United by Disgust, Lebanon Demos Search for Shared Future

Anti-government protesters in Lebanon. (AP)
Anti-government protesters in Lebanon. (AP)
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United by Disgust, Lebanon Demos Search for Shared Future

Anti-government protesters in Lebanon. (AP)
Anti-government protesters in Lebanon. (AP)

Lebanon's massive street protests have made it clear what the demonstrators oppose -- with the entire political class in the crosshairs -- but the focus is now turning to what exactly they stand for.

The almost one-week-old protests sparked by a tax on messaging services such as WhatsApp have morphed into a united condemnation of a political system seen as corrupt and beyond repair.

The movement's soundtrack has been a chorus of inventive chants calling out politicians from all sects and parties with rhyming insults.

Most people want the unity government, which is supported by nearly all Lebanon's major political parties, to resign, and disgust with the status quo has been a unifying force.

But what they want next often differs.

On the outskirts of another rally in Beirut, when tens of thousands again brought much of the capital to a standstill, teenager Peter Sayegh and his friend Andrew Baydoun were playing cards on a plastic table.

They agreed that Prime Minister Saad Hariri has to go, but not on the future of Lebanon, said AFP.

"I want the people to rule and give us our rights, secure work for the country and secure my future so I won't have to emigrate," Sayegh said, leaning back on his chair while clutching a Lebanese flag.

Baydoun objected.

"The whole government needs to go and be replaced by a military one," he argued, calling for 84-year-old President Michel Aoun, a former army chief, to stay on.

Scuffling over the future

Lebanon is marked by stark political and sectarian divisions.

Many of its political leaders today were warlords fighting along religious lines during Lebanon's brutal 1975-1990 civil conflict.

The government is set up to balance power between multiple sects, which include different Christian groups, Sunni and Shiite Muslims, as well as the Druze.

But it often entrenches power and influence along sectarian lines.

The protests have been overwhelmingly apolitical, with all party and religious symbols abandoned in favor of the cedar-stamped national flag.

They have also been inclusive -- with no specific stated goals, or leadership or management structure.

But the bottom-up structure also poses risks -- with fears that the momentum could slip away as people feel pressure to return to work or school.

Numbers of protesters have declined since peaking Sunday, which is weekend in Lebanon.

Mass protests in 2015 ultimately failed to achieve major change and elections in 2018 ushered in the same sectarian parties.

In 2016, a non-sectarian coalition called Beirut Madinati (Beirut is my city) came close but ultimately fell short in city elections.

In the general election two years later, the group was part of a coalition that won only one seat.

'Demands later'

On Monday, Mona Fawaz of Beirut Madinati gave a brief speech in the center of the capital, stressing she was not claiming to represent the entire protest movement.

Yet parts of the crowd accused her group of trying to hijack the demonstrations.

"Go and speak in ABC," one protester yelled, accusing the group of elitism by referring a high-end shopping mall in Beirut.

Speeches on Tuesday evening concentrated on points of agreement: calls for the government's resignation and reclaiming public funds embezzled by politicians.

Nizar Hassan, 26, part of a leftwing group called Lihaqqi (for my rights), said the protest movement had to be realistic.

"This is a popular uprising, you can't just say: 'These are the demands.' But a lot of people are talking about things that are actually quite achievable," he said.

For Hassan, an interim government of technocrats could stabilize the economy ahead of new elections in which the traditional parties would be obliterated.

"In 2015, people were talking about overthrowing the sectarian system altogether. (Now) people are much more knowledgeable of the limits," he said.

Carmen Geha, an assistant professor at the American University of Beirut, said the new protests had support across economic groups and throughout the country.

"Leaderless movements can dissipate and be co-opted," she warned.

"There is a need to frame the demands. But right now, this is a popular protest -- go to the streets now and talk demands later."



Crops Wither in Sudan as Power Cuts Cripple Irrigation

FILED - 27 August 2024, Sudan, Omdurman: Young people walk along a street marked by destruction in Sudan. Photo: Mudathir Hameed/dpa
FILED - 27 August 2024, Sudan, Omdurman: Young people walk along a street marked by destruction in Sudan. Photo: Mudathir Hameed/dpa
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Crops Wither in Sudan as Power Cuts Cripple Irrigation

FILED - 27 August 2024, Sudan, Omdurman: Young people walk along a street marked by destruction in Sudan. Photo: Mudathir Hameed/dpa
FILED - 27 August 2024, Sudan, Omdurman: Young people walk along a street marked by destruction in Sudan. Photo: Mudathir Hameed/dpa

Hatem Abdelhamid stands amid his once-thriving date palms in northern Sudan, helpless as a prolonged war-driven power outage cripples irrigation, causing devastating crop losses and deepening the country's food crisis.

"I've lost 70 to 75 percent of my crops this year," he said, surveying the dying palms in Tanqasi, a village on the Nile in Sudan's Northern State.

"I'm trying really hard to keep the rest of the crops alive," he told AFP.

Sudan's agricultural sector -- already battered by a two-year conflict and economic crisis -- is now facing another crushing blow from the nationwide power outages.

Since the war between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces began in April 2023, state-run power plants have been repeatedly targeted, suffering severe damage and ultimately leaving farms without water.

Like most Sudanese farms, Abdelhamid's depends on electric-powered irrigation -- but the system has been down "for over two months" due to the blackouts.

Sudan had barely recovered from the devastating 1985 drought and famine when war erupted again in 2023, delivering a fresh blow to the country's agriculture.

Agriculture remains the main source of food and income for 80 percent of the population, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Now in its third year, the conflict has plunged more than half the population into acute food insecurity, with famine already taking hold in at least five areas and millions more at risk across conflict-hit regions in the west, center and south.

The war has also devastated infrastructure, killed tens of thousands of people, and displaced 13 million.

A 2024 joint study by the United Nations Development Programme and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) found that nearly a third of rural households have lost irrigation and water access since the war began.

Without electricity to power his irrigation system, Abdelhamid -- like thousands of farmers across the country -- was forced to rely on diesel-powered pumps.

But with fuel scarce and prices now more than 20 times higher than before the war, even that option is out of reach for many.

"I used to spend 10,000 Sudanese pounds (about four euros according to the black market rate) for irrigation each time," said another farmer, Abdelhalim Ahmed.

"Now it costs me 150,000 pounds (around 60 euros) because there is no electricity," he told AFP.

Ahmed said he has lost three consecutive harvests -- including crops like oranges, onions, tomatoes and dates.

With seeds, fertilizers and fuel now barely available, many farmers say they won't be able to replant for the next cycle.

In April, the FAO warned that "below average rainfall" and ongoing instability were closing the window to prevent further deterioration.

A June study by IFPRI also projected Sudan's overall economic output could shrink by as much as 42 percent if the war continues, with the agricultural sector contracting by more than a third.

"Our analysis shows massive income losses across all households and a sharp rise in poverty, especially in rural areas and among women," said Khalid Siddig, a senior research fellow at IFPRI.