In Society

Fouad Suleiman on His Fourth Anniversary

Last month our colleague al-Ajyal al-Jadida brought out a special issue devoted to Fouad Suleiman on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of his death, and several papers likewise set aside a page or an article to the memory of the poet and man of letters who was snatched from our midst — a flame of youth, gifts, and faith.

The Woman's Voice magazine bows with love and esteem before the memory of its former editor-in-chief, who for three years fed it the fruits of his luminous mind and was never grudging. Mercy upon you, O Tammuz...

The Salah Labaki Issue

People waited long for the special issue that al-Hikma magazine had promised to bring out for poetry's departed son, Salah Labaki — and at last it has appeared, and it did not disappoint their hopes, for it came out massive, embracing the various artistic sides with which the personality of Salah Labaki was so richly furnished: the literary and the intellectual.
It is a great service to letters, registered by the editor-in-chief of al-Hikma, Mr. Fouad Kanaan, for he succeeded in gathering the largest number of distinguished pens toward his single aim, and the result was a precious gift which we shall treasure for the sake of that good memory...

• On the afternoon of the eighth of last December, the Ministry of National Education and Fine Arts issued invitations to the opening of the "Autumn Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture" at the UNESCO Palace, under the patronage of His Excellency the President of the Republic, Mr. Camille Chamoun — and in the presence of a great number of official personalities, which made the finest impression on all.
Visitors to the exhibition observed that the number of artists taking part in the show had fallen far below what it had been at the summer exhibition, which indicates that some artists declined to participate for reasons that may well be sound.
It is in any case a commendable effort on the part of the competent department in the Ministry of Education, in encouragement of art, so that it may not remain an orphan in the land of radiance.
At the opening ceremony of the exhibition it was announced that the government had conferred the Order of the Cedar upon certain artists, among them Messrs. Youssef Howayek and Omar Onsi.

Last month the Orthodox Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation witnessed two great weddings: the first was the wedding of Mr. Kamel Bassila to Miss Mona Houfoush, on Saturday, December 17.

The crowning was blessed by His Grace Metropolitan Elia al-Salibi, and the decoration of the church and the arrangement of the ceremonies and the reception were undertaken by the members of the "Eagles Club," the bridegroom being one of their number.

The bride was the rose of roses, and in her exquisite gown she appeared a very marvel of fresh beauty! The couple are spending their honeymoon in the Egyptian countryside... See the cover picture.

And on the following day, Sunday the 18th of the same month, was celebrated the crowning of Mr. Gibran Massoud to Miss Josephine Klass, both of them teachers in the secondary section of the American University of Beirut. The crowning ceremony was elegant, and was in the charge of a number of high-ranking clergy.

The Woman's Voice raises its congratulations and heartfelt good wishes to the four newlyweds and to all their families.

Lebanon's Arbor Day: on Sunday, December 11, the traditional ceremony burst forth in an atmosphere of patriotic fervor, in the presence of the pillars of the government and of schoolboys and schoolgirls. His Excellency President Chamoun delivered a speech, followed by the president of the Friends of the Tree Society, Dr. Fouad Ghosn, and the ceremony was interspersed with anthems and folk dances, all symbolizing the honoring of the tree and love for it, in keeping with the saying: "Plant, and do not cut down" — and thousands of saplings were planted in the vast barren sands near Beirut International Airport.

Arbor Day was preceded by "Tree Week," during which Radio Lebanon broadcast instructive programs designed to enlighten public opinion on the importance of this day from the national, economic, and aesthetic points of view...

Among the good signs with us is the spread of the Arbor Day idea in school circles, and it has become the custom for the children to celebrate and to plant saplings...

The model primary school of the Lebanese Women's League held its Arbor Day ceremony, and each class planted a tree; nor did the falling rain prevent the performance of this pleasant duty, for the improvement and beautification of their school.

On this occasion the young pupil Najah Sabri Hamadeh gave an address in English about trees, while the two pupils Issam Abd al-Fattah Rawwas gave an address on the Friends of the Tree Society and its founding, and Nasib Abd al-Salam Abu Zahr on the benefits of trees; then the ceremony closed with the Tree Anthem sung by all the pupils. We commend this school, which fosters in its pupils from early childhood the spirit of cooperation with the government on official holidays and the love of beautifying their country, and we appeal to all schools to follow its example whenever they find the way to do so.

• She is Mrs. Alma Kerr, whom the readers of The Woman's Voice have come to know on more than one occasion — the First Lady, Mrs. Chamoun, decorated her with the Lebanese Order of Merit, in recognition of her great service to the project of industrial renaissance, particularly at "Jdeidet Marjeyoun." For this emissary of Bayard Dodge, the friend of the Arabs, devoted all her resources to the rescue of a generation, and worked with sincerity and self-sacrifice to help the refugees and the Lebanese in a positive way and to teach them self-reliance through the mastery of a handicraft.

It is a kindly gesture on the government's part to appreciate the work of Mrs. Alma Kerr, and we reckon that the first credit for it belongs to Mrs. Chamoun, who has accompanied the Marjeyoun project as it grew and flourished.

Mrs. Kerr has now returned to the United States, and her project lives on in the keeping of a select group of volunteer ladies.

Cocktail parties were given in Mrs. Kerr's honor, and she was seen off with wishes for a speedy return to our land — on her part and on ours as well...

• On the evening of the twelfth of December, the Cénacle Libanais presented Dr. Salwa Nassar in a lecture on "Atomic Energy — the Aspects of Its Use and Its Effect on Society." And the fact is that Dr. Nassar is now the focus of Lebanon's eyes in the field of science; and she succeeded more than on any previous occasion in simplifying scientific theories and bringing them down to the level of the general public, so that the audience felt, as they left the hall of the Cénacle, that the subject of the atom was no longer altogether a riddle!!

Behind the modest brain of Dr. Nassar there lies a momentous project which, were it granted fulfillment, would render our country a very great service. Why should not a select group of our educated ladies join hands to bring it into being and to press the government to approve it? The project of Salwa Nassar equals in importance the greatest project the state debates in the Chamber of Deputies. Can the reason for their failure to adopt it be that they set no store by the opinion of "a woman?" — We do not wish to understand it so.

The Cénacle resumes its activity after the holiday season, presenting the following lectures:

1 — Monday, January 9 — Ibrahim Abd al-Al (in French): How to Build Lebanon.

2 — Monday the 16th of the same month: Philippe Takla — The Foundations of Lebanese Domestic Policy.

3 — Thursday the 19th — Father Doueire Lathour, head of the French Medical Institute in Beirut: Einstein and His Genius.

4 — Monday the 23rd: Brigadier Jean Aziz Ghazi — Lebanese Characters: Faces and Scenes.

5 — Monday the 30th — Bassem al-Jisr — "The State of the Lebanese Press and the Scope of Its Mission."

During the past month the Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee of the General Assembly approved, by a majority of 35 votes against three, with 13 members abstaining, the preamble and the three articles of the draft convention on the nationality of married women.

The purpose of issuing this convention is that a woman shall not be required to follow the nationality of her husband when he is not of her own country, and that it shall prevent the difficulties that beset a wife when, after her marriage to or divorce from a foreigner, she finds herself left without any nationality, or a foreigner in her own homeland, or the holder of a double nationality — all in consequence of the conflicting provisions of different laws.

The provisions of the convention approved by the committee lay down that a woman shall not lose her nationality upon marrying a foreigner, and that she shall not be compelled to assume her husband's nationality against her will; she may, however, be permitted to take her husband's nationality in accordance with the naturalization procedures in force in the country, should she so desire; nor shall she be prevented from taking her husband's nationality in those countries where that is the wife's right.

On the night of Saturday to Sunday, December 18, 1955, the Abu Ali River in Tripoli rose in flood, causing grievous losses in lives and property, and clothing al-Fayha and the North in the garb of mourning for the innocent victims; Lebanon and the Arab world stood aghast at the painful calamity that had struck a beloved part of the country. The gallantry of the Lebanese, government and people, and of the Arab countries, kings and presidents, rose to meet the bitter affliction: committees and bodies, official and civic, were formed to gather donations and assistance for the stricken; and Their Majesties and Excellencies the Arab kings and presidents, and the directors of private and public institutions in the Arab and foreign countries, telegraphed the Lebanese government, offering condolences on the calamity and contributing generously toward the relief of the families of the victims and of those who suffered losses in this painful event.

Reports from al-Fayha state that the number of victims reached 118 dead, and that a great number are missing. As for the material damage, it is estimated in the millions.

The magazine The Woman's Voice, pained by this affliction that has befallen the struggling capital of the North, expresses its deep sorrow to the families of the victims and of those who suffered losses, and asks the Almighty to spare her every woe and calamity.

• The Society for Combating Prostitution in Lebanon held a well-attended gathering in West Hall at the American University of Beirut on the first of January, and listeners flocked to it despite the raging storms and rains of that night.
The proceedings were opened by the president of the society, Mr. Mohammad Jamil Beyhum, with a precious address in which he set forth the development of prostitution during the last century in both Syria and Lebanon — especially licensed prostitution — and what the societies had prepared for combating it in general; at the close of his address he reviewed the founding of the society, its aims, and its works.

Then Dr. Salim Haidar took the floor as lecturer, and covered the subject from its historical, sanitary, and moral sides.
Both lecturers acquitted themselves admirably, so much so that the listeners were enabled to enjoy two fresh treatments of a subject rarely spoken of, and they showed every satisfaction.

Mrs. Asia Wahba, president of the Iraqi Women's Union, gave a dinner party at her flourishing home, to which she invited a distinguished company of the ladies and young ladies of Iraq — members of the Iraqi Women's Union and presidents of the societies — to make the acquaintance of Mrs. Nazik Sarkis, secretary of the General Arab Women's Union, on the occasion of her presence in Baghdad. The party was splendid and the evening delightful, thanks to the geniality and graciousness which the hostess showered upon it; conversation was exchanged on the renaissance of woman and the noble works she is performing in social, cultural, and charitable service, all of which testified to the activity of the Iraqi woman and her swift advance in the field of progress. Mrs. Asia Wahba is well known for her energy, her zeal, and her eagerness for every work that raises the standing of woman and strengthens her union, ever striving to fasten the bonds of friendship with her sisters, the ladies of all the Arab countries.

• The home of His Excellency Kazem al-Khalil, Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Social Affairs, was filled on the evening of Friday, December 9, with a party given by his wife in honor of the wife of Mr. Morse, Director-General of the International Labour Office, to which she invited the presidents of the societies and the women workers in the social field, so as to acquaint the guest of honor with some of the social, cultural, and humanitarian projects the Lebanese woman is carrying out. The party was perfection itself in arrangement and refined taste.

Mrs. Morse was accompanied to this party of introduction by Mrs. Kassouf, wife of the director of the International Labour Office in Turkey; and it was observed that she is the first woman in whom a feminine personality has shown, in her official capacity — I mean Mrs. al-Khalil — her concern with a public cause.

Mrs. Morse was astonished at what she heard of woman's activity in the various fields, in no way inferior to that of the most advanced countries of the world. Desiring to broaden her information, she visited some of the centers of this work, among them the Village Welfare Society, and expressed her highest appreciation of this positive, constructive project, which raises the working hands from dependence to material independence, and labors to revive national industry.