Privatization upheld all over the world, says minister

Yesterday the Higher Privatization Committee met for the first time with PM Seniora as chair. After the meeting, minister Rizk stated that Lebanon had legally ratified the principle of privatization since the Hoss government, and that the principle of privatization was upheld in all states of the world. I am not aware of anybody who felt the necessity of replying. Privatization is said to be good in Lebanon because it would shield establishments from government corruption. But since the government is formed by the wealthiest, who are likely to get their share of the privatized establishments, that means that privatization would not actually change the allegiance of people in charge. It would just replace state monopoly by private monopoly. It is monopoly that is the problem, not state ownership.

Patriotic traitors

Yesterday the self-dubbed “patriotic and Islamic parties”, gathered at Amal’s center in Khiam, called on people to avoid issues that could rift internal unity, and considered that amnesty for collaborators with Israel, which equates collaboration with resistance, is dangerous to national unity.

Meanwhile, the Guardians of the Cedars issued a statement against the “fundamentalist grouping” accusing the members of the South Lebanon Army militia of treason, claiming that an alliance with Israel was necessary for Lebanese interests, to protect Lebanon from the Palestinian Syrian Iranian invasion.

It is time for a class-based analysis of the issue of patriotism and treason.

Questions to the Council of the South

Former ambassador Khalil Khalil replied to the contents of President of the Council of the South Qabalan Qabalan’s press conference. He said that yes, the council offered many benefits and services, but to whom? Those profiting from the council’s projects and funds have no interest at all in abolishing it. Not only has the council executed projects virtually, is what was done really in the interest of southerners? Was clientelism the basis of work? How does he explain executing a project with multiples of its real cost? How does he explain the size of wages and compensations that are paid to those who deserve it and those who don’t? How does he explain the fact that schools that were launched have yet to receive teachers and pupils?

Hizbullah's Qasem: Will, not weapons, is the source of power

Hizbullah Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Naim Qassem denied yesterday allegations that the resistance was "a weapon," stressing that "it is a method to preserve the country's independence and a decision to defend it with weapons." He reiterated that Lebanon's reconstruction can only succeed if foreign tutelage and interference in the country's domestic affairs is stopped.

Qassem insisted that the resistance is no bargaining chip for anyone and that it cannot be debated over a negotiating table "because the resistance is the life of a nation."

Qassem refused to discuss the merits of the UN Security Council, because he said "it has already proven its bias to the U.S. and Israel."

"We will depend on our own power no matter how weak it is, because we believe that the will is the source of power," he said, arguing that "weapons are of no value unless coupled with faith and determination."

Qassem indicated that Lebanon has reached the point of no return, calling on the Lebanese not to fear threats "because it is in the interest of all to keep Lebanon stable."

Syrian workers to pay tariff

Although the Labor Ministry has created a plan to establish administrative procedures regulating Syrian workers entering Lebanon, political leaders must approve the changes before any new policies are implemented. Rateeb Saliba, the ministry's director-general, told The Daily Star: "A joint Lebanese-Syrian committee is already meeting to manage the issue of workers moving between both countries. The committee already presented to the High Syrian-Lebanese Council a report to establish five bureaus on the borders to grant working permits to Syrian workers similar to other foreigners working in Lebanon."

Nevertheless, it is still unclear when the bureaus will be established at the border crossings. Such an action is not strictly administrative; it also requires political backing.

In 1994, the ministry tried to regulate the Syrian labor pool by presenting a draft law to Parliament that would have established a special section at the ministry to deal with Syrian workers. However, the draft law was shelved, as none of the parliamentarians elected since 1994 were willing to sponsor it.

Now that Syria has withdrawn from Lebanon and the two countries are moving toward normalizing relations, the issue is once again on the table. Remittances from Syrian workers employed in Lebanon are a major asset to the Syrian economy, and opportunities across the border have helped keep a lid on Syrian unemployment. While Syria maintained a powerful military (and political) presence in Lebanon, few Lebanese leaders openly questioned the arrangement.

According to Lebanese law, all foreigners are required to obtain a permit and pay a tariff in order to work in Lebanon. In practice, however, these regulations are seldom, if ever, applied to Syrian laborers.

If a Syrian worker is particularly unlucky, he or she may be asked to pay a tariff amounting to one quarter of the fee required of other nationals, such as Sri Lankans.

For example, Fayez, a 25-year-old Syrian national whose two brothers also work in Lebanon, reported that they have never been asked to pay a tariff by Lebanese authorities.

Speaking from his workplace, Fayez explained: "When I leave the Syrian borders I pay LL6,000 to my government, but I pay nothing when I cross the Lebanese borders."

Fayez showed The Daily Star a small paper he receives from the Surete Generale every time he crosses the Lebanese border. It indicates his full name, along with the date and place of his birth. "No one asks me anything when I come to Lebanon, whether I am a worker or a tourist," he said.

Some Lebanese workers, who blame their joblessness on the availability of cheap Syrian labor, hope that the withdrawal of the Syrian Army from Lebanon last April will facilitate the regulation of their Syrian competition.

Saeed Khoury, 44, claims he has been unable to find employment as a construction worker over the last five years because of the presence of Syrian workers. "The Lebanese government should force them to pay tariffs when they enter our borders," he said.

Several non-governmental organizations have estimated that there are approximately one million Syrian workers currently in Lebanon, a figure that Saliba considers "exaggerated."

While tariffs would provide revenue, they will not necessarily reduce Syrian labor supply as Lebanese like Khoury hope.

According to Fayez, a Syrian national who did not wish to give his family name, working in Lebanon would still be attractive even with a tariff. "I earn $12 per day. I will not find a similar income in Syria," he said.

The challenge of unemployment

"Regional brain drain has been a worry for a while," said Tariq Haq, Employment Development and Strategies Officer at the Regional Office for Arab States of the International Labor Organization (ILO) in Beirut. "The competition is fierce, but there's no opportunity." In 2003, the United Nations Development Program found that there were 450,000 graduates of Arab universities living in Europe and the United States. Young people coming out of university face some of the fiercest competition, according to Haq, who said: "Wage expectations for university graduates are not met."

About three million people join the Middle Eastern labor market each year, while about six million enter the education and training systems. The ILO predicts that the Arab states must double their current volume of employment by 2020 in order to provide jobs for these new workers. With increased population growth, employment problems have worsened in recent years. According to Haq: "There are more people, pressures are more acute. There are not enough decent, stable jobs that will help them etch out a career path."

The Arab states have the highest (and still growing) unemployment rates in the world, and new jobs will have to be created even to maintain current unemployment levels. Youth unemployment rates in the Middle East, which averaged 25.6 percent in 2003, are also always higher than adult unemployment rates. People under fifteen make up 37.5 percent of the population in the Middle East. Activity rates of young people have declined from 70.1 percent in 1950 to 59.2 percent in 2000. According to the ILO, unemployment at a young age can lead to such problems as increased difficulty finding a job throughout life and disengagement from society. "Governments have realized that these young, unemployed populations are a ticking time bomb," said Haq.

What has led to this lack of jobs in the Middle East? One problem is the lack of unemployment data. "We have global databases and when you come to this region there are blanks. There's a perception that if governments officially say there's a thirty percent unemployment rate it will fuel unrest," said Haq. "This information should be publicly released for policy development."

What is making employment so difficult for young people? "Some labor force legislation is not conducive to labor mobility. People don't leave their jobs. It's difficult for companies to hire and fire at will," said Haq. The "Insider-Outsider" effect is another major issue. "People in the labor force have built up skills and contacts and experience," according to Haq. "Young people who are new to the workforce have few resources and can't break in."

Haq also said that people have also depended too much on jobs in the public sector. "At the end of the day the public sector can't absorb all the labor, as it has in the past. The private sector needs to take over."

The ILO has developed packages to help people start businesses, with information on issues such as how to get a loan. "There aren't enough jobs out there. We need to create new ones," said Haq. "Entrepreneurship could be integrated into education ... Hopefully some people will start to see this as an attractive option, and success will create momentum for it."

Building bridges

George Haddad and his wife were crossing the highway Monday on foot when a car hit them both. Haddad died instantly. His wife, who sustained serious injuries, remains in critical condition.

There was no pedestrian bridge over the highway that the couple could have used.

The same stretch of highway claimed the life of another pedestrian less than two months ago. On June 25, 18-year-old Elias Nabhan was crossing the highway on his way home from school. The youth was hit by a car and died instantly.

Four years ago, according to the Youth Association for Social Awareness (YASA), Public Works and Transport Minister Najib Mikati pledged that 100 pedestrian bridges would be built throughout the country. One was planned for the Louaizeh highway.

Four years later, nothing had been done.

On July 14, 20 days after Nabhan's death, the victim's family and YASA activists organized a sit-in in front of the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR). In response to the protest, the CDR vice president, Dr. Alain Qabbani, promised construction on the Louaizeh pedestrian bridge would be initiated within two weeks.

When 75-year-old Haddad perished on the same spot as Nabhan three weeks later, no progress had been made.

This second death triggered Lahoud's intervention.

YASA chairperson, Ziad Akl, expressed his wish that the government would also take action in constructing another six to 10 bridges on the Hazmieh-Aley-Saoufar segment of the Damascus Road highway.

"The funding of the other bridges is already there - it has been provided by the Kuwaiti government," Akl said. "So why not construct all of the pedestrian bridges at the same time, just as requested by decree number 9415 issued on January 20, 2003?"

According to recent studies conducted by the Scientific Research Foundation (SRF), 80 percent of Lebanese pedestrians actually use the footbridges once they are constructed.

"Most government officials tend to think that civilians' use of pedestrian bridges is minimal," Akl said, "yet this study has proved them wrong."

Akl says over 70 people are killed each year in Lebanon due to the lack of pedestrian bridges. Overall, pedestrian accidents cause 220 deaths per year in Lebanon; 1,100 people suffer permanent disabilities and 3,500 sustain minor injuries.

"No mother should have to cry for a son she lost on the road," said Elias Nabhan's mother. She added: "Let's just hope that the construction of this bridge will be completed, because you know, in this country, whenever something is started you can never be sure it will be finished anytime soon."

The value of thefts

As for the issue of the cellular lines that were granted for free to Lebanese and Syrian officials, Karami said: "The matter does not deserve such a fuss, as the millions of dollars spent by the government to cover those lines cannot be compared with the billions that the officials have stolen from the treasury."

Responding to insects

Greenpeace strongly opposes the use of any pesticides on city streets. President Wael Hmaidan links the amount of insects to the serious waste problem in Beirut. "The real issue is that we are not properly managing our waste problem, which allows insects to breed in large numbers," he said.

Greenpeace recently embarked on a "Zero-Waste" management campaign that calls for separating out organic waste and ensuring that it is picked up quickly in order to help prevent insect breeding. Greenpeace is working with the Environment Ministry to have these initiatives implemented as soon as possible.

Hmaidan added that another reason for population increase among airborne insects is the lack of insect predators, such as birds. There would be more birds if there were more green areas for them in the city.

"You have to look at the causes of an abnormal insect population if you want to eliminate the threats that they might cause." Hmaidan added that these problems are more than a mere nuisance, since climate change is allowing mosquitoes and flies to carry diseases across greater distances.

The plight of traffic lights

"The traffic lights currently installed are not properly checked, followed-up and evaluated," Abi Nader said, "not to mention that most of them feature an extremely improper alternation of lights."
Abi Nader explained that, for instance, a red light should be a one-minute pause. "On some intersections, a red light is sometimes three minutes long, which obviously pushes people to violate it," he said.