Gemayel: We Will Stage ‘Educational Disobedience’ if New History Book is Approved
Phalange Party MP Sami Gemayel slammed on Tuesday the new official history book that is being prepared to be taught at schools throughout the country, saying that it lacks objectivity and it selectively recounts historic events.
He said during a press conference: “We warn that we will stage educational disobedience if the new book is approved by cabinet because we will not allow it to be used at schools.”
“The Lebanese generations do not know their own history and where they committed mistakes and made achievements,” he continued.
“This is where history comes in and we therefore call on the government to adopt a book that takes into consideration all points of views or at least recounts events objectively,” stressed the MP.
Gemayel gave the example of the Ottoman era in Lebanon, noting that some sides may consider the period as an occupation, while others don’t.
“A people without a history or past cannot build a future or learn from past mistakes,” he stated.
“We will live in a diverse society and students should be given the opportunity to analyze events,” he added.
Furthermore, he noted that some factions in Lebanon are not even mentioned in the history book, such as the Armenians.
“It’s unacceptable that the history book only refer to one resistance, which is the one against Israel, while other powers that resisted occupation are disregarded,” Gemayel added.
Moreover, he said: “The struggles of a whole portion of the Lebanese and the martyrs they presented have been omitted from the book.”
He explained that the new history book described the 1990-2005 period in Lebanon as a time of construction after the end of the civil war.
“Some sides believe this period to be a time of occupation, hegemony, and humiliation where leaders such as Amin Gemayel and Michel Aoun were living in exile and Samir Geagea was imprisoned and Syrian army checkpoints were deployed throughout Lebanon,” said the MP.
“A million and a half Lebanese staged the 2005 Cedar Revolution and after a month and half intifada, they succeeded in ending the occupation on April 26, 2005,” he continued.
“Don’t the Lebanese have the right to remember this glorious development and name it as they like?” he asked.
“Objectivity in devising a new history book cannot be overlooked and if we want to build a future for ourselves, we have to recognize the other,” Gemayel stressed.
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