"The long road to a new Lebanese national contract"

Abstract

Part of the ingrained and predominant discourse of Lebanese politics is characterized by visionary and promising elements which culminate in the image of a dream: the dream of building up Lebanon, a viable Lebanon, a stable and flourishing one and above all a sovereign Lebanon. This notion of a dream has been used by many politicians - prominent among them former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri - as one of their favourite buzzwords and has turned into a useful rhetorical means which captures Lebanese sentiments as it nurtures hope of a better future. Against the background of forthcoming elections and prearrangements for the launching of an international tribunal aimed at convicting al-Hariri’s murderers the question arises what has happened to the dream: has it been deferred, become extinct or lived on?