Why Not?

2007-03-24T15:21:00.001-04:00

Blogging is trendy these days... It is somehow a reflection of a postmodern world in which communication and information systems are fusing together with flourishing artistic dispositions to form little constellations of social sparks. Blogging is one such spark that binds the person to the text; to the symbols; to the world; and to the discourse in particular.

The hope is that my blog will be a little space to free my soul and spirit, and to connect with readers interested in issues related to social political thought especially as it maps to the fiery situation in the Middle East and in Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Iraq. This cradle of ancient civilizations is still ridden with forces of ignorance that tend to attract forces of opportunistic tendencies whose objectives may not be as innocent as they claim them to be. The clash between these two sets of ideologies threatens to engulf the entire region with infinite little wars that may touch the entire world.

You can also expect to find a healthy dose of Canada related discussions that I hope would add value to this blog.

The landscape is definitely open to any manifestation of the mind. So feel free to join in and enrich this landscape with your own thoughts and intellectual output that I am sure will make this blog much more valuable to all.