Lebanon: The harsh reality of a failed state

Lebanon: The harsh reality of a failed state
The Failed States 2006 Index has placed Lebanon at a ranking of 65 in between Zambia and Venezuela. Putting Lebanon to the test against criteria for failed states.*1 - Mounting Demographic Pressures Yes2 - Massive Movement of Refugees and IDPs Yes3 - Legacy of Vengeance - Seeking Group Grievance Yes4 - Chronic and Sustained Human Flight Relatively, yes depending on your definition of "chronic" and "sustained"5 - Uneven Economic Development along Group Lines Absolutely6 - Sharp and/or Severe Economic Decline Last I checked, yes7 - Criminalization or Delegitimization of the State Yup8 - Progressive Deterioration of Public Services Yes9 - Widespread Violation of Human Rights In varying degrees, we're not the Sudan but we're not Switzerland either10 - Security Apparatus as "State within a State" Yes11 - Rise of Factionalized Elites ahlan bi Zu3ama! yes12 - Intervention of Other States or External Actors Most obviously and definately, yes.Are we a failed state or simply a weak state? The criteria above would lead us to a humbling implication (although, this is the same index that has Saudi Arabia at 73). Many Lebanese don't tend to think of their country as a "failed state" in the official sense or in the same breath as the Sudan or Chad (for example). Yet, we rank remarkably high on the list of failed states for one of the more progressive countries in the region. I don't particurly warm very well with "indexes" and defined criterias and tend to be skeptical (not to say they aren't helpful and important in drawing important pictures for policy makers or students of policy); but for some reason despite all that is happening or has happened in Lebanon it demands examination when we see it amongst dubious company.*The Crisis States Research Centre defines a “failed state” as a condition of “state collapse” – e.g. a state that can no longer perform its basic security, and development functions and that has no effective control over its territory and borders.This term is used in very contradictory ways in the policy community (for instance, there is a tendency to label a “poorly performing” state as “failed” – a tendency the Crisis States Research Centre rejects). The opposite of a “failed state” is an “enduring state” and the absolute dividing line between these two conditions is difficult to ascertain at the margins. Even in a failed state, some elements of the state, such as local state organisations, might continue to exist.