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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Lebanon
Index
In 1987 there were skeletal remains of the prewar bureaucracy.
For example, although there were still many interruptions,
telephone and postal service continued to function in many areas,
and electric power and piped water still flowed to many users. But
with the central authorities in a shambles, the bureaucracy was
often more heavily influenced by the local militias than by the
cabinet ministries.
Before the 1975 Civil War the bureaucracy, bloated by
patronage, was noted for its slowness, inefficiency, and
corruption. Favored clients of zuama often held important
positions and, regardless of their competence, could not be fired.
Given the low pay of many positions, it was not surprising that
government employment did not attract the most capable people.
Moreover, to make ends meet, many civil servants were prone to
accepting bribes and spending only a few hours at the office so
they could work at a second job.
Sectarianism has perhaps been stronger in the bureaucracy than
in any other Lebanese political institution. President Shihab, one
of the few national-level politicians to introduce reforms to the
system, in 1959 enacted the Personnel Law. This statute technically
abolished the practice of appointing officers on the basis of the
six-to-five formula; instead, Christians and Muslims were to be
appointed on an equal basis. Shihab also created the Civil Service
Council to examine, train, and certify new appointees, and he
established a school to provide such training.
But as with other reform measures that threatened the hold of
the zuama, these efforts were largely ignored. An estimate
of sectarian representation in 1955 among higher ranking civil
servants put Maronites at 40 percent, while 27 percent were Sunnis,
and a mere 3.6 percent were Shias. Furthermore, by the start of the
Civil War in 1975, these ratios remained relatively unchanged.
In the aftermath of the violence of the late 1970s and early
1980s, observers were uncertain of the exact functioning of local
administration. As noted earlier, it was believed that, like much
of Lebanese politics, local affairs had become the domain of the
militias. In 1987 the country was divided into five provinces
(muhafazat): Bayrut, Al Biqa, Jabal Lubnan, Al Janub and Ash
Shamal
(see
fig. 1). A sixth province, Jabal Amil, was created in
the 1980s. It was to be carved out of Al Janub Province, with its
capital at An Nabatiyah at Tahta. In 1987, however, its exact
boundaries could not be determined. All provinces except Bayrut
were subdivided into districts. Prior to 1975, local administration
was highly centralized, with the Ministry of Interior having
oversight and fiscal responsibilities. The governor, who was
appointed by the president with cabinet approval, was the highestranking official in each province. He headed the Provincial
Council, which included a representative of the Ministry of
Finance, and the deputy governors (qaim maqams), who were
appointed in the same manner as the governor. Despite the elaborate
infrastructure of the local administration, by virtue of its
control over the purse strings, the Ministry of Interior exercised
considerable authority.
Data as of December 1987
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