I am starting to realize how much Aoun represents the bulk of the Christians in Lebanon. The reason: because he voices an often hidden but always present streak in Christians to see themselves as separate from the rest of the nation. Aoun today is the true successor of the leadership that went against the Hariri governments in the 1990s and early 2000s and was a constant though less visible presence in politics at the time.What I am talking about of course, is a deep seated sectarianism which is something particularly unique to the Christian community in the country. Aoun’s tough talking and continuous demonization of the Sunni leadership and the Hariris in particular is what has made him popular in the wake of Rafic Hariri’s killing in 2005.
I am beginning to realize that many if not most Christians will vote for Aoun in the coming elections, because he gives them a sense (maybe a false sense) of strength and a sense of independence within the Lebanese political scene. He makes the common Christian person feel that there is a strong and independent Christian leadership that is somehow reclaiming a lost age of power for the community.
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1 comment:
I'm not to sure where you are getting this information, but if you ask me Aoun is THE biggest problem for the Maronite community in Lebanon & he comes no where near representing us as a people
His popularity within the Maronite community has never been so low since he had allied his party with hizbollah & become the Christian puppet/ spokesman for their agenda.
He has however made some political ground but it is definitely not with his own Maronite community, it was actually the Armenian community in Lebanon that won him seats in the last election & this shia muslim hizbollah supporter base will probably do the same in this election.
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