Lebanese social entrepreneurs: their contributions for Brazilian development*
Luiz Carlos Merege, Ph.D.
*Lecture at the conference “La presence Libanaise dans le Monde”, at the Université Saint-Esprit de Kaslik (USEK), Beirut, Lebanon. March 10,2012.
Lebanese social entrepreneurs: their contributions for Brazilian development
Luiz Carlos Merege*
“The Arab, from birth is absolutely social.”
Mark Allen
“Neverunderestimatea woman´s strength.”
Roberto Dualibi
I. Introduction
The main objective of this paper is to present one of the strategies that were used by Lebanese immigrants in Brazil to hold them together. Thus, the focus of this study will be social enterprises that were performed by immigrants in São Paulo city, Brazil, and that result in organizations that had become exemplary in their activities, gaining national and international recognition. They are organizations which has as mission a social cause. The focus of its humanitarian activities and the magnificent achievements in their fields of activities served as a key element to raise the spirits of the whole colony in Brazil, feeding values and customs, their credibility with the Brazilian society and serving as a connecting link between the families and all immigrants. Another big factor to get the involvement of the entire community of immigrants as collaborators of the social projects was the desire to give back to the Brazilian people for the hospitality, kindness and affection with which they were received in the new "homeland.”
This article will review two social enterprises in the city of Sao Paulo. These are the Ladies' Beneficent Society – Syrian-Lebanese Hospital and the Cedar of Lebanon Association for the Protection of Children.
II. Third Sector as a Vehicle of Unity and Retribution
Since ancient age mankind have setup organizations in order to serve others. These organizations bring together people who wish to dedicate their whole life to other lives, in order to improve the quality of life of those who are excluded from the historical process of advancing the human beings standard of living. Philanthropy, a Greek word which means love for mankind, expresses the free act of giving material or immaterial that a human does to his fellow man. Thus, solidarity can be exercised and its goal is to transform the lives of people so that they can exercise their citizenship and contribute with their intellectual and physical potential for the improvement of society.
In order to exercise transformative solidarity, human beings have created a type of organization with has different characteristics from the state and the private sectors. Organizations that: a) there is no owner, owners or shareholders; b) where the revenue should be applied to the purposes for which they were created; c) revenue comes mostly from donations; d) are autonomous; e) their assets are public, i.e., belong to the community; and f) congregate a large number of people who work voluntarily.
Since the United Nations, in 1948, developed the System of National Accounts, i.e., a common methodology for all countries measure their economic activities, it established the idea that society consisted of two sectors: The State and the Private. In this two sector system, organizations with the purpose of solidarity were not measured separately. The traditional national accounts methodology meant a strong paradigm, which remained untouched until March 2002, when the Department of Statistics of the United Nations acknowledged the importance of take apart data in order to show the social and economic significance of these organizations.
Until then, the methodology presented a serious distortion, as it had a rule for the computation of social organizations in the national accounts, that camouflaged their activities. This rule stated that, in statistical surveys, social organizations that receive more than 50% of its revenue from state grantswere considered as part of State sector, those with more than 50% of revenue from companies or families ended up being classified as part of the private sector. For this reason, no country had separate aggregate information about such organizations until recently. The UN has called “Satellite Account Methodology for Nonprofit Sector” the methodology which now guides the research institutes in the countries to collect information about the activities of this sector. In many countries the number of these organizations came to be treated as the third sector of society. In others received the name of solidarity, independent, non-economic purpose sector or social economy (Merege, p.127).
In a pioneering article the Swiss researcher Marc Nerfin (1978) pointed to the existence of a “third sector system” of organizations that distinguished themselves from state and private organizations. The academic battle to replace the old paradigm of two sector began in the early years of the 90 (Lester Salamon, 1994), when the Center for Civil Society Studies, Johns Hopkins University, led by Prof.Lester Salamon, launched the Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project, which brought together researchers from seven countries, launching the conceptual methodological basis that would guide research on the structural and operational character of the sector. The comparative project evolved and recently involved researchers from 37 countries, including Lebanon. It was thanks to the credibility that this academic movement hasrisenfor itself, that it was possible to starta pressure, in the late 90s, led by Prof. Lester, in order to redesign the national accounts system of the UN Department of Statistics, and include a new account specifically for the third sector. In March 2002, the UN launched the “Handbook on Non Profit Institutions in the System of National Accounts,” which became a benchmark for countries to conduct research on the third sector.
For the United Nations the organizations that make up the third sector fall into two categories: associations and foundations. The associations are an initiative born from the will of a person or a group of people who decide to defend a social cause by offering goods and services of a public nature, that is, free. They do not require an asset and its creation is quite simple. You need a legal document that must follow the country´s law of origin and state its goals. Differently, foundations are assets that a person, persons, private or public organization, designs for a social purpose. Because it is a desire to be implemented, they usually have to account to a public authority that the foundation's activities are actually being carried out in accordance with the wishes of the founder or founders.
Beneficence expresses the principle of solidarity that dominates the Arabic ethics. Very few studies exist about the Arab civil society that could tell us how the symbiosis between modern states and nonprofit organizations in Arab countries is. Thanks to the John Hopkins Comparative Nonprofit Sector Project, we have access to some studies about the organization of civil society in the Middle East. The book Global Civil Society, Volume 2, published studies on Egypt, Lebanon and Morocco and they indicate that the vast majority of organizations have a religious character, being linked to mosques. The study reveals that on Lebanon, due to civil war in that country from 1975 to 1990, the organizations had a character of providing emergency services needed to alleviate the misfortunes that affectedthe population. For this reason, the third sector organizations holds about 80% of all health centers, and 30% of hospitalsin the country, in 1995. The study on Lebanon shows that only very recently begun to appear autonomous, non-religious organizations aimed to bring welfare to the population.
The third sector organizations that will be the subject of this work are associations formed by groups of Arab immigrants in São Paulo. They are: Ladies' Beneficent Society - Syrian-Lebanese Hospital and the Cedar of Lebanon Association for the Protection of Children.
III. The Great Emigration and Its Unity in Brazil
According to Roberto Khatlab (2002, p.07) "the great migration 'Mahjar', a true saga Lebanese in Brazil began in the late nineteenth century, especially after 1880, without counting that existed before a presence of Lebanese in Brazil.” There are now in Brazil about 7 million of Lebanese and descendants who along with about 5 million Syrians reach a population of 12 million immigrants and descendents(Syrian-Lebanese Hospital, 2006).
In order to understand the great migration it is necessary to consider the historical facts of the four centuries of Ottoman rule (1516-1918) marked by violent oppression and bloody religious conflict which was aggravated by the civil war in 1860, that caused the death of about 20,000 people in Lebanon(Zaidan, 2001). Another factor pointed by Zaidan that motivated emigration was related to poor working conditions imposed by the large landowners, the main cause of the revolution led by the Maronite Tanio Chahin. In addition, the colonial interests of Britain, France and Russia fomented discord between the different ethnic and religious groups in the so called Greater Syria, which included Syria and Lebanon. France supported the Catholic, Maronite, and the Melkite; Britain the Druze and Christian, and the Russians the Eastern Orthodox. This fact intensified the division between Muslims and Christians, the first feeling humiliated for the last, always favored.
From civil war of 1860, a great migration began, first in North America and later to Brazil. Both Khatlab and Zaidan point the visit of King Pedro II, Emperor of Brazil, to Lebanon and Syria as the main factor in the great saga that happened. D. Pedro II was enchanted with the determination of the Lebanese people and its vocation for commerce; necessary characteristics so that they could occupy the vast territory of Brazil. Unlike other migratory groups, like the Italians and Japanese who come to Brazil to become employed on large coffee plantations, Arab immigrants began to engage in trade, activity that at the time did not require a large amount of capital. They became known as "peddlers" who toured the country in all its extension, with their suitcases and trunks leading consumer goods to all settlements. "We can say that in each of the five thousand Brazilian cities there is someone who knows the saga of immigration or made part of it (Syriana-Lebanese Hospital, 2006)." My father took part in this activity at the beginning of the last century and today yet his trunk still exists and should be donated to the museum of the immigrant of São Paulo city (See attachedV, VII and VIII).
The success of this activity from door to door salesperson, including the introduction of the system of credit payment, allowed many immigrants to become retailers, wholesalers, manufacturers, exporters and importers (See attached IX). In Sao Paulo the traders established in the March 25Street, which became the largest crowded commercial city of Sao Paulo, where thousands of people visit daily(See attached VI).By reason of this fact and to pay tribute to this heroic story the day March 25th is a nationalday dedicated to theArab immigrants.
The spirit of Greater Syria was held in Brazil in those times because there was no territorial division between Syria and Lebanon, it was one single territory. Because of this the Syrian and Lebanese families came together to Brazil. Thus, it is easy to find social organizations that were created by Syrian and Lebanese immigrants, and even today this fact still perpetuates in some organizations. Social organizations, such as socio-cultural, religious or social assistance organizations, became a strong uniting factor among immigrants. Through them, people from the same regions, towns or villages maintained friendships acquired for several generations. It was a way to cultivate the traditions of ancient times, in a new country.
Between the two organizations which will be analyzed, in one, the Ladies´ Beneficent Society, the union between Syria and Lebanesewoman was very strong, influencing even the name of its main institution, the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital. In another, the Cedar of Lebanon Association for the Protection of Children,there was the predominance of female descendants of Lebanese immigrants. In each of the two institutions the leadership of a woman was responsible for its creation, and these leaders attractedother women to engage in their missions. Until now the two organizations has this characteristic of female predominance in their direction(See attached I, II, III, IV).
IV. The Ladies’ Beneficent Society
a)Introduction
TheLadies´Beneficent Society - Syrian-Lebanese Hospital, as how it is knew nowadays in Brazil, is an association carrying out integrated activities in health, social services, education and research.
It resulted from the will of Adma Mokdessi, which was a student at the Russian School, in Beirut, when married with Basilio Jafet, who was living in Brazil and was from Dhour Shoueir. Basilio Jafet became a trader and an important industrial entrepreneur in Brazil. The idea of the institution was launched by Adma Jafet on November 28, 1921 to a group of women at her house in São Paulo city. Three days later the institution was officially created by 27 women and received the name of Ladies´ Beneficent Society, and its first objective was to create a hospital. “The drive for Hospital funds mobilized the women of the “Sociedade” and all Syrian and Lebanese colony. Basilio Jafet himself used his prestige and power to obtain donations among merchants and industrialists…Furthermore, the members paid monthly fees and many real estate properties was left in wills, thus confirming the well-known Arab generosity which show it face once more.” Adma knows that she could count with the support of fellow countrymen and descendants. Her optimism can be felt on the following phrase: “At the beginning of immigration, our colony was small and possessed only limited resources. With time it madeadvancesand prospered. It now holds a distinguished position and owns immense material resources… ” (Syrian-Lebanese Hospital – 85 Years, p.33-34). On her speech made by the laying down the fundamental stone, in November 29,1931, she said: “The monument being founded on this date is in accordance with this progress and is intended to fulfill the needs of the entire colony, to ensure the poorer population any assistance it may require. So, we are here today, at ten o´clock, to lay the founding stone for the Hospital, which with its humanitarian purpose, can be considered a great victory, because it is a work that symbolizes the effort made by a colony established in Brazil, a country that it loves as a true homeland. (Syrian-Lebanese Hospital – 85 Years, p.43)
The mission of the initiative which says that it “is a Brazilian philanthropic institution which develops integrated social, health care, teaching and research actions” only was possible to be put in practice from 1959. Between the founding stone which was laid on November 29, 1931 and the beginning of the hospital activities on March 14, 1959, the State of São Paulo government used the building to install a military school. Adma Jafet could not see her dream come through, she died in 1956. It was necessary to rebuild the facilities and Violeta Basilio Jafet, a daughter of Adma Jafet start leading the project in 1960. As a chairwoman of the Beneficent Society she had as vice chairwoman Evelina Haidar, wife of doctor Fadlo Haidar, who had a degree from the American University of Beirut. She also organized the Hospital´ Technical Administrative Board, an important decision for the future excellence of its services. She is still alive, and at her 103 years she is the Honorary President and Ivete Rizkallah is the current President. It is easy to meet with Violeta at the Hospital facilities nowadays, where she always wants to know what is happening.
The Ladies´ Beneficent Society – Syrian-Lebanese Hospital grew and became one of the most important health centers in Brazil. It disputes the place of the best hospital in the country with the Albert Einstein Hospital, an association kept by the Jewish community. So, the “war” between the two communities has to be won by the quality of the health services of their projects. Because of this curious aspect of the dispute of the two colonies, the Brazilian population has one of the best health services in the world.
The health excellent services were always supported by the excellence of the clinical team, constant equipment upgrade, and the most important, its humanized care. Because of the will of Violeta and Dr. Daher Cutait, Hospital´ Clinical Director, the institution became also a referential educational and research pole, a strategy in order to keep its scientific and academic spirit. The Education and Research Institute of the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital (IEP-HSL), as it was named from 2003, occupies an area of 5,800 square meters and includes training centers, library and laboratories.
b) A Mission Based in Philanthropy
Hundreds of patients pass through the Hospital daily, but philanthropy is the heart and soul of the Ladies´ Beneficent Society – Syrian-Lebanese Hospital. “From the very beginning, the mission has been to act as an institution focused on the needy… The work carried out by the SBSHSL with the vulnerable population is to care for families in their important demands in order to promote social inclusion. It further seeks potentiate its action so as to achieve justice and social equality, establishing partnership with public authorities and suitable social work institution in a city like São Paulo, where the presence of the State is less perceptible, because of the city´s size as well due to the number of problems that arise daily… The Hospital´s philanthropic activities which mission is “to support the Ladies´Beneficent Society – Syrian-Lebanese Hospital´social, educational, research, and medical care actions, for the welfare of all,” now have three social programs: Medical Care, Education and Social Work distributed between partnership actions with the public authorities and others of its own making” (Syrian-Lebanese Hospital – 85 Years, p.131-132)