In an empty parking lot across from the Kuwaiti Embassy, near the bustling traffic of Chatila Circle, mourners gathered Tuesday to mark the 26th anniversary of the Sabra and Chatila massacre. Amid Palestinian and Lebanese flags, and yellow banners emblazoned with portraits of late President Yasser Arafat, residents of the camps, Lebanese citizens, and Palestinian and European activists met to commemorate the dead.
During three days in September 1982, Christian militiamen entered the two camps, which had been surrounded by Israeli troops, and killed hundreds of men, woman and children. Hundreds more from the surrounding area disappeared. The final death toll remains unknown.
The somber procession marched downhill from the embassy toward the Chatila camp, headed by a Palestinian color guard. A group of scouts came next - with young women playing bagpipes and boys playing drums wrapped in Palestinian tricolores. They were followed by mourners carrying placards and many members of the Italian NGO, Per Non Dimenticare Sabra E Chatila (Do Not Forget Sabra and Chatila).
A lone ambulance - its siren blaring - led the convoy.
When asked why she had come to the march, a middle-aged woman, Talrie Q., said simply, "Because I am Palestinian."
The march ended at the memorial site in Chatila, which was erected by the aforementioned Italian organization, the Lebanese daily newspaper As-Safir, and Palestinian authorities. The procession streamed onto the open, dirt field encircled by huge posters showing black and white photographs of the camps' victims.
"For me this day means massacre," said an elderly woman holding a tissue. "I lost my children here."
She pointed to one of the posters which showed her, 26 years ago, searching through the dead. "When [then-Israeli Defense and later Prime Minister Ariel] Sharon dies there will be relief," she added.
Another older woman, Latifi Shamseh, lost her husband and her son in the 1982 massacre. She was left to raise her 8 surviving children alone.
Shamseh was one of many survivors who attended the march's main memorial event at Sabra and Chatila's Martyrs Square, which began with the release of hundreds of red, green and black balloons.
Speaking at the commemoration, Ghobeiri Municipality Mayor Abu Said al-Khansaa, told the audience "not to forget Sabra and Chatila," and reflected on continuing security concerns. "Who protected the Palestinians at that time? After 30 years we are asking the same question: Who will protect the Lebanese and Palestinians if there is another war?" he said.
Aarwan Abdel Al of the Palestine Liberation Organization's Central Committee offered a similar sentiment: "The camps must protect themselves and live in peace, because if there are no camps then there is no place to recognize the history of Palestine."
The memorial's principle focus remained one of remembrance and of recognition - of the problems that Palestinians in Lebanon continue to face 60 years after the creation of Israel.
The tribute "has become a national event to remind people in Lebanon and the world that the Palestinian people still exist without human rights ... and to tell everyone that we have the right to return," said Rita Hamdan, director of Popular Aid for Relief Development (PARD).
Marco, one of the many representatives of the Do Not Forget Sabra and Chatila committee, echoed Hamdan. "The memory of this massacre ... shows the world the problems of Palestinian refugees and the rights they deserve," he said.
In recognition of these problems, the non-profit organization One Laptop Per Child, in conjunction with the Sabra-Chatila Foundation, distributed 500 laptops to local school children. The gift was intended to enhance the education and broaden the horizons of disadvantaged children. The PCs, which run simple programs, have a wireless Internet connection and can run for periods without electricity.
"Here in their hands is the ability to learn and connect to the world," said Middle East director of One Laptop Per Child Europe, Matt Keller.
Sahar Dabdoub, head teacher at the Ramallah School in Chatila said, "This is very important. It will be easier for the students to use their minds and to practice working."
The students were very excited about the program, although the long, hot wait took a toll on the younger beneficiaries.
However, there was also some skepticism about the program's priorities.
"Its good for the children, but there are more important things," said Najiba, a teacher, as her students excitedly examined their new computers. "Ensuring their fathers' right to work would be more beneficial."
After the memorial, the Youth Committee for the Commemoration of the 60 anniversary of Nakba, which has scheduled a weeklong conference, hosted an international workshop at the Chatila Children and Youth Center.
The roundtable was attended by camp residents, members of the committee and a European solidarity delegation.
Rabih Saleh and Racha Najdi, representatives of the committee and the Social Communications Center-Ajial, outlined the four chief priorities facing young Palestinian refugees as: the right of return, Palestinian civil rights in Lebanon, issues of identity, and Nahr al-Bared.
Speaking about the relationship between the Nabka, Sabra and Chatila, and Nahr al-Bared, Saleh said, "[Nahr al-Bared] refreshed the Palestinian memory of prior massacres. Maybe the memory has helped us curb the violence."
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