Al-Ahram Weekly 11 - 17 May 2000 Issue No. 481
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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Missing, but not forgotten

By Ranwa Yehia

Following the signing of the 1989 Taif Agreement, which brought an end to Lebanon's bloody 15-year-long civil war, the Lebanese began to attempt to resume normal lives. A large number of the Lebanese, however, are still suffering from the aftermath of the war.

According to Amnesty International, more than 17,000 people went missing or were kidnapped during the war. Many of the kidnapped, during the 1980s in particular, were victims of sectarianism. The expression "kidnapping according to one's sect," is today remembered with bitterness by the Lebanese who experienced the daily horrors of the war.

The families of those missing continue to hope that their children are still alive. Their frustrations are compounded in the face of the continual neglect of the issue by different governments. One of the main reasons the subject is neglected by officials is that former militia leaders, who could be held responsible for kidnappings, are currently cabinet ministers. Another reason is that many of those who were kidnapped are believed to be held in Syria -- an issue too sensitive to be openly discussed in Lebanon.

"There is a well-known saying in Arabic: 'Speak about it, so that it does not happen again,'" said Paul Ashkar, one of the supporters of the families. "But the policy of our state is, 'Don't speak about it, even if it means it might happen again.'"

Zeinab Jabr awaits the return of a loved one

The families of the kidnapped are also bitter about a 1995 law which allows families to obtain death certificates for missing relatives. While the law was passed to resolve inheritance cases that were held up in court because the missing were not officially declared deceased, many families regard it as the government's attempt to close this file.

In October 1999, through an organisation called the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Missing During the War, which had existed for years but only last year began to take concerted action, families began to push their complaints onto the government's agenda. In January 2000, the committee began to see results.

Following weekly vigils held outside the cabinet headquarters since last October, Prime Minister Selim Al-Hoss met one of the committee's three demands by appointing a team to investigate the fate of the missing and kidnapped. Made up of five army intelligence officers, the team was charged with the task of submitting an official report to the government within three months.

According to committee president Wedad Halwani, its other demands were providing the families of the kidnapped with social services and recognising 13 April (which marks the beginning of the civil war) as a day to remember the missing.

Halwani herself is a victim of the atrocities of the war. Her husband, Adnan, was preparing lunch on 24 September 1982 when two gunmen took him away for "five minutes" to help in an investigation of a car accident. She never saw him again.

To commemorate the anniversary of the beginning of the civil war, hundreds of families gathered in Martyrs' Square in Beirut's newly-renovated downtown district on 13 April this year. Joining the symbolic gathering were young supporters and sympathisers.

However, many were still shaken due to a violent confrontation a day earlier when they were holding their weekly vigil in front of the cabinet headquarters. Police and riot squads prevented the families from approaching the building. Halwani was baffled by this action: "It was like we were back at war and we were the enemy," she said.

Halwani is more concerned about the results of the government-appointed commission. She argues that commission members refuse to reveal how they intend to carry out their investigations.

The president of the commission, Brigadier Salim Abu Ismail, said investigation procedures are "our business." He explained that the commission distributed applications to police stations across the country, through which families are to request information about the missing, and that it ran an advertisement on the government-owned television station, Télé Liban, urging families to complete the forms.

He said that the commission has already received close to 2,000 applications -- a response he cited in his suggestion that Amnesty International's estimate about the number of missing is "exaggerated."

Because three months proved insufficient for the commission to gather all the necessary information, Al-Hoss granted the committee an additional three months after which it is to present its report.

The official report will include a final estimate of the number of missing or kidnapped during the war, details of where missing people are believed to be if they are still alive and suggestions as to what could be done to retrieve them.

Meanwhile, families whose relatives have been missing for more than 15 years continue to hope that the day will come when they will see their loved ones again.

Zeinab Jabr, for example, refuses to take the sleeping pills her physician has prescribed for fear that she wouldn't hear her son's knocking "when" he comes back.

Her son, Ibrahim Melhem Jabr, was kidnapped on 12 April 1984 in the Hamra district of Beirut at a time when kidnapping by militias in the country was a regular occurrence. He was 28.

"At first it never occurred to us that Ibrahim had been kidnapped, but when we heard news that there had been kidnappings in Hamra that day we realised Ibrahim was one of them," Jabr said.

Attempts throughout the years by Jabr's other children to persuade her to join them in Denmark, where they immigrated after their brother's kidnapping, have failed. "How can I leave this house when I still hope that Ibrahim will come back one day? I don't even sleep at night for fear that he might knock on the door and I won't hear him," Jabr said in her dark humid ground floor apartment in Hayy Al-Selloum -- one of Beirut's poorest suburbs.

Ever since the Committee of the Relatives of Missing and Kidnapped During the War redoubled its efforts last October, Jabr has been an active participant in its work, attending every meeting and vigil.

"Standing in front of the cabinet headquarters each week and meeting with other families helps me. I keep hoping to hear something that will comfort me or lead me to Ibrahim," Jabr said.

The solace Jabr receives from her participation in the committee's activities is not shared by Emile Chaib, whose son, André, was kidnapped by militiamen in 1985.

André Chaib was one of three Central Bank employees who were kidnapped by militiamen on 8 August 1985 as they attempted to cross to what was then East Beirut.

A holder of three doctorate degrees, André was the Central Bank's director of economic studies from 1981 until he was abducted. He was also the "right hand" man of then Central Bank Governor Edmond Naim and was even nominated for the position of governor.

"He was 30 years old when he was nominated for this position -- a genius. Prime Minister Salim Al-Hoss vouches for both his accomplishments and his character," Chaib said.

What was most striking about Chaib as he talked about his son, was the way the 76-year-old repeatedly laughed bitterly -- as if he recognised deep down the futility of his efforts to find André. "They offered André high positions in Washington and Paris," he said in a tone that reflected how much he wished his son had accepted them. "But André kept asking me, 'if everyone did the same what will happen to this country?' I'm going to explode as a result of all this," Chaib said.

Speaking solemnly, Chaib said: "Even if he was a bad person, like many of our politicians here, he is still my son and I want him back. I would have liked to see one of the many governments throughout the years show some concern for this issue."

"I was probably the first person to drop a letter at the complaints' box that President [Emile] Lahoud put at the presidential palace after he was elected. Some people received responses when they complained but there was nothing on this issue because talking about it is forbidden. What can I do?" he asked.

Chaib's frustrations are aggravated by the focus on the issue of Lebanese missing in the conflict with Israel: "Why is it that only those in Israel are mentioned? What about the others? Aren't they Lebanese citizens too?"

More than 15 years after André disappeared, Chaib believes his son is still alive. "I don't know what shape he is in, particularly as he is a man of principle and conscience, but I do believe he is alive," he said.

Chaib's major fear is that the day will come when the issue of the kidnapped will be forgotten. As the efforts of the Committee of the Relatives of the Kidnapped and Missing During the War achieve some results, Chaib may rest a little.

For a father who has so much pride in his son's accomplishments, Chaib remained composed while talking about André. Not once did he falter, nor did he shed a single tear. Though there was much pain in his eyes, it was a gesture he made at the end of the conversation that said it all. Just before closing the door of his apartment, Chaib looked down at the floor, hesitated for a split second then disappeared behind it but the look of complete resignation on his face was unmistakable.

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