Vous trouverez d’innombrables articles sur ce pays qui passionnent autant les amoureux de g\u00e9opolitique que les jeunes cin\u00e9astes. Loin des analyses \u00e9conomiques, politiques, d\u00e9mographiques, qui pointent du doigt cette situation impossible, je prendrai le parti de vous parler du Liban \u00e0 travers des tranches de vie de ses habitants. Des portraits d’individus qui ont comme points communs leur jeunesse et l\u2019impossibilit\u00e9 de fuir. De jeunes femmes et hommes \u00e0 la recherche d\u2019ancrages dans un pays \u00e0 la d\u00e9rive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Ce que je dis dans cet article n’engage que moi et le Liban ne se d\u00e9crit pas avec exhaustivit\u00e9 \u00e0 travers quelques rencontres et amiti\u00e9s naissantes. Il y a des demi v\u00e9rit\u00e9s, des faits incomplets, peut-\u00eatre aussi un peu de fiction. Le risque serait de blesser par mon ind\u00e9licatesse – \u00e0 travers des tranches de vies parfois tristes et parfois joyeuses – des femmes et des hommes qui vivent dans ce contexte impossible. Et je m\u2019en rends \u00e0 la nuance et l\u2019intelligence du lecteur pour m\u2019aider \u00e0 saisir avec justesse ces quelques lignes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n La playlist spotify \u00e0 \u00e9couter en lisant l\u2019article : <\/span>Liban\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I spent 2 months in Lebanon, scouting for the film Youth Visions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You’ll find countless articles on this country, which fascinates lovers of geopolitics and young filmmakers alike. Far from the economic, political and demographic analyses that point the finger at this impossible situation, I’m going to tell you about Lebanon through slices of the lives of its inhabitants. Portraits of individuals who share two main things : beings young and caged in their country. Young men and women in search of anchorage in a country adrift.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What I say in this article is my personal opinion, and Lebanon cannot be described exhaustively through a few encounters and new friendships. There are half-truths, incomplete facts and perhaps also a little fiction. My indelicacy would run the risk of damaging the decency of the men and women who survive in this impossible context –\u00a0 through slices of life that are sometimes sad and sometimes joyful. And I rely on the reader’s nuance and intelligence to help me capture these few lines accurately.<\/span><\/p>\n Spotify playlist to listen to while reading the article: <\/span><\/i><\/span>Lebanon<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Parfois, quand on ouvre les yeux encore t\u00f4t le matin, on a le sentiment que la journ\u00e9e sera longue.<\/span><\/p>\n Mars 2023, Beyrouth nous offre une matin\u00e9e ensoleill\u00e9e. Avec Mathilde, responsable de la communication de notre film Youth Visions, nous d\u00e9cidons de travailler \u00e0 la biblioth\u00e8que municipale de Geitawi. Elle s\u2019\u00e9tend le long du jardin j\u00e9suite, ce qui en fait un endroit particuli\u00e8rement agr\u00e9able et lumineux pour affiner mon budget pr\u00e9visionnel. Alors que nous franchissons le portail \u00e9caill\u00e9 de l\u2019espace vert, le gardien nous barre la route : notre \u00e9den est ferm\u00e9.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sometimes, when you open your eyes early in the morning, you get the feeling that it’s going to be a long day.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>March 2023, Beirut offers us a sunny morning. With Mathilde, in charge of communications for our film Youth Visions, we decide to work at the Geitawi municipal library. It stretches along the Jesuit garden, making it a particularly pleasant and bright place to fine-tune my budget. As we pass through the chipped gate of the green space, the guard blocks our way: our Eden is closed.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mathilde est un \u00eatre de lumi\u00e8re. Elle fait partie de ceux qui d\u00e9cident que la vie est plus agr\u00e9able dans la joie et s\u2019y tiennent. <\/span>L\u00e0 o\u00f9 le commun des mortels aurait pu bougonner, manifester un quelconque m\u00e9contentement – ce que je n\u2019ai pas manqu\u00e9 de faire – elle me propose d\u2019en profiter pour aller manger une cr\u00eape. Le pain libanais – pain pita – est souvent cuit sur un po\u00eale en forme de demi-sph\u00e8re. On peut le marier avec du fromage et du zaatar : le Man\u2019ouch\u00e9. Nous d\u00e9couvrons une boulangerie o\u00f9 l\u2019on peut d\u00e9guster sa pita avec du Nutella, ce qui fait figure d\u2019originalit\u00e9.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mathilde is a being of light. She’s one of those people who decide that life is more pleasant when it’s joyful, and stick to it. Where the average person might have grumbled and expressed discontent – which I certainly did – she suggested that I take the opportunity to have a cr\u00eape. Lebanese bread – pita bread – is often baked on a stove in the shape of a half-sphere. It can be served with cheese and zaatar: Man’ouch\u00e9. We discover a bakery where you can enjoy your pita with Nutella, which is quite original.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ce matin Gwen, notre chef op\u00e9rateur, est \u00e0 Lyon pour finaliser l\u2019achat d\u2019une cam\u00e9ra pour le tournage qui d\u00e9bute dans une semaine. Il rencontre le bras droit d\u2019un producteur en vacances, propri\u00e9taire de ladite machine. C\u2019est moi qui doit valider le transfert bancaire aupr\u00e8s de Pierre, notre tr\u00e9sorier \u00e0 Paris. Quatre interm\u00e9diaires, dans quatre lieux diff\u00e9rents, doivent donc s’aligner pour proc\u00e9der au virement de l\u2019argent.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This morning Gwen, our director of photography, is in Lyon to finalize the purchase of a camera for the shoot which starts in a week’s time. He’s meeting the right-hand man of a producer on vacation, who owns the camera. It’s up to me to validate the bank transfer with Pierre, our treasurer in Paris. Four intermediaries, in four different locations, had to line up to transfer the money.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Apr\u00e8s avoir r\u00e9cup\u00e9r\u00e9 nos cr\u00eapes, nous partons en qu\u00eate d\u2019un lieu id\u00e9al pour travailler. Sur la route, un gar\u00e7on nous accoste. Dans ses yeux un m\u00e9lange de peur et de d\u00e9tresse. Il nous demande de l\u2019aide dans un anglais approximatif. Il tient un papier avec un num\u00e9ro de t\u00e9l\u00e9phone. Mathilde lui tend son portable et le jeune inconnu compose un num\u00e9ro une fois, deux fois, trois fois mais personne ne r\u00e9pond. Nous essayons de comprendre ce qu\u2019il cherche. Il s\u2019appelle Eli, a 15 ans et doit appeler un ami de sa m\u00e8re, avocat, pour r\u00e9cup\u00e9rer de l\u2019argent. Pas facile d\u2019en comprendre beaucoup plus. Mon t\u00e9l\u00e9phone sonne.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gwen m\u2019appelle pour me dire que la cam\u00e9ra est en bon \u00e9tat \u00e0 un prix raisonnable, on peut proc\u00e9der au virement. J\u2019envoie un SMS \u00e0 Pierre.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Having collected our cr\u00eapes, we set off in search of an ideal place to work. On the road, a young man accosts us. In his eyes, a mixture of fear and distress. He asks us for help in broken English. He’s holding a piece of paper with a telephone number. Mathilde hands him her mobile and our young stranger dials the number once, twice, three times, but no one answers. We try to figure out what he’s looking for. His name is Eli, he’s 15 and he needs to call a friend of his mother’s, a lawyer, to get some money. Not easy to understand much more. My phone rings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gwen calls to tell me that the camera is in good condition at a reasonable price, so we can proceed with the transfer. I text Pierre.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Eli semble fatigu\u00e9, au bord des larmes. Il tient fermement le num\u00e9ro de t\u00e9l\u00e9phone dans sa main, comme la garantie d\u2019une solution \u00e0 tous ses probl\u00e8mes. Nous comprenons qu\u2019un ami de sa m\u00e8re lui a donn\u00e9 rendez-vous ici, il y a 3 jours, et qu\u2019il attend depuis. Mathilde lui propose d\u2019envoyer un SMS et j\u2019interpelle des passants pour qu\u2019ils jouent les traducteurs.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Pierre me dit OK, mais qu\u2019il ne peut pas faire de virement instantan\u00e9. Il peut cependant m\u2019envoyer une garantie de transfert. Je transmets \u00e0 Gwen.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Eli looks tired, close to tears. He holds the telephone number tightly in his hand, like a guarantee of a solution to all his problems.. We understand that his mother’s friend gave him an appointment here 3 days ago, and that he’s been waiting ever since. Mathilde suggests he send a text message, and I ask some passers-by to act as translators.<\/span><\/p>\n Pierre says OK, but that he can’t make an instant transfer. He can, however, send me a transfer guarantee. I forward it to Gwen.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Une \u00e9tudiante Libanaise s\u2019arr\u00eate et nous explique que Eli doit r\u00e9cup\u00e9rer l\u2019argent de l\u2019avocat pour payer son loyer. Il vit dans une ville voisine avec sa m\u00e8re et ses deux s\u0153urs. Leur p\u00e8re est mort lors de l\u2019explosion du port. Leur maison a \u00e9t\u00e9 d\u00e9truite et ils n\u2019ont jamais \u00e9t\u00e9 indemnis\u00e9s. Il manque 150$ pour payer le loyer de leur nouvel appartement. Ce n\u2019est pas la premi\u00e8re fois, s\u2019ils ne paient pas, le propri\u00e9taire les mettra \u00e0 la rue. La maman de Eli commencera un nouveau travail dans deux semaines mais cette garantie ne suffit plus. Eli ne peut pas rentrer chez lui sans argent. Cela fait 3 jours qu\u2019il dort dans la rue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gwen m\u2019explique que le patron de l\u2019entreprise de production veut un virement instantan\u00e9. Je fais part de la situation \u00e0 Pierre.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Lebanese student stops by. Eli needs the lawyer’s money to pay his rent. He lives in a nearby town with his mother and two sisters. Their father died in the harbor explosion. Their house was destroyed and they’ve never been compensated. They need $150 to pay the rent on their new apartment. This isn’t the first time; if they don’t pay, the landlord will put them out on the street. Eli’s mother will be starting a new job in two weeks, but this guarantee is no longer enough. Eli can’t go home without money. He’s been sleeping in the street for 3 days.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gwen tells me that the boss of the production company wants an instant transfer. I tell Pierre about the situation.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n L\u2019avocat r\u00e9pond enfin au t\u00e9l\u00e9phone. Il explique qu\u2019il a d\u00e9j\u00e0 donn\u00e9 40$ et qu\u2019il ne peut pas donner plus, puis raccroche.<\/span><\/p>\n Avec Mathilde, nous appelons des amis Libanais dans l\u2019espoir de trouver une solution.<\/span><\/p>\n Connaissent-ils un endroit o\u00f9 ce jeune homme pourrait dormir \u00e0 l’abri et manger quelque chose ? En attendant de r\u00e9colter l\u2019argent\u2026 La premi\u00e8re n\u2019a pas de solution, la seconde me parle d\u2019un orphelinat peut-\u00eatre ouvert \u00e0 2h de Beyrouth. Le troisi\u00e8me me conseille d’appeler la premi\u00e8re. Notre traductrice nous recommande la Croix-Rouge puis s\u2019en va.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Pierre ne peut toujours pas faire de virement instantan\u00e9. Il me propose d’appeler la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 de production. Je transmets \u00e0 Gwen qui transmet au bras droit du producteur qui transmet au producteur.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The lawyer finally answers the phone. He explains that he’s already given $40 and can’t give any more, then hangs up.<\/span><\/p>\n Mathilde and I called our Lebanese friends in the hope of finding a solution.<\/span><\/p>\n Do they know of a place where this young man could sleep in a safe place and eat something? The first has no solution, the second tells me about an orphanage that might be open 2 hours from Beirut. The third advises me to call the first. Our translator recommends the Red Cross, then leaves.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Pierre still can’t make an instant transfer. He suggests calling the production company. I pass on to Gwen, who passes on to the producer’s right-hand man, who passes on to the producer.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Le portable de Mathilde s\u2019\u00e9teint. Le mien n\u2019a plus que 5% de batterie. Nous d\u00e9cidons de trouver un caf\u00e9 pour les recharger, localiser la Croix-Rouge et r\u00e9gler cette histoire de cam\u00e9ra. Nous invitons Eli qui esquisse un sourire et nous suit sans poser de questions. Install\u00e9s dans le premier bar \u00e0 chicha de la rue, je commande 3 caf\u00e9s et nous partageons nos Man\u2019ouch\u00e9s.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mathilde’s mobile goes off. Mine has only 5% battery life left. We decide to find a caf\u00e9 to recharge them, locate the Red Cross and sort out this camera issue. We invite Eli, who just smiles and follows us without asking any questions. Settling into the first chicha bar on the street, I order 3 coffees and we share our Man’ouch\u00e9s.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n La Croix-Rouge la plus proche se trouve \u00e0 20 minutes de marche. Eli observe son caf\u00e9 dubitatif. Il m\u2019explique qu\u2019il n\u2019en a\u00a0 jamais go\u00fbt\u00e9. Je me rappelle qu\u2019il a 15 ans\u2026 et me sens particuli\u00e8rement inutile. Il nous parle de sa m\u00e8re et de ses s\u0153urs dans un m\u00e9lange d\u2019anglais et d\u2019arabe. Il parle bien mieux anglais que moi \u00e0 son \u00e2ge. Je me demande ce que j\u2019aurais fait dans sa situation. Combien de jours aurais-je surv\u00e9cu ? On commence \u00e0 r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir \u00e0 une solution. Eli semble reprendre un peu espoir, il avale son caf\u00e9 avec une grimace. Je crois qu\u2019il se sent en s\u00e9curit\u00e9. Je fais mine que tout va bien. Mon t\u00e9l\u00e9phone sonne.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Pierre m\u2019explique qu\u2019il a eu le producteur au t\u00e9l\u00e9phone, que celui-ci est rassur\u00e9. Il va en discuter avec son bras droit et revenir rapidement vers nous. Je remercie Pierre et demande ce qu\u2019il en est \u00e0 Gwen.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The nearest Red Cross is a 20-minute walk away. Eli looks at his coffee dubiously. He explains that he’s never tasted it. I remember he’s 15… and feel particularly useless. He talks about his mother and sisters in a mixture of English and Arabic. He speaks much better English than I do at his age. I wonder what I would have done in his situation. How many days would I have survived? We start to think about a solution. Eli seems to be regaining a little hope, swallowing his coffee with a grimace. I think he feels safe. I pretend everything’s fine. My phone rings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Pierre tells me that he’s spoken to the producer on the phone and that he’s been reassured. He’ll discuss it with his right-hand man and get back to us shortly. I thank Pierre and ask Gwen about the situation.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n La solution la plus simple serait de lui donner l\u2019argent. Mais je sais que donner des billets n\u2019est jamais vraiment une solution. Cela r\u00e8gle superficiellement un probl\u00e8me plus complexe : l’impossibilit\u00e9 de subvenir \u00e0 ses besoins primaires. Que faire ? J\u2019essaie de me projeter 2 ans en arri\u00e8re, quand je travaillais dans les bidonvilles d’Indon\u00e9sie avec l\u2019ONG LP4Y. <\/span>Nous accompagnons des jeunes vers l\u2019insertion professionnelle<\/span><\/a>. Trouver un travail d\u00e9cent permet un salaire fixe, une assurance, des jours de cong\u00e9s, le minimum pour que la vie ne soit plus un combat journalier mais une \u00e9tendue temporelle que l\u2019on peut plus ou moins s’approprier. Un travail d\u00e9cent lib\u00e8re l\u2019espace n\u00e9cessaire pour commencer \u00e0 construire sa vie.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Mais Eli n\u2019est m\u00eame pas majeur et il n\u2019y a pas de travail au Liban. J\u2019ai l\u2019impression d\u2019\u00eatre cet \u00e9l\u00e8ve s\u2019obstinenant \u00e0 utiliser le th\u00e9or\u00e8me appris par c\u0153ur pour r\u00e9gler un probl\u00e8me qui se moque des r\u00e9ponses toutes faites.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Que dois-je faire ? M\u2019excuser et m\u2019\u00e9chapper ? Pourquoi toutes ces questions ? Il ne me viendrait pas \u00e0 l’id\u00e9e d\u2019h\u00e9siter s\u2019il fallait secourir un cycliste renvers\u00e9 par une voiture. Qui peut rentrer chez lui et se sentir vivant apr\u00e8s avoir refus\u00e9 d\u2019aider un adolescent \u00e0 la recherche d\u2019un endroit o\u00f9 dormir ?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A quoi bon avoir une famille et des amis qui vous aiment, des ressources intellectuelles, financi\u00e8res, si quand un jeune gar\u00e7on de 15 ans vous demande de l\u2019aide vous faites preuve de l\u00e2chet\u00e9 absolue ? Si quand il s’agit de faire la chose la plus \u00e9l\u00e9mentaire – aider son prochain – vous vous d\u00e9robez au pr\u00e9texte que ce n\u2019est pas dans vos cordes, que vous ne savez pas, que vous ne pouvez rien faire ? L\u2019humilit\u00e9 n\u2019est pas une vertu pour expliquer son absence de courage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Je crois que nous perdons trop de temps \u00e0 intellectualiser des probl\u00e8mes pourtant simples : il est impensable que nous n\u2019aidions pas \u00c9li. Essayons maintenant de le faire au mieux.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gwen m’explique que le bras droit et le producteur sont au t\u00e9l\u00e9phone et qu\u2019il me tiendra au courant.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The simplest solution would be to give him the money. But I know that giving money is never really a solution. It superficially solves a more complex problem: the impossibility of providing for one’s basic needs. So what can I do? I try to think back 2 years, when I was working in the slums of Indonesia with the NGO LP4Y. We help young adults to find employment. Finding a decent job means a fixed salary, insurance, days off, the minimum so that life is no longer a daily struggle, but a temporary extension that we can more or less make our own. A decent job frees up the space needed to start building a life.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But Eli isn’t even over 18, and there’s no work in Lebanon. I feel like that student who insists on using the theorem he’s memorized to solve a problem that doesn’t care about ready-made answers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Why all these questions? Apologize and escape? It wouldn’t occur to me to hesitate if I had to rescue a cyclist hit by a car. Who can go home and feel alive after refusing to help a teenager looking for a place to sleep?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What’s the point of having family and friends who love you, intellectual and financial resources, if when a 15-year-old boy asks you for help you show absolute cowardice? If when it comes to doing the most elementary thing – helping your fellow man – you shy away on the pretext that it’s not in your power, that you don’t know, that you can’t do anything? Humility is not a virtue to explain one’s lack of courage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n I think we waste too much time intellectualizing simple problems: it’s unthinkable that we wouldn’t help Eli. Let’s try to do the best we can.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gwen tells me that the right-hand man and the producer are on the phone and will keep me informed.<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Nous r\u00e9fl\u00e9chissons ensemble. Eli a r\u00e9colt\u00e9 pour le moment 45$. Il lui manque donc 105$. Et s’il proposait au propri\u00e9taire la moiti\u00e9 de la somme, c\u2019est \u00e0 dire 75$ ? Le temps que sa m\u00e8re commence son nouveau travail et demande une avance pour compl\u00e9ter au plus vite. \u00c7a pourrait marcher. Je ne sais pas si Eli a tout compris mais je sens son visage s\u2019illuminer. Il doit donc r\u00e9colter 30$.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Nous d\u00e9cidons de demander de l\u2019aide \u00e0 la Croix-Rouge et reprenons la route. La nourriture et le caf\u00e9 lui on fait du bien, Eli nous parle de son village et nous montre le porche sous lequel il a pass\u00e9 les derni\u00e8res nuits. J\u2019essaie de ne rien laisser para\u00eetre, mais je suis furieux. Furieux contre mes amis qui n\u2019ont pas su nous aider, furieux contre les passants qui d\u00e9tournent leur regard, surtout furieux contre moi qui fait semblant que tout va bien alors que je sais qu\u2019un jeune Libanais de 15 ans dort depuis 3 jours sur le trottoir \u00e0 la recherche d\u2019une centaine de dollars pour loger sa m\u00e8re et ses soeurs.<\/span><\/p>\n Mathilde discute avec lui pendant que je m\u2019occupe de l\u2019itin\u00e9raire. Eli h\u00e9site \u00e0 vendre la croix qu\u2019il porte au cou, seul souvenir de son p\u00e8re, pour 5$.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Le Producteur et son bras droit ont termin\u00e9 de d\u00e9lib\u00e9rer et me demandent la preuve de virement que Pierre vient de m\u2019envoyer. C\u2019est plut\u00f4t bon signe, je la transf\u00e8re \u00e0 Gwen.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We think together. Eli has raised $45 so far. He’s still $105 short. What if he offered the owner half the amount, i.e. $75? Just long enough for his mother to start her new job and ask for an advance to complete it as quickly as possible. That could work. I’m not sure Eli understands, but I can feel his face light up. So he needs to raise $30.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n We decide to ask the Red Cross for help and get back on the road. Eli tells us about his village and shows us the porch where he spent the last few nights. I try not to let it show, but I’m furious. Furious at my friends who couldn’t help us, furious at the passers-by who look away, furious at me for pretending that everything’s fine when I know that a 15-year-old Lebanese boy has been sleeping on the sidewalk for 3 days, looking for a hundred dollars to house his mother and sisters.<\/span><\/p>\n Mathilde chats with him while I take care of the itinerary. Eli is hesitant to sell the cross he wears around his neck, his father’s only memento, for $5.<\/span><\/p>\n The Producer and his right-hand man have finished deliberating and ask me for the proof of transfer that Pierre has just sent me. I pass it on to Gwen.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Nous arrivons devant la Croix-Rouge. Une volontaire, \u00e9tudiante en m\u00e9decine, nous accueille avec un \u00e9trange m\u00e9lange de bienveillance et d’impatience. Elle discute avec Eli et confirme l\u2019histoire que nous avions cru comprendre. Elle n\u2019a malheureusement pas de solution.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Je perds patience et lui demande si elle conna\u00eet un orphelinat, un endroit o\u00f9 Eli pourrait passer la nuit en s\u00e9curit\u00e9, ou avoir au moins de quoi manger. Elle m\u2019\u00e9coute calmement puis me dit de regarder autour de moi. Un p\u00e8re et son fils sont en train de mendier sur le trottoir d\u2019en face. Elle ajoute en anglais \u201cIl y a des gens dans la rue partout, il y a des gens qui ont faim partout, il ferait mieux de retourner dans son village aupr\u00e8s de sa famille, il lui reste au moins cela\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Que faire ? Nous marchons le long de la rue Armenia. Le p\u00e8re et son fils nous suivent et nous interpellent \u201cWe need money to eat, please help!\u201d puis finissent par nous laisser.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Nous nous asseyons \u00e0 l\u2019ombre d\u2019un escalier. Le ciel est pur, la lumi\u00e8re m\u00e9diterran\u00e9enne inonde les rues et r\u00e9chauffe les c\u0153urs. Je fixe le soleil comme s\u2019il pouvait faire tomber des dollars. Nous d\u00e9cidons de confier \u00e0 Eli le n\u00e9cessaire pour qu\u2019il rentre en bus chez lui ainsi que 20$. Puis il essaiera de r\u00e9colter 10$ aupr\u00e8s de ses amis, sa famille et de n\u00e9gocier avec le propri\u00e9taire. Le plus d\u00e9concertant, c\u2019est que Eli semble ravi. Il nous remercie chaleureusement puis s\u2019en va avec le sourire en nous faisant de grands signes de main.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Avec Mathilde, nous rentrons en silence. Aurions-nous d\u00fb lui donner plus d\u2019argent ? Contacter d\u2019autres ONGs ? Micha m’appelle, elle nous attend devant la maison avec un Moutabal fait l\u2019apr\u00e8s-midi m\u00eame. Mince, nous avions compl\u00e8tement oubli\u00e9 notre invitation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gwen m\u2019appelle, il a r\u00e9cup\u00e9r\u00e9 la cam\u00e9ra apr\u00e8s 4h de train et 3h de n\u00e9gociations ! Je le f\u00e9licite. J\u2019envoie un message \u00e0 Pierre, il me f\u00e9licite.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We arrive in front of the Red Cross. A volunteer, a medical student, greets us with a strange mixture of benevolence and impatience. She chats with Eli and confirms the story we had understood. Unfortunately, she has no solution.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n I lose patience and ask her if she knows of an orphanage, a place where Eli could spend the night in safety, or at least have something to eat. She listens calmly, then tells me to look around. A father and his son are begging on the opposite sidewalk. She adds in English, \u00ab\u00a0There are people on the street everywhere, there are hungry people everywhere, he’d better go back to his village to his family, he’s got at least that much left\u00a0\u00bb.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n What can we do? We walk along Rue Armenia. The father and his son follow us, calling out \u00ab\u00a0We need money to eat, please help!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n We sit down in the shade of a staircase. The sky is clear, the Mediterranean light floods the streets and warms our hearts. I stare at the sun as if it could drop dollars. We decide to give to Eli what he needs to take the bus home and $20. Then he’ll try to collect $10 from friends and family and negotiate with the owner. The most disconcerting thing is that Eli seems overjoyed. He thanks us warmly, then leaves with a smile on his face and a big wave.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Mathilde and I return in silence. Should we have given him more money? Contacted other NGOs? Micha calls me, she’s waiting for us in front of the house with a Moutabal made that very afternoon. Damn, we’d completely forgotten about our invitation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gwen calls me, he’s got the camera after 4 hours on the train and 3 hours of negotiations! I congratulate him. I send a message to Pierre, and he congratulates me.<\/i><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" J\u2019ai v\u00e9cu 4 mois au Liban, alors en rep\u00e9rage pour le film Youth Visions.\u00a0 Vous…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3837,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[356],"tags":[972,978,976,973,641,977,623,927,962,974,959,975,133,930],"class_list":["post-3836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-carnet-de-voyage","tag-beirouth","tag-bibliotheque","tag-camera","tag-croix-rouge","tag-film","tag-geitawi","tag-jeunesse","tag-liban","tag-libanais","tag-life-project-4-youth","tag-portrait","tag-producteur","tag-voyage","tag-youth-visions"],"yoast_head":"\nPortraits de jeunes libanais (3\/3) : Eli, un toit pour sa m\u00e8re et ses s\u0153urs.<\/b>\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n
Portraits of young Lebanese (3\/3): Eli, a home for his mother and sisters.<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h1>\n
![\"Beyrouth](\"https:\/\/www.prendstadose.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/IMG_9066-1024x768.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Beyrouth](\"https:\/\/www.prendstadose.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/IMG_9209-1024x768.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Beyrouth](\"https:\/\/www.prendstadose.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/IMG_9531-2-1024x768.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"Beyrouth](\"https:\/\/www.prendstadose.fr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/IMG_9060-1024x768.png\")
<\/p>\n>> Par ici pour d\u00e9couvrir le premier article :\u00a0Ghida, les abeilles du Akkar.<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
>> Click here to read the first article : Ghida, the bees of Akkar.<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n