Defence Margarita Robles, the last 10th July during the presentation of the balance sheet for the Cervantes programme, taking place at the headquarters of the Instituto in Madrid, and counting with the presence of its Director, Luis García Montero. «Our Armed Forces —added Robles—, are very involved with the citizenship. Languages cannot be a reason for fighting, but rather, they should serve for enriching». The Minister invited the persons in charge of the Instituto to visit Lebanon «for sharing the spirit of sacrifice and heroism of our soldiers» and to see on the ground «the significance of the Spanish language». TEACHER TRAINING In Lebanon, where in these moments the Brigade Rey Alfonso XIII of the Spanish Legion is deployed, soldiers from the operation Libre Hidalgo are the ones that voluntarily give Spanish lessons. Currently, they are 25 and they count with the Instituto Cervantes help. In the previous phase of each deployment, teachers from the centre «teach how to teach» to soldiers that later will be teachers. «After, with great faith, a lot of heart, a great desire and all the empathy possible, they serve as teachers to a completely receptive public», explains the Colonel Bustamante. Cooperation between the Armed Forces deployed in Lebanon and the delegation from the Instituto Cervantes is permanent. In fact, their teachers are moved to the south of the country, where the Spanish Miguel de Cervantes base is located, in order to supervise the exam that students should pass to obtain the Diploma in Spanish as a Foreign Language and to maintain contact with the military teachers to answer to any of their queries. The first centre where the Spanish lessons were taught in Lebanon was Sagrado Corazón, in the city of Marjayoun, and from there, they were expanded to Kleeya, Dermine, Wazani, Bourj el Moulok… up to 20 different towns. Learning levels range from initial to advanced, where students get ready for the exam to obtain said accreditation certificate from the Instituto Cervantes. Thanks to this program, many Lebanese have found a job, therefore assuring their future. In fact, some of them who worked there as translators for the Spanish contingent learnt our language thanks to it. One of them, Katia, admitted some years ago in these same pages that «it was the best experience of her life» and that she still remembered each of her teachers. Also, Natalie, who decided to go to the south of Lebanon «with these new soldiers from the other side of the Mediterranean Sea in order to help preserve the peace in there after a violent and terrible war». «Although not all, the majority of those who assist to Spanish lessons are children coming from a conflict period, from a dramatic situation where they have seen people dying around them. For them, it is really important to sense the care and proximity of someone that only wants to teach», explains Colonel Bustamante. «In fact, —he adds—, A Spanish soldier gave lessons to children in the institute of Qala i Naw (Afghanistan). Below, some adults receiving Spanish lessons in Lebanon, in 2010. December 2019 Revista Española de Defensa 29
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