|
Version française
"Emile Bitar was the representative of a generation, a school of thought,
a class which is nobility : the nobility of those who triumphed over the experience of government, the nobility
of those who did not yield to the temptations that power induces, the nobility of those who dared to say no to violence...
This nobility represented by Emile Bitar should have been, and it must be, the road to the future of Lebanon."
Ghassan
Tueni, Former Minister and An-Nahar Publisher
"Emile Bitar, Al Tariq ila
al Mustaqbal", An-Nahar, full text
|
| Professor Emile Bitar (1931-1988) |
| "The noble cast of those who did not yield..." |
|
| A cartoonist's look at Emile Bitar, dubbed "the most incorruptible Lebanese" |
|
"Emile Bitar was the example, the symbol, the epitome of honor,
of integrity, of dignity, of commitment. These are the qualities he demonstrated throughout his political career. He
was the major voice of Lebanon's youth, the voice that symbolized and carried their hopes, their fears and aspirations.
As health minister, he was the first to tackle sensitive issues with the utmost competence, with the brilliant mind of
an expert. Emile Bitar was the example of a government minister who perfectly masters the issues, who treats matters rigorously,
with scientific expertise, with the responsibility of a statesman who puts the public interest, the higher interests of the
Lebanese people above all personal interests. Thus, Emile Bitar was Lebanon's most popular and beloved public figure in this
period of history, the foremost opinion leader. To this day, Emile Bitar's figure remains the most shining and popular one
in Lebanon. In the long list of holders of high public offices, and I am one of them, rarely can we mention a name that would
be brilliant and distinguished, but Emile Bitar is one of the very few who clean the long record of indignities and failures
and who restore the honor of an entire political generation. Every single health minister who succeeded
Emile Bitar from 1972 to this day, has been trying, unsucessfully, to keep up with the legacy and standard set by Emile Bitar.
Should I have only one ambition as a government minister, it would be to approach, even from afar, the standard of Emile Bitar,
and follow his path."
Marwan Hamadé, Minister and MP, full text
"Firm stands, courageous opinions, eloquence : those were his main attributes...
Emile Bitar was a staunch patriot, a brilliant doctor and a humanist. His stands remained firm and inflexible, despite
all the threats, despite all the promises, despite all the attempts to lure and corrupt him."
Cardinal
Nasrallah Sfeir, Maronite Patriarch, full text
"Strength of character, determination, commitment and sacrifice for the public interest, integrity... Emile
Bitar worked as if saving Lebanon from all the catastrophes that befell upon it from the times of the Ottomans and the French
Mandate depended upon him and only upon him. He embodied the greatness of the Cedars."
Edouard
Honein, former minister and MP, full text
"Emile Bitar was the first minister who addressed the Lebanese people with the language of truth."
Samir Atallah, journalist and political analyst, full text
In his Pulitzer prize-winning book, Profiles in Courage, John F. Kennedy
argued that in the age-old contest between power and principle, only those willing to lose power for their convictions
are deserving of posterity's approval.
This website chronicles the story of a Lebanese minister who acted on principle
and followed his conscience in pursuit of the national interest, a man who displayed a rare form of courage, sacrificing his
well being and putting his future at risk to protect the public interest and do what he believed was right for his country,
a man who resigned his seat in protest rather than violate his ideals.
Although he occupied centerstage for only a short period of time, Emile Bitar had a major and lasting impact
on the political consciousness of his countrymen, for the key decisions of his political career were based on moral principle.
In a country plagued by corruption and patronage, he displayed character, integrity, and commitment to serving the national
interest above all personal and sectarian considerations. In a country were most politicians look for outside support and
foreign patrons, he remained utterly and quasi-obsessively independent. Thus he personified the new statesman that the
Lebanese were longing for and rarely has a public figure been so much loved, respected and admired by the people.
Wholly oblivious to the squabbling and bickering, the wheelings, dealings and manoeuverings of traditional Lebanese
politicians, Emile Bitar was able to remain above the fray, to levitate above the sectarian factions. Constantly repeating
Abraham Lincoln's quote that "A house divided against itself cannot stand", he never ceased urging the Lebanese not to
be instrumentalized by regional powers and to rely only upon themselves in their struggle for national sovereignty,
independence and nation-building.
We hope that Dr Emile Bitar's story will inspire coming generations to believe
in the nobility of public service and in the utmost necessity of political courage. We hope it will encourage them to
stand fast for the ideals of freedom, justice and democracy in Lebanon.
President of the Emile Bitar Foundation
|
