Joseph Chader
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Joseph Chader (‎; 1907 – March 28, 1977) was a Lebanese politician. He was a Member of Parliament between 1951 and 1977, and served as deputy speaker at times. In 1958 he became the first Armenian government minister in Lebanon. He served as vice chairman of the
Kataeb Party The Kataeb Party (), officially the Kataeb Party – Lebanese Social Democratic Party ( '), also known as the Phalangist Party, is a right-wing Christian political party in Lebanon founded by Pierre Gemayel in 1936. The party and its parami ...
.Messerlian, Zaven. ''Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009''. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. p. 112


Background

Joseph Chader was born in
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
in 1907 to an
Armenian Catholic Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...
family.اللواء
آل الصبّاغ وصبّاغة وصبّان وسباهي وصبح وصبرا وشادر وشامليان
He was the son of an Armenian refugee from Diyarbakir, Antoine Chader. Antoine Chader had been active in the Patriotic Union. Joseph Chader studied at ''Ecole des frères'' in Beirut. In 1925 he began studying law at the French Law Institute, graduating in 1928 with good grades. After his graduation as a lawyer, he began working at the office for the Armenian parliamentarian Abdallah Ishak.


Kataeb

In 1936 he took part in founding the
Kataeb Party The Kataeb Party (), officially the Kataeb Party – Lebanese Social Democratic Party ( '), also known as the Phalangist Party, is a right-wing Christian political party in Lebanon founded by Pierre Gemayel in 1936. The party and its parami ...
. As of 1937 Chader was a member of the Executive Committee of the party. In that year he also served as chairman of the Disciplinary Committee of the party. Then he became general secretary of the party, a post he held until 1951. During the 1943 October revolt, Chader led the Kataeb and Najjadeh combine against the French forces.


1947 election

In 1947 he was included as the
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
Minorities The term "minority group" has different meanings, depending on the context. According to common usage, it can be defined simply as a group in society with the least number of individuals, or less than half of a population. Usually a minority g ...
candidate on the opposition 'Reformist List' for the
parliamentary election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...
. However, on the election day, Chader and other opposition candidates alleged that the election was being rigged and called on their followers to abstain from voting. Official results gave him 3,168 votes (14.7%), finishing in second place for the Minorities seat.


1951 election

In 1951 Chader was named vice chairman of the Kataeb Party. Ahead of the 1951 general election a separate Armenian Catholic seat had been instituted. By this time Chader had become the vice chairman of the Kataeb Party. The
Armenian Catholic Church The Armenian Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Catholic particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church. It accepts the papal supremacy, leadership of the bishop of Rome, and is therefore in full communion with ...
reached a deal with the Kataeb Party, to nominate Chader for the new reserved seat. The so-called 'List of Giants' decided not to field an official Armenian Catholic candidate. Henri Pharaon called on his followers to vote for Chader for the Armenian Catholic seat whilst Abdullah Yafi and
Sami Solh Sami (El) Solh (; 1887–1968) was a Lebanese Sunni Muslim politician. He was a relative of former Lebanese prime ministers Riad Solh, Takieddine Solh and Rachid Solh. He served as Prime Minister of Lebanon five times (1942–43, 1945–46, 1 ...
appealed for a vote for Elie Khayat. Chader won the seat, having obtained 9,660 votes (44%) whilst Khayat got 2,257 votes.Messerlian, Zaven. ''Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009''. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 111–112, 115–116 Chader was the sole Kataeb candidate able to get elected.


1953 election

However, ahead of the 1953 general election the Armenian Catholic seat was abolished. Chader again contested the Minorities seat, now allocated to the Beirut V – Minet El Hosn electoral district. Notably, the Armenian Catholic weekly '' Massis'' did not support his campaign. However he obtained strong support from the local Jewish community, which was largely sympathetic to the Kataeb Party. He won the seat, having garnered 2,081 votes (35.6%). Again, Chader was the sole Kataeb member elected to parliament.


1957 election

In the 1957 general election Chader was named as the Armenian Catholic candidate (the Armenian Catholic seat had been reinstituted) on the list of Sami Solh in the second electoral district of Beirut. He won the seat, obtaining 16,670 votes (~53.8%).


1958 Minister

On March 14, 1958, in the backdrop of a national crisis in which Armenians participated on both sides, Chader was named Minister of Planning in the cabinet of
Sami Solh Sami (El) Solh (; 1887–1968) was a Lebanese Sunni Muslim politician. He was a relative of former Lebanese prime ministers Riad Solh, Takieddine Solh and Rachid Solh. He served as Prime Minister of Lebanon five times (1942–43, 1945–46, 1 ...
. He thus became the first Armenian to become a national government minister. Moreover, he was the second Kataeb member to serve as a government minister (
Jean Skaff Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean ...
had been a minister in the interim cabinet of May 12-August 18, 1953). Chader's tenure as Minister lasted until September 24, 1958.


1960 election

In the 1960 general election Chader was named as the Armenian Catholic candidate of the joint Kataeb-
Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (, abbr. ARF (ՀՅԴ) or ARF-D), also known as Dashnaktsutyun (Armenians, Armenian: Դաշնակցություն, Literal translation, lit. "Federation"), is an Armenian nationalism, Armenian nationalist a ...
(Tashnaq) 'People's List' in Beirut I electoral district. He won the seat, having obtained 21,765 votes according to official sources. According to an unofficial summary covering most of the polling booths, Chader got the vote of 98.1% of the Jewish voters who cast their ballots, 86.5% of the Maronites, 76.2% of the Greek Catholic, 61.7% of the Greek Orthodox, 58% of the Armenian Orthodox, 78.1% of other Christian groups (such as Latin Catholics, Assyrians, Chaldean Catholics) and 28.7% of the Muslim vote.


1964 and 1968 elections

In the 1964 general election he was again the Armenian Catholic candidate on the Kataeb-Tashnaq list in Beirut I. He was elected unopposed, along with all other candidates of that list. Likewise, Chader was the Armenian Catholic candidate of Kataeb and Tashnaq in the 1968 general election in Beirut I and was again elected unopposed.


1972 election

In the 1972 general election Chader was the Armenian Catholic candidate on a joint Kataeb-Tashnaq-
National Liberal National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal policies and issues with elements of nationalism. Historically, national liberalism has also been used in the same meaning as conservative liberalism (right-liberalism). A serie ...
list in Beirut I. He was re-elected, obtaining 27,663 votes (79.4%).Messerlian, Zaven. ''Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009''. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 255–256 Chader served as Minister of State in the cabinet of
Takieddine Solh Takieddin el-Solh (also Takieddin Solh, Takieddin as-Solh; ) (1908 – 27 November 1988) was a Lebanese politician who served as the Prime Minister of Lebanon from 1973 to 1974, and again briefly in 1980. El-Solh was born in Sidon, Lebanon. ...
between July 8, 1973 and October 31, 1974.


Death

Chader died on March 28, 1977. As no new elections were held during the
Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...
, the Armenian Catholic parliamentary seat remained vacant until his son Antoine Chader was appointed as Member of Parliament in 1991.Messerlian, Zaven. ''Armenian Participation in the Lebanese Legislative Elections 1934–2009''. Beirut: Haigazian University Press, 2014. pp. 264–267


Honours

Chader was awarded the
National Order of the Cedar The National Order of the Cedar () is the highest Order (honour), state order of Lebanon, established on 31 December 1936. It is offered in five grades. History The Order was created on the 31 December 1936, but is regulated by the Lebanese C ...
, with rank of officer. He also received the rank of Knight Commander of the
Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great (; ) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of the five Papal order of knighthood, orders of knighthood of th ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chader, Joseph 20th-century Eastern Catholics 20th-century Lebanese lawyers 1907 births 1977 deaths Politicians from Beirut Members of the Parliament of Lebanon Planning ministers of Lebanon Ministers without portfolio of Lebanon Members of the Armenian Catholic Church Lebanese Eastern Catholics Officers of the National Order of the Cedar Knights Commander of the Order of St Gregory the Great Kataeb Party politicians Lebanese people of Armenian descent