Police State fears grow in Lebanon

Press, 12 January 1977, Page 6

Police State fears grow in Lebanon

By ROBERT FISK, of “The Times,” through NZPA Nicosia Less than three months after the end of its terrible civil war, Lebanon, once the freest and most liberal country in the Arab world, is taking on the appearance of a police State.

Every newspaper and magazine is heavily censored, and the population lives largely in ignorance of the shootings and killings that are still going on in their country. Left-wing politicians and their supporters say privately that they fear the authorities may soon imprison any political opposition. The public voice of the Palestinians, which for more than a quarter of a century was heard freely in Beirut, has been effectively and totally silenced by the Government within the last few days. At least one street execution by Syrians has been reported in the Lebanese capital, and on Saturday more than 100 Lebanese soldiers, enraged at the kidnapping and murder of three leading Moslems, staged a mutiny in a barracks in west Beirut. The watch kept by the police on foreigners has now reached such proportions that Lebanon’s national airline. Middle East Airlines, was told last week to supply false boarding cards to police agents, so that travellers in the departure lounge of Beirut Airport could be scrutinised.

Censorship is now both strict and highly partial. In order not to contravene Lebanese law, this report—the material for which was gather-'’ in Beirut since the

(imposition of censorship—has been filed from the (Cypriot capital of Nicosia, I the nearest city to Beirut with a free press. ■ In Lebanon itself, the ! authorities now make no ! secret of their hope that i Western press representaI tives will leave the country, ! and they are now running I what amounts to a campaign to persuade foreign journalists to depart. Whether the Lebanese Government is fuliy aware of the conditions that prevail in the country, or of the openly Right-wing bias of their own censors, must remain an unanswered question, at least for the present: but there are disturbing signs that President Sarkis, of Lebanon, although personally unhappy at the recent turn of events, is under great pressure from | the Syrian Government. Last week, it emerges. Mr Sarkis, who is no admirer of the press, had to send four Government emissaries Damascus to dissuade the Svrians from their intention of permanently closing four | of Beirut’s daily newspapers I On the surface, life ! I Beirut is >etuming to a pre-; i war normality: nearly all t'.! shops in the glass-fronted) west Beirut Hamra precinctj have now reopened for business, and the narrow streets alongside are once again jammed with outsize and expensive American cars, the male drivers in white suits and their women companions dressed in new French boots and the latest winter fashions. Water-skiers can be seen

in Jounieh Bay just up the coast from Beirut and the casino on the cliffs above the harbour is packed nightly by many of its old and wealthy clientele.

One of the facts of life about which the Lebanese can have few illusions, however, is the degree of supervision that has been introduced into their daily lives. Although neither newspapers in Beirut nor foreign correspondents may write about the censorship, the Lebanese national television network, which is under Government supervision, last week showed film of Government officials at work in the offices of the Curete Generale in Beirut, deleting passages from newspaper reports with red felt pens. Strangely, all of Beirut’s subscriber trunk dialling svstem has suddenly broken down, which means that telephone callers abroad must now contact the operator before talking to a subscriber. How long the foreign press representatives can remain in Beirut under these conditions remains to be seen. Certainly, the Lebanese authorities would be happy to see them depart. When the 8.8. C. correspondent in Beirut asked Colonel Dahdah at a press conference last week whether he did not think that the strict censorship would drive Journalists out of Lebanon and to Cyprus, the Colonel replied: ' Well, T am told that the weather is very warm in Cyprus iust now.” Syrian troops of the Arab League peace force are not alone in keeping watch on th. population. They are assisted by a large number of Syrian officials who are, according to local politicians, Syrian policemen. Airport officials say ‘privately that a number of Egyptians have recently flown into Lebanon and the Palestinians claim that these men are Egyptian secret police sent to watch the Syrians, who are watching the Lebanese. This element of farce might be intrinsically humourous if it were not likely to be true.