Dibbiyeh is located 30 kilometers south of Beirut and is the coastal gateway to Iqlim al-Kharroub in Chouf. It consists of the old village, located at the heights of the towns, and a number of surrounding green hills and highlands overlooking the sea, which have been built upon and exploited haphazardly since the 1990s. The establishment of the Beirut Arab University’s campus and a branch of the Lebanese University played a key role in boosting Dibbiyeh’s economy and in its urban expansion. Despite this moderate growth, the township retained its distinctive green spaces through the years – until the construction of a gated housing project spanning more than 2000 square kilometers on its western hills began in 2017.
1998: The First Attempt to Urbanize Dibbiyeh’s Western Hills
The first master plan issued for the Dibbiyeh region was ratified by Decree no. 11855 of 1998. According to lawyer Shadi Salim al-Bustani, it “regulated urbanization, construction conditions, subdivision and land pooling, the surface and general exploitation ratios, and zoning after a specialized engineering study by the municipality that preserved the existing rural, environmental, traditional, and physical character and the town’s identity and history1 Shadi Salim al-Bustani, “La Asbab Muwajjiba li-Ta’dil Tasnif al-Dibbiyya”, Annahar, August 31, 2016 (goo.gl/A7eQV9).”.
However, according to architectural engineer and developer Jalal al-Ali2Jalal al-Ali has worked and lived in the area for 36 years. We interviewed him during field research., the enormous number of subdivision areas in the town’s first plan suggests an intent to attract residents to Dibbiyeh and boost its economy during that period. He also explains that “There is a propensity to sell and greater openness in areas like Dibbiyeh and Jiyeh, where the population is more diverse than in Damour and where we find a large portion of the Christians that were displaced in the early 1980s and have not yet returned. This group also doesn’t hesitate to sell their property and migrate”.
Because Dibbiyeh overlooks the sea, the lower section constituted a desirable location for property development, in clear contradiction with the town’s character. However, despite the subdivision of these vast areas, Dibbiyeh did not experience the level of demand to which it aspired, so the greater portion of it remains undeveloped.
Fears, Politics, and Manipulations: The Purchase of Tel Dalhamiyya
At the beginning of this century, the town witnessed a wave of land purchases by “outsiders3Pierre Atallah, “al-Dibbiyyeh Dahiyya li-l-Samasira wa-l-Tujjar”, Annahar, May 9, 2014.”, as confirmed by al-Ali: “Since the 1990s, everyone has bought on Dibbiyeh’s coast. There are politicians with land, and the Shia expatriates living in Africa have also made purchases”.
During that period, the al-Bustani family offered a part of its land known as “Tel Dalhamiyya” for sale. The land – a green hill overlooking the sea – spans approximately 3,500 square kilometers4Ahmad Mansur, “al-Dibbiyyeh: ‘Bay’ al-Aradi wa-Ta’dil al-Mukhattat al-Tawjihiyy Mihwar Ma’rikat al-Baladiyya’”, Bawwabat al-Iqlim, March 3, 2013 (goo.gl/7abrt5).. A part of it (approximate 1,000 square kilometers) that includes the golf club had been classified a “protection area” in Dibbiyeh’s first general master plan in 1998, meaning that construction therein was very restricted.
Ali Taj al-Din, a Shia merchant said to be close to Hezbollah, became interested in buying the land. According to journalist Pierre Atallah, when the residents of Dibbiyeh learned of the potential purchase, they turned to one of the authorities in the Maronite Church in an attempt to block it. Subsequently, wealthy Maronite businessman Robert Mouawad, rather than Taj al-Din, bought the land to develop a tourism project within the existing construction conditions. However, Bahij Abou Hamze, who was then an advisor to Walid Jumblatt, intervened in the project, which led to Mouawad relinquishing his shares in the Dalhamiyya Development Company to Taj al-Din in 20115Viviane Akiki, “Mashru’ ‘al-Dalhamiyya’: Ijtrar Nazariyyat ‘al-Wujud al-Masihiyy al-Muhaddad”, Al-Akhbar, August 23, 2016 (http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/263548).. Through this process, actual ownership of the land transferred without the municipality’s knowledge, for it occurred via the Commercial Register6 “Baladiyyat al-Dibbiyyah Lam Tataballagh Bay’ Aradin fi Kharajiha”, Janoubia, December 27, 2011. without the transfer of land ownership being registered7Viviane Akiki, “Mashru’ ‘al-Dalhamiyya’”, op. cit..
This deal provoked several reactions in the media, most of which employed sectarian rhetoric that reflected and amplified the existing fears in the Dibbiyeh township and surrounding area, especially about demographic change and scheming by political parties. The transfer of Dalhamiyya was linked to similar real estate transactions occurring on a broader scale in the region.
For-Profit Planning: The Dalhamiyya Development Company Reshapes Dibbiyeh
In 2012, the Dibbiyeh municipal council met to vote on amending the 1998 general master plan to raise the exploitation ratio in the areas of Dalhamiyya and Halyuna. The meeting occurred at the request of the Dalhamiyya Development Company after Taj al-Din acquired it. However, the council rejected the amendment request via a six-to-five majority. Then, in 2012, a second meeting convened to reexamine the request. The council accepted it after one of the previous opponents was persuaded. Consequently, the council dissolved because half its members resigned. The resigning members, represented by lawyer Shadi Salim al-Bustani, filed a challenge to the municipal decision to amend the master plan before the State Shura Council (Challenge no. 18040 of 2012).
On this basis, during the electoral battle in the following weeks, the municipal council’s members divided into two competing lists. The pro-amendment list (“Dignity and Free Choice”) won, and on July 6, 2013, a municipal decision was issued requesting a raise in the exploitation ratio for the areas of Dalhamiyya and Halyuna. The Higher Council for Urban Planning then issued a decision approving an increase in the exploitation ratio, but because it applied throughout the Dibbiyeh region, the municipal council issued a decision to suspend it. Shadi Salim al-Bustani accused the amended plan of “passing shady deals and legitimizing grave violations of the current classification decree in order to secure private interests and benefits at the expense of the public interest of Dibbiyeh’s people”8Shadi Salim al-Bustani, “La Asbab Muwajjiba li-Ta’dil Tasnif al-Dibbiyya”, op. cit..
In 2016, the new municipal council requested a six-month timeframe to prepare an objective study of the new plan resulting from the real estate company’s request9 Ministry of Labor, “Iqtirah al-Wazir Qazzi fi Majlis al-Wuzara’ Hawl al-Tasmim al-Tawjihiyy li-Mintaqat al-Dibbiyya”, August 18, 2016 (goo.gl/irqeFx).. This situation was exploited to kindle sectarian rhetoric, with no attention paid to the issue of public interest, the project’s environmental effect on the town and its limited infrastructure, the extent to which the existing general master plans are binding, and the reasons for amending them. In late 2016, the changing party alliances on the national level translated into the ratification of the new general and detailed master plan for Dibbiyeh via Decree no. 4548 of October 27, 2016, after current prime minister Saad Hariri nominated current president Michel Aoun for the presidential elections and before the transition to a caretaker government. Today, what remains of the Tel Dalhamiyya reserve is enclosed by the branded hoarding boards of the project Medyar: A City Rise.
References:
- 1Shadi Salim al-Bustani, “La Asbab Muwajjiba li-Ta’dil Tasnif al-Dibbiyya”, Annahar, August 31, 2016 (goo.gl/A7eQV9).
- 2Jalal al-Ali has worked and lived in the area for 36 years. We interviewed him during field research.
- 3Pierre Atallah, “al-Dibbiyyeh Dahiyya li-l-Samasira wa-l-Tujjar”, Annahar, May 9, 2014.
- 4Ahmad Mansur, “al-Dibbiyyeh: ‘Bay’ al-Aradi wa-Ta’dil al-Mukhattat al-Tawjihiyy Mihwar Ma’rikat al-Baladiyya’”, Bawwabat al-Iqlim, March 3, 2013 (goo.gl/7abrt5).
- 5Viviane Akiki, “Mashru’ ‘al-Dalhamiyya’: Ijtrar Nazariyyat ‘al-Wujud al-Masihiyy al-Muhaddad”, Al-Akhbar, August 23, 2016 (http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/263548).
- 6“Baladiyyat al-Dibbiyyah Lam Tataballagh Bay’ Aradin fi Kharajiha”, Janoubia, December 27, 2011.
- 7Viviane Akiki, “Mashru’ ‘al-Dalhamiyya’”, op. cit.
- 8Shadi Salim al-Bustani, “La Asbab Muwajjiba li-Ta’dil Tasnif al-Dibbiyya”, op. cit.
- 9Ministry of Labor, “Iqtirah al-Wazir Qazzi fi Majlis al-Wuzara’ Hawl al-Tasmim al-Tawjihiyy li-Mintaqat al-Dibbiyya”, August 18, 2016 (goo.gl/irqeFx).
