.png)
By: Paige LaRock
Following one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in all of history on August 4th, 2020, volunteers stepped in to assist with relief within Lebanon’s port city of Beirut. The deadly explosion, that killed over 200 individuals, injured over 5,000 more, and left 300,000 people homeless, only furthered corruption and the lack of effective function within the Lebanese government. Without support from those who are in leadership positions, volunteers have been forced to take action in order to reach any sort of recovery for the hundreds of thousands of individuals impacted by this catastrophe. Protests are gaining traction and people are beyond frustrated.
Unfortunately, recovering from the deadly explosion within Beirut is not the only issue facing the citizens of Lebanon currently. After protests began on October 17th, 2019 calling for a change in government to remove corrupt and ineffective leaders, a new parliamentary cabinet was formed in January of 2020 under Prime Minister Hassan Diab. The election of the new government ended a three month period of economic deadlock that furthered the threat of an economic collapse. While many hoped the new government would promote meaningful change and solve their economic crisis, unfortunately, the opposite held true. The cabinet was filled with members directly part of or aligned with Hezbollah, resulting in the continuation of protests as protestors claimed the new cabinet did not meet their desires.
Combined with political instability and the continuation of protests within Lebanon, with such a large number of the cabinet members having ties to Hezbollah, the international community has been hesitant to step in and provide assistance for fear that the money will end up in the corrupt hands of Hezbollah and not used to assist those who need it the most. In order to begin to recover from their looming economic downfall, Lebanon must find financial support. However, their previous hopes of working with the International Monetary Fund for a $10 billion loan and various other countries, including the United States, were quickly halted because of the presence of Hezbollah and lack of change within the government. Various countries such as the US, Germany, and other Gulf Arab allies have declared Hezbollah a terrorist organization and therefore have no interest in providing aid without a clear way to ensure it does not end up in the wrong hands.
However, Hezbollah is not all to blame. The sectarian identities within the Lebanese government lend themselves to an inherently problematic structure. The power-sharing agreement set in place within the government means that many high ranking positions are monopolized by the most wealthy. The elites were able to build support systems filled with sectarian partisans that drastically impacted the ability for policy changes. The overwhelming power of these sectarian elites blocked off any other alternatives or reforms within the government; thus, the structure only reinforced the perpetuation of corruption.
With tensions increasing between the countries such as the United States and Lebanon over Hezbollah action within the Lebanese government, Prime Minister Hassan Diab mentioned with direction towards the US in a July 2nd meeting that “they are preventing transfers to the country and blocking credit lines to import fuel, diesel, medicine, and flour to cut the electricity, starve the Lebanese and make them die without medicine.” However, the US State Department spokeswoman, Morgan Ortagus, responded saying “trying to blame Lebanon’s economic crisis on U.S. sanctions is misguided and false.” With tensions only further increasing, Lebanon developed hopes to work with China to find some sort of relief to its financial instability.
With banks continuing to crumble as the Lebanese pound loses more and more value and well over one-third of their citizens are living in poverty, a refugee crisis could be looming ahead. Combining the explosion, financial mismanagement caused by corruption, and the economic toll of COVID-19, the Lebanese economy reached its tipping point.
Following the recent explosion, Lebanon’s cabinet resigned, meaning there is a large amount of uncertainty for the future. On August 31st, 2020, Mustafa Adib, the former Lebanese ambassador to Germany, was appointed prime minister. Depending on who makes up the seats of their new government, either new members could create change and begin to find financial stability, or the country of Lebanon could continue to fall downwards into cyclical economic failure. As the potential for stability increases, the international community, specifically France and the United Nations are beginning to step in to provide assistance. French President Emmanuel Macron stated that the Lebanese government needed to enact extensive reform within the next three months or they would face sanctions.
Fawaz Gerges, a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics remarks, “Lebanon is no longer on the brink of collapse. The economy of Lebanon has collapsed.” However, following the deadly explosion within Beirut, countries have begun to step in and provide humanitarian relief. If this funding is found to be used effectively and the potential for yet another new government results in meaningful change, it could signal for a brighter future for the international community’s financial support of Lebanon and propose a solution to Lebanon’s current crisis.
Discussion Questions:
Can the international community ensure the new government of Lebanon proves to be effective?
Should the international community provide more aid to Lebanon?
What can Lebanon do to aid its poverty crisis in the short term?
How could Lebanon falling into a refugee crisis impact the surrounding countries?
How would Lebanon’s hopes to work with China impact its relations with other countries?
Would sanctions on the Lebanese leaders be more helpful or harmful for Lebanon in the long-term?
Sources Used:
Further Reading:
コメント