Palestinian refugees want no part of another Lebanese war

BEIRUT: Inside the Shatila Palestinian refugee camp on the outskirts of the Dahiyeh, children run up and down narrow streets playing with balls while grown men sit outside their homes, smoking nargileh as the sun sets. Life seems to be as normal as is possible in a refugee camp, despite the fact that outside of the camp, demonstrations to bring down the government have entered their seventh day, and the words "civil war" are gaining currency.

In 1975, Palestinian refugees in Lebanon were - whatever their own debateable agency in the affair - a catalyst for what would be 15 years of protracted Civil War. This time, camp residents say they intend to stay well out of Lebanese affairs, desperate not to have history repeated.

"We understand completely the demands of the opposition," says Samih Rizk, a politician with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PLFP) inside the camp. "But we're not going to be a part of this, or say loudly that we are with them because we don't want to be involved in any way. After all, remember what happened with us in 1975.

"In 1975, everyone was blaming the Palestinians - now we have nothing to do with it, and thank God for that. So we're going to stay out. For us, as Palestinians, we need the situation to be stable; otherwise we lose as well," Rizk says. "Look, before the war we had negotiations with the politicians over the Palestinian file - now we have nothing. Everything has been put on hold."

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