Syria's Relationship with Lebanon

Syria's relationship with Lebanon after 1976 does not really make sense unless it is placed in an histrorical context. In my history class in Syria I was taught that Lebanon was a part of post-Ottoman Syria until 1926, when the French established Lebanon as a separate nation (History, 1998).

Although Lebanon had rarely formed a distinct political entity, Maronites had developed a belief in Lebanon as a country with a history and a character of its own. Because the French fostered this belief, their rule was supported by the Maronites, who gained economically and politically from it. In 1926 the French established the Lebanese Republic, but complete independence was not achieved for Lebanon until 1946, when the last French troops were evacuated (History, 1988).

Since the emergence of the post-1943 state, national policy has been determined largely by a relatively restricted group of traditional regional and sectarian leaders. The 1943 national pact divided political power up on the basis of religious denominations, as established in the 1932 census. Until 1990, seats in parliament were divided on a 6-to-5 ratio of Christians to Muslims. Positions in the government bureaucracy were divided up on a similar basis (Syria, 1995).

Efforts to alter or abolish this system of power sharing have been at the center of Lebanese politics for more than 30 years. A series of amendments has substantially altered th

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ocations of the population, growing migration of people and capital, and the uprooting of the PLO bureaucracy (Syria, 1995). Recession in the Gulf led to a reduction in expected income. Beirut's prominence as a center for finance, commerce, and tourism faded away. A calmer security environment in 1986-87, combined with a sharp drop in the value of the Lebanese pound and a decline in labor costs resulting from inflation of 600%, produced modest economic growth. Hostilities in 1989-90 in industrial and prosperous areas of Lebanon had a dramatic and negative impact on production and exports, triggered massive outflows of capital and people, and created circumstances resulting in the devaluation of local currency (Syria, 1995). The end of hostilities in 1990, the beginning of the process of national reconciliation, and the removal of internal barriers to the movements of goods and people produced a short-term economic boom in 1991. This high level of activity proved difficult to maintain, largely because of enormous state deficits, poor economic management by the government, public sector corruption, the unavailability of commercial credit, and the collapse of public confidence in the nation's leadership. A surge of optimism s

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