Here’s a chronology of one of two protests in Mar Mikhael this weekend to demand a park instead of a road. There was a decent media turnout and after the cameras left, the protestors decided to take over the street, despite police warnings. Surprisingly the soldiers were quite cooperative unlike previous protests.
(See protest update at the end of this post)
This is how it evolved:
At first the officers warned protestors not to get too close to the road, repeatedly requesting they remain on the sidewalk:
But that didn’t last long. A group marched out, threw down a grass mat and sat down:
More joined:
And then even more joined:
And soon they were on the move:
After a march down Armenia street, the protestors blocked the road again:
But on a cue from the organizers, they peacefully packed up after around an hour of road blocking:
UPDATE: A few months after this protest, the municipality was forced to do an environmental impact study, which they had previously refused to do, saying there was “no need” when I interviewed them for The Daily Star.
3 comments
Is it me or have Lebanese women lost their good looks? Look at the women protesting in 2005 vs. those in these pictures… sad loss
To anon: It is not the external looks of these women that count, but rather the integrity and dedication of their work that marks their true beauty.
to anon: how empty-minded must you be that this is the only thing that concerns your shallow mind.. disgraceful and abysmal