How Was Lebanons Confessional System Instituted - Essay Example

The self-proclaimed protector of the Christian communities in Lebanon wanted to make sure these Maronites won't be absorbed into a Syrian Muslim state. And to ensure they will be dependent on France, several predominantly Muslim areas were added to this new state. Hence, the Maronites do not compose the majority of the population. Political power was based on sectarian affiliations. The Maronites, dependent on French backing to keep their political dominance, assumed political and economic supremacy in their homeland and accepted the Franco-Mediterranean cultural orientation in consequence turned their back to the Arab world.

On the contrary, the Sunni Muslims wanted unity with Syria and looked upon the Arabs for their source of cultural identity. The conflict appeared to be endless. Lebanon, dependent on France, does not have good relations with the Arabs. Adding up the existing political customs and the geographical distribution of various religious communities having their own statutes and beliefs, unity seems to be far-reaching off. However, for Lebanon to survive as a state, a political system should be instituted in which all of these opposing interests could be accommodated.

A constitution for creating the Lebanese republic was approved in 1926. The constitution makes it possible for a single chamber of deputies to be elected on the basis of religious representation. The president, which will be elected by the chamber, has the authority to appoint the prime minister and the cabinet. It is unlikely that France will give off their power thus remained in control of Lebanese foreign relations and military affairs. In the end, Lebanon has very little freedom to control its domestic affairs because of the ever-present network of French advisers within each ministry.

A nation divided will definitely not prosper. And Lebanon sure wants independence. Realizing that the state could not survive without Muslim-Christian cooperation, al-Khuri, a Maronite politician, sought to build alliances with the Muslims. He formed a united front against France so Muslims and Christians would link the gap that separated them and institute mutual interests within the structure of the state. His political organization, known as the Constitutional Bloc, was actively aiming for complete independence.

So in 1936, French and Lebanese representatives agreed on a treaty that guarantees "the fair representation of all the country's sects in the government and high administration". Hence, a confessional system was instituted, which is committed to the construction and implementation of "orthodoxy or accepted belief" within each known religious community.