By Joseph A. Kechichian Senior Writer – Gulf News

Beirut: LibanPost, the private entity associated with the Ministry of
Telecommunications, issued 15 stamps to honor individuals who
contributed to the country’s independence.

Although previous
stamps included the first head-of-state (Bisharah Al Khoury) and first
prime minister (Riad Al Solh), the latest batch included lesser known
figures who, nevertheless, ensured that the nascent republic lived up to
expectations.

Among these were Saeb Salam, the father of current
Prime Minister Tamam Salam [and the man often credited for designing the
national flag in his Rashayah prison cell], Sabri Hamadih, Camille
Chamoun, Abdul Hamid Karami, Habib Abu Shahla, Majid Arslan and Henri
Pharaon.

Pierre Gemayel, the founder of the Phalange Party, was
also included even if the choice was controversial because of the role
he played in the civil war. Other prominent figures, men like Rashid
Baydun, Hamid Franjieh and Salim Taklah, whose names most Lebanese
citizens are unfamiliar with, graced the postal issues in what may well
be a long-overdue civics lesson.

As Lebanon prepares to celebrate
its 73rd Independence anniversary on November 22, 2016, the
commemorative postage stamps was an occasion to assemble the families
and descendants of the 15 figures and, simultaneously, prepare for the
important date after a two-and-a-half year vacancy at the head of the
state. On Tuesday, Beirut will hold a military parade in the Downtown
area in the presence of newly elected President Michel Aoun.

For
the occasion, LibanPost gathered a large crowd at its headquarters in
Beirut’s Riad Al Solh Square, where an imposing statue of the first
prime minister stands watch in front of the Grand Serail [Government
House].

Attendees signed a Lebanese flag in what turned out to be
an emotional event as several offspring of notable figures were present,
including Minister of Tourism Michel Pharaon, former deputy Samir
Franjieh, and the head of the National Liberal Party head, deputy Dory
Chamoun.

The son of the second president had the last word when
Chamoun chimed that he hoped LibanPost would “also honor the ladies who
did a lot for Lebanon and who were forgotten this time.”

He
probably had in mind such figures as Anbara Salam Al Khalidi, Saeb
Salam’s formidable sister who was a genuine feminist and who contributed
to the emancipation of Arab women far more than many knew, and May
Ziade, a Lebanese-Palestinian pioneer of Oriental feminism who
maintained a platonic relationship with Khalil Gibran, and whose
writings inspired an entire generation to cherish everyone.