In Lebanon, public beaches are disappearing

Letter from Beirut

A wall then plunges into the sea acts as a boundary between two worlds on the coast of Tamour, 20 kilometers south of Beirut. The asymmetry is obvious: South of the fence, a public beach is reduced to a minimum and in a wild state, scattered with debris; To the north, a long stretch of clean sand with its rows of deck chairs and bungalows, where access to the sea is paid.

“The water is the same on both sides, it’s beautiful”, Jamal embodies Hydes, his two grandchildren splashing in the public area under the summer sun. However, it was the severe economic crisis that led him here: “We can’t go private anymore like we used to.”He worked in Congo until 2020, he explains.

The economic recession is forcing bathers to change their habits. But that has not changed the face of the coast where private operators are king. “The beach reflects the ills of Lebanon: social inequalities, corruption, lack of transparency and governance, non-enforcement of the law…”, lists Zad Tabet, former head of Beirut’s Commission of Engineers and Architects. According to the architect-urban planner, more than 80% of the 220-kilometer coastline has been privatized, concreted between the beaches and private properties.

Since the chaos of the war (1975-1990) prevented access to the sea and the appearance of seaside resorts, the balance has never been restored, and after that, more or less sophisticated private beaches and hotels continue to crush the coast into a background. Profiteering.

A law from the 1960s authorizes the private use of the coastal area, but the permits are exceptional, temporary, and no project must prevent the continuity of the coast – respecting the principle of passage of the customs authorities, enshrined. Marble during the French Mandate. “None of these are respected”Mr. Tabeth continues, and he condemns “Collusion between Investors and Politicians” Behind the beach privatization, as well “Government’s unwillingness to manage the coast”. In 2019, before the crisis, more than 50% of occupations of the public maritime domain were considered illegal.

“Almost Nothing is Free”

In Tamur, young people who come to swim at the public beach, or families staying there, don’t risk going through a hole in the fence that leads to privatized land: they know they will. to return.

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