With his death, the former patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir has revived many wounds present within the Christian community despite the ecumenical discourse of the official authorities, whether political or religious.
Thus, presented for his opposition to the Syrian occupation from 1994, some recall, without any fault, that the former prelate had called on the Hoss government to invade the so-called free areas at the time, areas under the control of the Army of Prime Minister Aoun, now President of the Republic. He also called on General Aoun’s Lebanese Army to disobey his command and place itself under the command of General Emile Lahoud. He had, in the end, placed Lebanon under Syrian occupation.
Others recall the assent given by the patriarch of the time to the Taif agreements which dismantled the prerogatives of the President of the Republic in 1989 and whose immense impact we see until today. Thus, described as balancing political relations between Muslim and Christian communities, this agreement has rather marginalized them to the point where Lebanon now suffers from a chronic paralysis of its administrative system. But these Taif accords had also ratified the Syrian occupation of Lebanon.
In fact, Nasrallah Sfeir had divided the church and the Christian community.
Faced with this, the supporters of the Patriarch underline his role in the opposition to this same Syrian occupation from 1994, his role also in the reconciliation of the Mountain or in the gathering of Kornet Saskatchewan or in what should be called the Cedars revolution. But on the contrary, this political vision was very consistent with that of the politician he secretly supported.
Like him, Samir Geagea supported the Taif accords and the Syrian intervention in Lebanon against the free zones, just like him, it was only after the imprisonment of the leader of the Lebanese Forces in 1994, a key date. , that he will enter into a real opposition to this occupation.
This pivotal date demonstrates quite another thing, that of a general policy of Bkerké totally modeled on a policy in favor of Samir Geagea. Thus, from his accession in 1986 to the head of the Patriarchate, Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir will support the latter for the takeover of the Lebanese Forces, going until, in practice, the absolution of the assassinations which targeted his political opponents within this movement.
From this takeover, Bkerké’s general policy will also be modeled on that of Samir Geagea, pro-Taif and anti-Aounist, including with support for the Syrian offensive from 1989 to 1994, then anti-Syrian when this the last was in prison, with the search for the questioning of the local political balances, reconciliation with Joumblatt and with Rafic Hariri at the key.
In 2005, the Maronite Patriarch will also call to support the so-called March 14 coalition against the CPL during the legislative elections. Same in 2009
