São Paulo – To celebrate the 25th of March, Arab Immigration Day in Brazil, the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce promoted a dinner this Friday in honour of two of the most prominent figures in the country’s Syrian-Lebanese descendent community: the honorary president of the Beneficent Ladies Society, which maintains the Syrian Lebanese Hospital (HSL), Violeta Jafet, and cardiologist Adib Jatene, who was formerly the minister of Health.
“This is yet another acknowledgement of the capabilities [of these two people], of their contribution to our community and to Brazilian society,” claimed the Arab Brazilian Chamber president Salim Taufic Schahin prior to the start of the event held at Clube Atlético Monte Líbano, in São Paulo.
In his address, Schahin stated that both are leading figures in healthcare who have “equipped our country with world-class organizations.” Violeta headed the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital for many years, starting in the 1950s, when she replaced her mother, Adma, who originated the entity. Jatene, in turn, is the CEO of Hospital do Coração (HCor), another institution established by the community of Arab origin.
To the Arab Brazilian Chamber president, Violeta and Jatene “dignify our community. They are examples of love. We shall pay them back with much love for everything that they have given us,” said Schahin, before showing two videos on the lives of those honoured and handing them medals and commemorative diplomas.
“I feel very honoured, especially for being paid tribute alongside Mrs Violeta, who is an extraordinary person. I even feel small [next to her],” stated the former minister in an interview. Jatene has been very active in the formulation of public policies for the healthcare sector, and has been secretary of state and minister twice.
At age 81, he is one of the top cardiologists in Brazil. He regards himself as an optimistic man and explains how he has always maintained this state of mind. “Once, in the Roda Viva TV show [on Cultura network], I was asked how I manage to keep such a positive outlook, and said: ‘I was born in [the state of] Acre, my father died when I was two and my mother fought bravely [to raise us]. Now I am the minister of Health. How do you expect me to be pessimistic?’”
A son to Lebanese parents, Jatene was born in Xapuri, the hometown of other famous Brazilians, such as rubber tapper leader Chico Mendes and journalist Armando Nogueira. His father, like many immigrants from the Middle East, was a merchant who made a living out of selling goods at rubber tree plantations. After his passing, his mother also resorted to trade to raise her four children, with the aid of her grandmother.
He was born and raised in the Amazonian region, but came to São Paulo to study, where he earned a degree from the University of São Paulo (USP) and pursued a medical career.
“My mother used to have a saying: ‘Write on the sand the evil you were done, but on marble the good that you were done,” he claimed. “I would like to share this honour with her, and with so many other people in our community who put their families first,” he added.
Violeta, in turn, gave thanks to “all of the Syrians and Lebanese who have worked for these entities,” meaning the HSL and the HCor. She stated that the community is comprised of “many honest workers.” “We must not think in terms of Syrians and Lebanese, but in terms of brotherhood. God is one and we must unite,” said she, who is 104 years old.
Pioneering runs in Violeta’s family. Her mother had the initiative of creating a hospital that is now a reference in Brazil. Her father, Basílio Jafet, was part of the first generation of Lebanese immigrants who arrived at Brazil. Like many others, he made a fortune out of business.
The Brazilian vice-president, Michel Temer, who attended the event, is also a son to Lebanese parents and claimed that all of the Arab immigrant families bear a common trait: solidarity. “Hence the benevolence,” he asserted.
He added that he used to believe the Arab Brazilian Chamber was concerned solely with trade, but was glad to learn that the organization “has the grandeur to acknowledge those who enrich our country,” in other sectors, and quoted a saying of his father’s: “You must be proud of your origins and set roots in your country.” By which he meant Brazil.
The mayor of São Paulo, Gilberto Kassab, himself a descendent of Arabs, praised the Chamber’s initiative of “paying tribute to two icons of the Arab community, and more than that, two Brazilian heroes.”
Schahin stated that the organization “seeks to fulfil its role” of promoting trade between Brazil and the Arab world, but that it also works to attract investment, foster tourism and cultural exchange.
In the field of healthcare, for instance, he highlighted that the Chamber supports a medical exchange programme between the HSL and Syrian institutions, aiming to establish a liver transplant centre in the Arab country, an effort that he hopes will expand to other countries in the future. Schahin added that he is working on a similar agreement with the HCor.
The Arab Brazilian Chamber president also discussed the organization’s project of establishing the House of Arab Culture in São Paulo, a centre for documentation and diffusion regarding the contribution of Arabs to humanity, and of Arab immigrants to Brazil. He emphasized that the community of Arab origin goes on contributing to the development of the country.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
