09/14/2006

Testimony of Refugees International to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Regarding Lebanon: Securing a Permanent Cease-Fire
September 13, 2006

• Hezbollah is the most organized and trusted political party with regard to providing social services to its constituents, especially for the Shia Muslims in the south and the Beqaa valley where the majority of the damage exists.
• Well-organized and well-funded by Syria and Iran, Hezbollah has played a major role in both the relief and reconstruction efforts in Lebanon.
• To ensure that vulnerable groups do not fall through the gaps and to prevent discrimination in aid distribution, international organizations must establish coordination and information-sharing mechanisms with Hezbollah.
• The Lebanese government is young, weak and mistrusted by the vast majority of the population, including Christians, Sunni Muslims, and others. The Council of the South, the primary government actor in reconstruction, is particularly distrusted by Lebanese and closely aligned with the Amal party.
• The international community, particularly the United States government, must make a serious effort to strengthen the government of Lebanon if Hezbollah’s presence in south Lebanon is to be counter-balanced. This will help to ensure a more effective, neutral and de-politicized aid and reconstruction effort. Accountability mechanisms within the Government of Lebanon must be established to ensure that funds are distributed transparently and to help build trust between the people of Lebanon and the government.

• Southern Lebanon, which saw the greatest damage, is predominantly Shia Muslim.
• About 250,000 remain displaced, about 15 percent of whom are Christians and Sunnis.
• Fear of discrimination based on ethnic or religious identity, rather than discrimination itself, keeps many minorities from returning home.
• As Hezbollah is the primary provider of relief, many displaced fear the party will cater to its constituents, leaving them with no assistance if they do not support Hezbollah.
• Strengthening the Lebanese government is a long-term process. The Department of State must insure that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has sufficient funds to monitor the return process closely and ensure that discrimination does not take place.

• In many southern Lebanese villages, the destruction rate reached 60 to 80 percent.
• Families have lost their homes, and some have chosen not to return. Others are seeking shelter with neighbors or relatives in the south. Aid to host families who provide shelter must be prioritized to cushion the financial strain of assisting the displaced.
• Estimates show that almost 80 percent of Lebanon’s workforce suffered directly or indirectly from the war.
• 15,000 tons of oil spilled in the Mediterranean has devastated the fishing industry. Rural farmers of the South have lost livestock, and small businessmen lost the tools of their trade. Many farmers cannot access land – their only source of income - due to unexploded ordnance.
• Lebanon has important national capacity in terms of available goods and qualified professionals. The literacy rate in Lebanon is 87% and there are 15 universities including the American University of Beirut. Donors and international agencies should work closely with national institutions and concentrate their efforts in strengthening existing capacity.

• The UN estimates that over 100,000 unexploded pieces of ordnance in Lebanon pose significant risks to the physical safety of civilians, particularly children.
• Over a dozen people have been killed and over fifty injured by UXOs since the ceasefire, a number equal to those killed between 2003 and 2005. UXOs pose a risk to returnees and humanitarian workers as well as preventing local farmers from returning to work.
• Congress should approve funding for the Department of State’s Bureau of Political and Military Affairs, Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement for funding to the Mines Advisory Group to conduct demining.
• In the course of the US investigation on the use of cluster bombs in Lebanon and to assist UNMAS in the process of clearance, the Department of State should request maps of areas in which cluster munitions were used and where landmines were laid.