Diaspora Diaries

At 17, civil war and militia in-fighting drew Mazen Chouaib onto Lebanon's battlefield. As a teenaged volunteer paramedic, his job was to evacuate the injured and the dead, to fight fires and free those trapped under the mountains of rubble left behind after bomb attacks by rivalling Christian, Muslim and PLO factions.

In 1989, the death and destruction began to take a toll on Chouaib. He started to think about his life and the kind of future he wanted. Then 17, Chouaib decided to leave Lebanon and seek refuge with his family in Canada.

However, despite being far from the horror of Lebanon's war, those haunting images of life and death on the front lines of his war-torn country never left him. Instead, they fuelled a passion for assisting Lebanon and other Middle Eastern governments to implement political reform and develop infrastructures that promote peace in the Middle East.

Now a Canadian citizen, Chouaib is a Team Leader of a Canadian consulting group involved in a partnership between the UNDP and the Iraq government. He advises on the training of senior Iraqi officials in public accountability and institution building. He is also a Governance Advisor to the UNDP, providing guidance on public sector reform and the establishment of electoral and parliamentary systems in Iraq.

It is a dangerous business, says Chouaib. "Last month we got the news of the assassination of an Iraqi colleague. Assaf, a young judicial aid to a prominent Iraqi judge, was shot down by assassins as he drove home from work. The news shocked many of those who knew him and worked with him. He was vocal and honest in his opinions about the situation in Iraq. That was enough reason to kill an aspiring, secular judge," says Chouaib.

Chouaib admits while working in conflict zones carries with it significant security risks, there are advantages on the ground because he is a Canadian Arab.

"People were a lot more open and comfortable talking to us when they realized our project was lead by Canada. They feel Canada is multicultural, allows for interaction and is welcoming. These things resonate with people in Iraq because they have many of the sectarian, religious and ethnic divisions we have in Canada. People who come from different backgrounds are seeking answers and look up to Canada to help them," says Chouaib.

Chouaib has spent almost all of his post-graduate life searching for solutions to the problems people of Arab descent face in their home countries and abroad.

Mazen Chouaib

After graduating from McMaster University in 1998 with a political science degree and a major in international relations, Chouaib left behind his job at the family grocery store and gas station to become Executive Director of the National Council on Canada Arab Relations. He also became a public voice, speaking out through the media in defence of Canada's Arab community against indiscriminate post-911 attacks.

Known at the council because of his volunteer work at Hamilton's Settlement and Immigration Services Organization and on other boards serving Arab immigrant communities, Chouaib focused his energies on helping organizations linked to the Middle East develop projects and partnerships.

His knowledge of Arab politics, Canada's parliamentary system, coupled with his management and communications skills made him a perfect candidate for CANADEM, a Canadian organization supporting the advancement of the UN Charter, international peace and security, human rights and the responsibility to protect.

In 2005, the organization asked him to embark on his first international mission, running a Canada-led programme to evaluate the election process for Iraq. That year, Chouaib packed his bags for Jordan and Iraq and established two offices on behalf of Foreign Affairs and CIDA.

The young Arab Canadian was fast becoming a trusted entity in Canada and international circles. He understood the politics and culture of the West and the Middle East and was fluent in English, French and Arabic--the languages of the two regions. "Being an Arab and a Canadian; I am a good mix of the two. I see how both cultures and worlds can come together. I see myself as a bridge", says Chouaib.

With that philosophy, Chouaib waded into electoral politics in Iraq under the umbrella of The International Mission for Iraqi Elections (IMIE). Delegated by the UN and the Government of Iraq and led by Canada's Chief Electoral Officer Jean Pierre Kingsley, the mission evaluated the process and integrity of the 2005-2006 elections. Under the international board's supervision, Chouaib established a monitoring and evaluation system to help the Iraqis conduct fair and transparent elections, while also supervising the monitoring and evaluation of out of country voting in 14 countries.

In addition, he has used his knowledge and experience to fight poverty in the Middle East, acting between 2002 and 2004 as a consultant to the Parliamentary Centre's Middle East and North Africa programme promoting anti-poverty policies for the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Known for his ability to navigate through some of the most dangerous situations, Chouaib has led parliamentary teams through Iraq and many countries in the Middle East including Lebanon, Sudan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Spain, and Morocco.

Chouaib sees himself not only as a Canadian Arab, but also importantly, he says, as a global citizen.

"Global citizens have the capacity to connect in an unassuming way with others. They can be bridges between states and their citizens and other international actors. They can help states understand that citizenship is not what was once defined by bloodline or ethnic relations. Global citizens learn from experiences around the world which can be valuable for nation states," says Chouaib.

He warns however that global citizens need to be careful not to impose their experiences on others, a source of dissension between the west and the Middle East.

"Global citizens need to evaluate the society they are working in, how open, liberal, how comfortable it is with new ideas coming from the west. Many words and concepts related to my work in the governance area are not found in the Arabic language, so even words can pose a problem and are being repeated by personnel without much understanding," he adds.

Group shot with Mazen

As Chouaib continues to build bridges of understanding between Canada, other western countries and the Middle East, he admits he sometimes is frustrated by the slowness of bureaucracies. However, passionate about his work, he credits working in Canada for equipping him with many of the attributes he needs to succeed.

"My experience provided me with the critical thinking and professionalism required and I have learned to be inclusive, able to see both sides of any debate and not to pre-judge the people I work with," says Chouaib.

One day, he says, he hopes to pass on the knowledge he has gained, so he can help prepare the next generation of global citizens for challenges the Middle East and beyond will face.