Beirut—update

Last updated Friday 1.34am

Wednesday 7 May—National strike against low wages.
A trade union protest demanding a rise in the minumum wage came under attack by Future Current gangs from the governing coalition.

The demonstration was "re-routed" the night before by the government. The national strike set for the day turned into a mass stay away -- both because of fear and as part of the the protest.

The demo, called by the General Labour Union, was due to gather in the Barbir area of west Beirut, but armed government thugs stopped the workers gathering.

Clashes developed between Future gangs and those from the opposition Amal movement (Shia vs Sunni). Across the country, including the Sunni areas of Saida, in the south, and Tripoli in the north, there were small anti-government protests.

Opposition demonstrators have blocked the airport road, in response pro-government supporters closed the Beirut-Damascus highway in the Bekaa Valley. There were some confrontations. The night was quiet, but it was very difficult to cross the city.

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Thursday—lockdown
By the morning a defacto frontline of burning tyres developed between government and opposition areas. Gangs armed with rocks and sticks clashed along the edges of their neighbourhoods. By the afternoon the weapons came out.

These gangs have become quasi militias vying with the army for control over major road junctions.

The army was attempting to keep the sides apart.

We joined in the panic buying of supplies. Bread, pasta and rice are flying off the shelves. Most people are staying in their homes.

By early afternoon there were a series of explosions, followed by the rattle of machineguns.

Hizbollah and their allies in the Free Patriotic Movement -- a mainly Christian organisation who support the opposition -- have not yet entred the fray.

Hassan Nasrallah addressed the nation in the evening, he threatened to attack those who attack Hizbollah. Earlier, a senior Sunni cleric called on Sunnis to turn against on the government.

Heavy exchange of fire followed Nasralla's broadcast. There are rumours that fighting has spread to Druze areas of west Beirut. We can hear gunfire echo across the city.

Hariri appeared on TV later and mocked Nasrallah's speech.

News is filtering through that the army has sent two groups of officers to broker a truce, and Amal gunmen have captured an office belonging to the Future Current.

Istanbul—May Day

Cem Uzun reports from Istanbul on the May Day protest:

Police used more than 1500 tear gas bombs and attacked marchers with batons and water cannon, arresting and beating hundreds of people to prevent the three main Turkish trade union federations, along with the Turk-IS, DISK and KESK left groups marching to Taksim Square in Istanbul.

Tear gas was fired into the Istanbul headquarters building of DISK and also into the accident and emergency department of a nearby hospital.

Taksim Square has been closed to the trade unions since the massacre of May Day 1977 in which 34 died after police opened fire from rooftops surrounding the square.

The three federations along with some 80 other organisations, had called for the square to be reopened to the May Day demonstration. The response of the governor of Istanbul, backed by the government, was to use extreme force.

The head of the Turkish Medical Association, Gencay Gursoy, issued a statement condemning the tear gassing of the hospital. Police raided his house at 5am the following morning and arrested the 70 year old doctor, allegedly for the contents of an article he wrote in the association's journal four years ago.

An internet petition calling for the resignation of the Governor of Istanbul collected 21,500 signatures in 48 hours.

Palestinians—May Day

The UN news agency reports:

Several hundred Palestinians protested at the edge of Shatila camp in south Beirut on 30 April ahead of the 1 May labour day holiday, traditionally a time for workers’ to air their grievances.

"We are humans, we have the right to live," shouted the protesters. "We are half humans in Lebanon."

With inflation in double digits and the cost of living rising, the government has proposed raising the minimum wage for the first time in a decade, but Palestinians say they continue to be marginalised in the labour market.

The rise in the minimum monthly wage from US$200 to $300 is the first increase in a decade, but local researchers InfoPro estimate that only 10 percent of Lebanon's 650,000 wage earners take home the minimum wage or less.

Half a million Lebanese are self-employed and would not benefit from the wage increase, while Palestinians do not qualify as they are considered refugees, not citizens.

Lebanese salaries average $500, while the actual minimum wage is around $320. Citizens' wages are further supplemented by a de-facto government set of subsidies estimated at $150 a month, through price controls on electricity, gas, fuel and wheat.

Picture: This Palestinian refugee family of 12 live in a house with two rooms only. © Salma Zulfiqar/IRIN

Lebanon—May Day demo

Around 10,000 marched from Habib Abou Chahla Square to Murr Tower in a festive and very red procession. Pictures: Farfahine - Jammoul

May Day—domestic labour

AFP reports:
Lebanese employers, recruitment agencies and authorities must improve the treatment of domestic workers, New York-based Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday.

"On the eve of Lebanese Labour Day, we would like to highlight a huge segment of labourers who are not recognized as such. They are domestic workers, almost a 100 percent of whom are foreigners," Human Rights Watch's Beirut-based researcher Nadim Houry told AFP.

The group says the most common complaints from domestic staff, who are mostly women, are unpaid wages, lack of time off, restrictions on movement and verbal or sometimes even physical abuse.

Around 200,000 domestic labourers, mostly from Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Ethiopia, are not protected by Lebanese labour laws, HRW said.

A statement from the organisation cited a 2006 survey of 600 migrant workers by Dr Ray Jureidini which found 56 percent reported they worked more than 12 hours a day and 34 percent had no regular time off.

Some workers have died attempting to escape from their working conditions, the statement said, some of them jumping from balconies.

"The Lebanese authorities have an obligation to ensure that these women are protected by law," Houry said adding that the campaign, named "Put Yourself in Her Shoes," is targeting employers and employment firms.

Israeli overflights

Insider Israel reports:

Israeli warplanes entered Lebanese airspace on Monday, flying at will over Beirut and elsewhere in the country, the Lebanese army said. An army statement said that "12 enemy Israeli warplanes" violated Lebanese airspace before noon, four flying over the Mediterranean off the coastal city of Byblos in the north and then headed toward the eastern province of Hermel.

Prison riots

Iraqi prisoners in Bulgaria, Lebanese prisoners in east Beirut and detainees in Syria have mutinied in the last few days:

Bulgaria
Bulgaria's news agency reports:
A riot broke up in the Bulgarian prison for temporary detention of illegally staying foreign citizens near Busmanci.

Around 13 o'clock six Iraqi citizens and a few other prisoners barricaded themselves in one of the building's corridors. Shortly after that the police arrived at the scene.

The prisoners set a mattress afire during the riot, but the smoke in the closed hall made them come out and surrender to the police.

The rioters are six Iraqi citizens, who were to be extradited tomorrow through Hungary, then to Syria, and from there to Iraq. The Hungarian authorities denied issuing them transit visas, so the whole journey was pushed back to April 30th.

Apparently the delay is the reason for the unrest. The six Iraquis were caught trying to cross Bulgaria's borders more than a month ago.

Lebanon
The Associated Press reports:
Calm returned to Lebanon's largest prison a day after scores of inmates set their clothes on fire and took guards hostage to demand better conditions and reduced sentences.

Seven policemen who were taken hostage were released early Friday after nine hours of negotiations between senior police officers and representatives of the rioting inmates at Roumieh prison, according to a police statement.

The prisoners returned to their cells amid tight security to prevent additional rioting.

Thursday's riots began when prisoners attacked their guards and took some of them hostage, the officials said. Some of the 200 rioting prisoners set their clothes on fire and black smoke was seen billowing from the building for some time.

The Roumieh prison was built 40 years ago to hold 1,000 inmates, but more than 3,000 are currently held there.


Lebanon's LBc runs interview with a priest and the relatives of prisoners on the reasons behid the protest.

Syria
From the Institute for War & Peace Reporting:
Reports of unrest and a fire at the Saidnaya military prison underscore the need for more transparency about the conditions in Syrian prisons, human rights activists and family members of prisoners say.

Numerous reports surfaced this week of disturbances at the jail, northeast of Damascus, where many political prisoners are held, but few details have been confirmed.

The government has not commented on or released any information about the reports of unrest.

The prison, which opened in 1987, holds an estimated 1,000 prisoners, according to rights groups, including Kurds, Islamists and democratic activists.

Dumb social democrat—number 232

Hezbollah held French socialist, reports the BBC.

Apparently the foolish man was snapping away in Hizbollah areas without permission:

Mr Pakzad, who was representing the French Socialist Party at the two-day Socialist International conference in Beirut, said he had been taking pictures of a mosque with a friend when he was approached by armed men.

He said he was blindfolded and taken to an unidentified location where he was held in isolation and his cell phone, wallet and medicine were taken away.

Hezbollah said Mr Pakzad's photographic activities had "aroused suspicion" and that the two men were treated with "respect".
"Once we were sure that the Frenchman and his companion were not Israelis we had no problems" with them, the group said in a statement.

Syria—food prices

Syrians are concerned that sharp price increases in basic foods like bread will have a major impact on an economy that is already in poor shape.

The economics ministry recently announced that 15 million Syrians—or about three-quarters of the population—have been affected by rising food prices.

Bread has reached 40 lira [80 US cents] for a kilogram sold on the open market, compared with 25 lira at the end of last year. The government also offers subsidised bread, of poorer quality.

The rising prices have been widely covered in the media, and many Syrians see the cost of bread in particular as the latest and most serious example of rising inflation. While the government has downplayed the issue, many people say they fear hungry days lie ahead.

"We have two choices left to us—either to fast, or to wait for the days of hunger,” said one civil servant. “Our incomes barely cover a quarter of our basic needs, and they ask us why we accept bribes."

Syria— cuts in fuel subsidies

The Institute for War & Peace Reporting reports on fuel cuts in Syria:

The Syrian government is introducing rationing for the heating oil it makes available at subsidised prices. The move has been met by some criticism, but comes in the face of the rising cost of oil imports, and smuggling which is siphoning off much of the cut-price kerosene to other countries.

The scheme represents the first stage of a plan by the ministry of economy and trade to phase out subsidies for all petroleum products in the next five years.

Syrians are now lining up to collect the vouchers that will entitle each family to 1,000 litres of subsidised kerosene for the year. The government plans to distribute vouchers to 5.1 million families by April 26.

The government says 1,000 litres of heating oil should be enough to get people through even a cold winter. Oil minister Sufian al-Alaw said in a statement that 77 percent of families use less than that amount in the course of a year.

A litre of kerosene currently costs about 7.20 lira, about 14 US cents. The government has not yet announced what the fuel will cost under the new scheme.

Male heads of household, widows with children, and the oldest sons in orphaned families are allowed to claim vouchers, and there has been a storm of criticism from women’s rights activists who questioned why divorced, unmarried or widowed women living alone should be excluded.

“That is blatantly discriminatory against women, and it’s an irresponsible decision," said one women’s activist.

University students, too, are complaining that they are not entitled to any subsidised fuel even if they live far from the family home.

In the rural Al-Tal area outside Damascus, one resident said people there needed more heating oil than the average.

“The weather is very cold,” he said. “We definitely use more kerosene than people who live in the city of Damascus."

Zahle—killings

Middle East Times reports:

The shooting deaths of two activists from a pro-government Lebanese Christian party on Sunday have underscored the level of political disarray over this small country.

The town of Zahle [in the Bekaa valley] was in mourning on Monday, a day after gunmen opened fire at members of the Phalangist Party during an inauguration of a new party office, killing two and wounding three others.

Police have launched a manhunt for the suspects, whom security sources said were Christian supporters of Zahle MP Elie Skaff, who is allied with the Hezbollah-led opposition.

Lebanese commentators say the attack not only highlights the growing division among the Maronite Christian community, but signals a dangerous level the political crisis has reached, particularly amid credible reports that some of the parties are arming and training militias.

Trouble at the Oasis

Egyptian police used tear gas on 5000 residents of a desert oasis on Saturday protesting a government decision to redraw provincial boundaries, reports the AFP.

Lebanon—School teachers sit-in

Primary school teachers contracted by government schools in Akkar and the North will be holding a sit-in on Friday 18 April in front of the education department in north Lebanon at 9:30 am.

They are demanding a reappraisal of their salaries, transportation expenses, health care, and receiving paychecks in a "timely manner".

Mahalla—Turkish students

The newly founded Student Union of Turkey, Genc-Sen, National Executive meeting held on 12 April 2008 resolved to support the Mahalla workers and all those facing repression at the hands of the Mubarak regime.

Emrak ARIKUSU (NEC)
Dilek DEMIREL (NEC)
Ozan ERSAN (NEC)
Ufuk GOLLU (NEC)
Simin GURDAL (NEC)
Zeliha KABATAS (NEC)
Deniz KANTAR (NEC)
Ozan KAYA (NEC)
Umut KOCAGOZ (NEC)
Gozde MUTLUCAN (NEC)
Dilek SAHAN (NEC)

Further;
The undersigned branch representatives of 39 universities from across the country wish to extent their solidarity in their personal capacity.

Selin ÇALISKAN
Erdal TUNC
Bora KORKMAZ
Onur YILDIRMAZ
Iþýn MORDENIZ
Hasan DURKAL
Kývanç KIZILDEMIR
Cem SIMSEK
Burak GUNAYDIN
Fatma ASLAN
Yücel Caðlar OZAN
Aysun POLAT
Mustafa VARLI
Esin YILDIZ
Özge KAHRAMAN
Ali Asker TATAR
Özlem GITMEZ
Ahmet KOK
Nuray KOC
Arzu AKMAN
Uður ARSLAN
Önder SUCUK
Selami AKDEMIR
Olcay KEYSEN
Mert KURKER
Ali KARACAN
Volkan ALBAYRAK
Ezgi Ceren ALTAS
Gül Sena EERDOGDU
Eylem Ezgi TOTOS
Çaðdaþ KUCUKBATTAL
Burcu SINER
Gökhan KESKIN
Duygu ATAS
Özden OZGUNEL
Cem CINAR
Cem AYNALI
Yaþar MUTLU
Burçin KUZ
Ulaþ TASYEKIN
Deniz DOGRUEL
Cebrail DOGAN
Köksal DOGAN
Ekin KEMENT
Burcugul CUBUK
Kadir Can ALKIR
Emrah DEMIR
Berk OZDEMIR
Erdem CEVIK

Mahalla—Belgium solidarity

The congress of ACOD, public services Union, East-Flanders (Belgium) expresses his solidarity with the striking workers of Mahalla El-Kubra for a decent wage and against rising prices.

We are shocked by the violence used on “Bloody Sunday” 6 April 2008 in Mahalla and against solidarity actions in Cairo and in other places: the killings amongst them a boy of 9 and more than 800 arrests.

We ask the Egyptian government to release the arrested and consider the demands of the workers an their unions.

Patrick Creyf
Gewest.Intersect. Secretaris Oost-Vl.
Ghent, East Flanders (Belgium) April 12, 2008

Mahalla—protest letter

In response to a call for a strike on April 6th by the workers in the Mahallah textile complex, the biggest factory in Egypt, the Mubarak regime decided to occupy El-Mahalla complex with security forces, abduct strike committee leaders Kamal El-Faioumy and Tarek Amin and arrest political activists of every political tendency in Cairo and other cities.

Not able to suppress the protests, the Mubarak security forces used rubber-bullets, tear-gas, and live ammunition against the Mahallah people who decided to protest on the streets of the city and in different villages, leaving at least two dead and hundreds injured and around 800 arrested. We send our solidarity to the Egyptian workers and their supporters.

We call on the Egyptian dictatorship to release the 800 detained yesterday including more than 150 political activists (socialists, liberals, and Islamists), more than 600 protestors from Mahallah (mainly women and children) and Mahallah strike Committee leaders.

Jeremy Corbyn, Member of Parliament, United Kingdom
Bob Crow, general secretary RMT Union (UK rail workers)
Mark Serwotka, general secretary PCS Union (UK civil service workers)
Lindsey German, Stop the War Coalition
Francisco Louçã, Member of Parliament, Portugal
John Rees, Cairo Conference
Clare Solomon, President, SOAS Student Union
China Miéville writer, Britain
Mike Davis writer and academic, USA
Prof. Esther Leslie (Britain)
Michael Löwy (sociologist, France)
Prof. Moshe Machover (Britain)
Prof. Jacques Bidet (France)
Prof. Claudio Katz (Argentina)
Prof. Jonathan Nitzan (Canada)
Prof. Craig Brandist (Britain)
Prof. Colin Sparks (Britain)
Prof. Alex Callinicos (Britain)
Jim Wolfreys, President, King’s College London UCU (university and college lecturers)

To add your name go to: www.stopwar.org.uk

Unifil doing Israel's job

Iran's Press TV reports:

Members of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon on Thursday began fencing with barbed-wire the area between Wazzani and Ghajar villages.

Hezbollah's al-Manar TV described the activities of the Unifil forces in the area as 'questionable'.

"What is the reason behind this unprecedented measure along the so-called Blue Line?" It asked.

The UN established the Blue Line In 2000 after the Zionist regime withdrew from Lebanon, thus leaving the northern part of the village under Lebanese control. The entire village was later occupied by the Israel during the 2006 Lebanon war.

On April 2, however, Unifil commander general Claudio Graziano and officials from the Lebanese and Israeli armies decided that Unifil set up the barrier north of Ghajar "in order to prevent violations of the Blue Line."

The decision came after Israeli bulldozers violated the Lebanese border by entering Wazzani village.

It is still unclear whether UNIFEL is to control the Lebanese part of the village or not.

Earlier, a Lebanese military source said that the tripartite meeting woulld lead to Israeli withdrawl from the area.

Beirut: Public Meeting in Solidarity with Mahalla

Revolutionary left activists and groups in Lebanon are calling for a public meeting in solidarity with the workers of Mahalla. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 16, in Zico House, Spears St., Sanayeh, Beirut at 7 pm.

It will be an occasion to express our solidarity with the working class in Egypt and to call for the release of the hundreds detained including the protesters at Mahalla, the Mahalla strike committee leaders, activists, teachers, and journalists arrested by the US backed Egyptian regime.

The meeting will also discuss actions in solidarity with the proposed May 4 strike in Egypt, linking with the May 1 demo in Beirut, and the strikes around May 7.