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2010年8月 月次レポート（エルジュルディ・シリーン レバノン）
August Report ITP/JSPS 2010
Shirine El Juldi
In August the Lebanese American University is more quite than other times in the year, since it is the second part of the summer course. For that reason, I saved this month for interviews based upon the questioner that was set up. Professor Mbarak checked on the outcome of the meetings and on the target group.
In august, the weather in Lebanon is so humid and hot. On the other hand, the daily life is framed with insecurity embedded with indicators that might lead at trivial incidents to a violent conflict at local, national and regional levels, however, a gentleman agreement directed by two leading regional powers, Syria and Saudi Arabia, helped in maintaining a status quo throughout most of the period that I was in Lebanon. However, august was a bit hotter than the previous months. On 24 August, overnight skirmishes erupted between two political groups. Still, almost normal life was retained the second day. However, it made the cycle of the political tension in Lebanon sounder.
I had to go into several postponements of meetings with individuals in key decision-making level. I wasn't frightened, just praying that armed conflict will not breakout. Its part of the negotiation power that the competing parties have to maintain a balance of power on one hand, and to prevent the adversaries from getting a new political equation into the political struggle that might disrupt the status-quo.
The Meetings with women candidates in the parliamentarian elections and moderates male parliamentarians (in the sense that they don't belong to a political party, but still were enlisted on the list proposed by the competing influential political parties) were conducted as part of the formal political participation. Second, since most of the parliamentarians belong to political parties, I interviewed women in the political bureau in political parties, and women head of the women issues branch in political parties. In addition to that, I interviewed an intellectual from each party.
On the other hand, I contacted the women associations and had interviews with directors of NGOs both governmental and state-led.
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