Where a Drug Baron Can Reasonably Look Down on Politicians

[Ganjarden]

It comes as a damning indictment that a wanted drug baron can reasonably lay claim to the moral high ground when comparing himself to members of Lebanon's political class. That is precisely what occurred this week when Noah Zaayter, who grows marijuana in the Bekaa Valley village of Knaysseh, gave an interview to Agence France Presse in which he convincingly asserted: "I am a wanted man, but I am wanted by a bunch of thieves and I have more honor than all of them."

Zaayter has been accused by authorities of no fewer than 487 criminal acts, including drug trafficking, car theft, terrorism, weapons dealing, fraud, kidnapping and extortion. But when compared with the record of this country's prominent leaders/war-lords-turned politicians - some of whom are directly responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people and the displacement and/or impoverishment of tens of thousands more - Zaayter's rap sheet looks like that of a juvenile delinquent. The crimes associated with illegally producing and selling soft drugs quite simply pale in comparison with those of the political elite, which include mass murder, multi-billion dollar theft, and holding an entire nation hostage to political objectives that are dicated to the Lebanese by foreign powers.

An unflattering comparison can also be drawn between what Lebanon's various "lords" have done with their power: Several leading politicians are known to have plundered the state's coffers to enrich themselves, while Zaayter, on the other hand, has spent a portion of his own profits each year to provide bread and water to his village's impoverished residents, thereby filling yet another void left by a perennially incompetent state.


It is for all of the aforementioned reasons - and many more - that words such as the following ones uttered by Zaayter resonate so much with the average Lebanese citizen: "If selling hashish is a crime but selling the state, killing its citizens and keeping its people hungry is not, then I will proudly remain the biggest criminal."

What is perhaps the most troubling indication that something is amiss in Lebanon is that Zaayter and other drug barons will probably one day be held to account for breaking the law, while the country's political barons will not. In fact, Zaayter said in his interview that if and when "there is a state functioning in this country and a proper judicial system," he would gladly turn himself in to the appropriate authorities. In making such an assertion, the Bekaa pot potentate shows more regard for the need to create an independent judiciary that would uphold the rule of law than do his political counterparts. He perhaps also reveals what all of us already suspect to be true: that a day when all individuals, regardless of their connections or political position, will be held accountable for their crimes is unlikely to arrive in the immediate future. And for that, we have the politicians - not the drug barons - to blame.


News Hawk- Ganjarden http://www.420Magazine.com
Source: The Daily Star
Contact: The Daily Star Editor
Copyright: 2008 The Daily Star
Website:Where a Drug Baron Can Reasonably Look Down on Politicians