A long time ago, the region resisted Syrian presence, keeping it outside its walls. It had raised the opposition banner for a long time, just like neighboring Jbeil and Metn. Today, its inhabitants are expressing their indignation at the general Lebanese and the local Keserwan policies that have led to the infiltration of "Syrians" into villages and neighborhoods, constituting a de facto "presence".
Thus, the people of Keserwan did not wait for the latest official statements demanding the return of the displaced to their safe villages and towns in Syria to express their resentment or opposition, though these statements did contribute to increasing the intensity of the discourse.
However, there is selective content amidst this wholesale hatred as a result of "interests" at times and "special relations" at others. This involves the defense of some business owners of hiring Syrians and that of some inhabitants of Syrian neighbors or tenants. Every story of "amicability" is met with another story of "amicability", and all talk expressing "hatred" is met with "hatred".
The Syrians of Keserwan
Syrians only came to Keserwan for work, as they have probably heard of the famous "strangers" saying among the inhabitants of Keserwan. Before the war in Syria, they came to this district to work on construction sites. Following the outbreak of the war, these same Syrians became displaced workers, helping other Syrians settle in the mountains of Keserwan. This is true for the Muslim Syrians. As for the Christian Syrians, they chose the region for religious reasons.
According to Raghida, who was displaced there with her family in 2013, her husband did not wish to go to other regions with a Muslim majority. Although the family shared the region’s religion, specifically in Jounieh, "life was not easy at first, we remained until very recently those Syrians who will deplete the goods of this country." The situation did not change until the couple made some positive steps towards neighbors and their employers. This was why the owner of the shop where Raghida works made an effort to enroll her daughter in a school after the principal of a public school refused to take her, saying that the school was already full.
Like many other Syrians, Raghida did not wait too long before getting a job. "Employers snatch us up quickly, as employee benefits and pay are minimal," says Raghida. She knows many Syrians who replaced Lebanese workers in the labor market. "This is what makes the Lebanese hate us more, although we didn’t force employers to hire us," she adds.
Although the areas of work are different in the mountains of Keserwan, where men of different religions and denominations work in agriculture and construction, the view the Lebanese have of these Syrians is no different. The Lebanese regard them with utmost circumspection and caution. In Hrajel, Faraya, Jeita, Yahchouch, Safra and other villages and towns, "every Syrian is guilty of stealing and harassment until proven innocent". As a result, some have received their share of beatings just for lifting their heads. "It is not wrong to respond any suspicious move with beatings as a preventive measure against disobedience that we definitely can do without," says Toni from Hrajel.
An Economic and Social Burden
From the coastal towns of Keserwan to the highest peaks of Mount Sannine, and from Nahr Ibrahim to the north to Nahr al-Kalb to the south, no Lebanese citizen who resorts to Syrian workers seems to be willing to give them up. In construction, agriculture, trade, bakeries and sewing, Syrian labor remains the cheapest given its abundance and the absence of social and health benefits. Thus, the Lebanese benefit from Syrian displacement at a purely personal level.
On the other hand, there is a clear Syrian burden weighing on villages and towns that are not covered by the programs and aid offered by states and international organizations. Keserwan District is different from other districts, such as Baalbek, Hermel and Akkar among others, with displaced camps and gatherings. Hence, some mayors of towns in Keserwan talk of overstraining economic burdens and social changes that have transformed the familiar look of neighborhoods and streets. "When have we ever seen women in hijab in Jounieh?" deplores Leen. "And what about the houses and buildings overcrowded with families sharing a single apartment?" Such complaints frequently reach the Municipal Council of Zouk Mikael, in addition to many other complaints about "vandalizing roadside shrines, the displaced walking around with daggers and gathering on streets and in squares in groups to smoke the hookah," according to the deputy mayor Pierre Ashkar.
Ashkar seems to be in agreement with the Mayor of Jounieh Juan Hobeish and the Mayor of Faraya Michel Salameh to reveal that the municipalities are not able to determine the number of Syrians living in them. Ashkar notes that Zouk Mikael is home to around 4,500 registered Syrians, an increase of 500 Syrians since the summer. These figures do not include the Syrians not registered with the municipality and those registered with the UNHCR and not with the municipality. Jounieh too does not have accurate figures about the number of Syrians there, "although they’re probably in constant movement", says Hobeish.
While Hobeish and Ashkar reaffirm that there are no curfews imposed on Syrians in their municipalities, Salameh says he has imposed a curfew on "young displaced men" effective after 7 pm, except for those carrying a night work shift card signed by the municipality.
Curfews seem to be a minor detail for municipalities as opposed to the opening of competing businesses run by Syrians and Syrians getting electricity illegally from municipality power lines. Hobeish has vowed to close 72 businesses in Jounieh run by Syrians, "as they don’t pay municipality dues", while Salameh tries to ensure that no Syrian opens a store or owns a taxi car in Faraya.
The Mayor of Faraya talks of several municipalities collecting a lump sum for every room or apartment occupied by Syrians to recover "even if only a small amount" of the expenses incurred by municipalities as a result of the displaced for electricity, sanitation and other matters. He stresses that he has not taken these moves, but asks the Government to put them into law as the burden borne by villages and towns is growing.
Officials in the three municipalities receive a large number of complaints against the displaced, yet most Lebanese come to the defense of Syrians working for them when a complaint is lodged against them.
With the exception of personal interests that may link a displaced Syrian to a Lebanese citizen, the prevailing view of Syrian displacement is bleak, holding the Syrians’ directly responsible for the economic deterioration.
"Charity medical organizations and institutions in the district do not receive any assistance from international organizations to help the displaced, or at least do not receive sufficient assistance," says the head of a clinic in Keserwan, who asked to remain anonymous. "It’s similar to how Keserwan is being neglected in development projects implemented in other regions for hosting large numbers of displaced Syrians."
In light of this "shortage" of contributions, the head of the clinic says that "some are refusing to help the displaced in terms of health and medicine on the grounds that what we receive is barely enough to help the region’s poor". She went on to amend her statement by saying that this does not apply to the children of the displaced.