She told of the suffering of survivors of the double explosion in Beirut in August 2020. Caroline Hayek, Franco-Lebanese journalist at L’Orient-Le Jour wins the 83rd Albert Londres Prize for a series of reports in the Lebanese capital. “I had the impression of being useful with these reports”, she reacts on franceinfo, Tuesday, November 16, the day after the award ceremony. An individual distinction “but also for a whole newspaper”, according to her.
franceinfo: Are you telling about human tragedies, but it is above all the decay of an entire country that is exposed?
Caroline Hayek: Telling this suffering immediately after the explosion was very important. I also wanted to give the floor to the Syrian refugees because I covered the war in Syria from Beirut for L’Orient-Le Jour, it was essential not to forget them, because there were about forty people who died during the explosion. These Syrian refugees, who have not asked to be there, only hope for one thing, to return to their country. They thought they were safe in Lebanon, but the explosion was the last straw. For the moment, they do not intend to return to Syria as long as the security conditions do not allow it, and, for some, as long as Bashar Al-Assad is in power.
What struck you the most about these reports?
The ease that these people had of recounting their suffering. It’s something hard to say “now I have fallen into extreme poverty, I am not receiving any help”, and at the same time they had a certain modesty and always an enormous generosity, even if they had nothing, they welcome you with open arms and they are happy that you are there to hear them. I felt like I was helpful with these reports. Even if, I, like other journalists in Lebanon with the conditions we know, at one point thought about leaving the country to work abroad, it makes sense for us to stay to tell about all the suffering that cross the population.
It is a personal reward, but it is also for a press which is badly in Lebanon?
Absolutely. It’s also a real reward for L’Orient-Le Jour, it’s really a big family, the entire editorial staff jumped for joy. It’s a newspaper that’s trying to hold its own. It is one of the only French-speaking independent dailies in the region which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in three years. So yes, this price it is for me, but also for a whole newspaper.