On Lebanese and Iraqi people’s uprising against poverty, corruption and sectarian ruling system

The Middle East has plunged into a political turmoil. Political upheaval has swept the whole region. Demonstrations, riots, civil wars, regional conflicts, all-out crises gripped religious corrupt and plundering government, sectarian clashes, the intervention and military expeditions by imperialist aggressing powers are the characteristics of the current political conditions of the Middle East. Under these circumstances, the people in all countries of the region are ready to revolt in order to overthrow the reactionary regimes that have taken hostage millions of the working class masses by plundering resources and exercising dictatorial rules and repression. The latest development in this region was the uprising of masses in Iraq and Lebanon to bring down reactionary sectarian states. It is about a month since the beginning of a new wave of Iraqi people’s uprising against gangs of Islamic Shia robbers. More than 200 Iraqis were killed and about 6,000 were wounded and became disabled. Only on Friday 25 October, the Iraqi army, accompanied by terrorist Shia cliques such as Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq and Hashd al-Shabi, which are commanded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, murdered about 50 Iraqis and injured 2,000. Before that, the Iraqi government had confirmed 149 were killed and 4,027 were wounded during the protests. It is also a week that an uprising has started in Lebanon by the people against religious and ethnic sects, which have plundered the country. Since the balance of power does not allow Islamist Shia monsters such as Hezbollah to create a bloodbath in Lebanon like Iraq, the suppression has been limited and the casualty has been very low.

The problems facing Iraqi and Lebanese people are almost the same. Workers and toilers in these two countries have opposed poverty, unemployment, hunger, rights violation, inequality, big gap between the poor and the rich, corrupt government and the plunder of the national wealth by the ruling sects. The people seek to bring down the entire political power. Lebanon is in a serious economic crisis and financial bankruptcy. The GDP grown rate has dropped to – 2 per cent. Foreign debts of the country has exceeded 86 billion dollars, much more than the GDP, which is 60 billion dollars. Within less than seven years, the foreign debts grew by 30 billion dollars. The last year’s inflation rate reached 6 per cent. The UN Development Programme says one-fourth of Lebanese people live below the poverty line. The unemployment rate among the youth below 35 is 37 per cent. Between 2005 and 2014, 25 per cent of the national income was appropriated by the richest one per cent who now own 58 per cent of the country’s resources. Civic services have been damaged tremendously. Frequent cut in water and electricity and problems with waste disposal are other problems dismayed the people.

The deeply corrupt structure of the Lebanese government is another problem which enticed the people into an uprising. Among 180 countries, Lebanon ranks 138 in terms of financial corruption. The extensive corruption stemming from the political structure has divided political power among religious and ethnic sects and allows them to continue looting resources without any fear. The power structure which appeared at the end of the civil war divided power among Shia Amal and Hezbollah, Sunni al-Mustaqbal group, Druze, and Christians. Besides plundering domestic resources, these gangs are affiliated to various regional and world powers and receive money from them. The Lebanese Hezbollah’s leader clearly admitted that the Iranian regime finances his group completely.

Based on Taif agreement in 1988, the Lebanese president is elected from Maronite Christians. The prime minister and the parliament speakers are the share of Sunnis and Shia, respectively. Furthermore, the seats of parliament are divided among Christians and Muslims. This is the political structure that has led to this deep economic and financial crisis. The government, which is responsible for the increasing debts year after year, decided to borrow 11 billion dollars form the world financial institutions last year. However, these institutions said they would lend money to Lebanon if it adopted economic reforms and an austerity policy. This meant that new taxes on tobacco, fuel, petrol, and electricity would be levied and more pressure on workers and toilers would be exerted. One of the taxes was a monthly six-dollar tax for using WhatsApp messaging application that led to an uprising. This was a just a spark to a powder keg.

Demonstrations started by erecting barricades in streets and blocking roads from 17 October. Clashes erupted between the people and the forces of repression. On 20 October, the demonstration turned into an uprising. One and half million people in Beirut, Tripoli and Tyre. The people attacked banks and blocked roads and streets and ignited fires in streets across the country. Many state and private centres were closed. Pictures of Islamic leaders were burnt in Tripoli and Nabatia. The people, irrespective of gender and age, without sticking to religions and sects, had joined the uprising. No religious sign or sectarian flags were seen. These one and a half million people could not be controlled by force. Prime Minister Hariri, who had do rescind the WhatsApp tax, promised to carry out more reforms. He said the salary of presidents, ministers and present former MPs would reduce by half. Some state institutions, including the Intelligence Ministry, would be disbanded, and an anti-corruption committee would be formed and social security services for the old would be carried out by the end of the year. He said no new tax would be introduced in 2020. An 13.3 million aid to poor families, increasing tax on bank deposits, and some other economic measures were among his promises. However, the people did not believe these promises and called for a revolution. They responded to Hariri by staging a general strike. The people said they no longer care this or that group or even the resignation of the entire cabinet and they want the removal of the political system based on religious and ethnic sects. They said all most go and the political system must transfer to a provisional committee comprising of judges who are independent from political currents. They said the stolen money should be back.

The Lebanese people’s struggle was underway that the second wave of demonstrations started in Iraq, and state buildings and offices of sectarian parties, especially those linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran were attacked.

In Iraq, like Lebanon, the people live in serious living conditions, even worse than Lebanon, while Iraq exports four million barrels of oil per day, and earn an annual income of 80-100 billion dollars. Despite this huge income, the country suffers from huge unemployment, and the rate of unemployment amounts to 40 per cent. In other words, 14.8 million Iraqis out of 38 millions are jobless. Between 40 and 50 per cent of Iraqis, especially in southern areas, live in absolute poverty. According to the International Monetary Fund the majority of Iraqis are deprived of medical services and proper education. A large number of Iraqi people don’t have access to drinking water and electricity.

In a country with such enormous oil revenues – about one trillion dollars since the fall of Saddam Hussain – the people suffer from such horrific misery and poverty. Nevertheless, Iraq’s foreign debt is growing and amounts to about 130bn dollars. What has happened to this money? Some say 450bn dollars of Iraqi oil revenues has gone missing. Other sources say this figure is 300 billion dollars. It is obvious that these funds have not gone mission but have been looted by sectarian groups. For this reason, in a list addressing corruption in 180 countries Iraq stands at the rank of 170.

Obviously, a country with these characteristics should explode. Iraqi people held broad demonstrations in southern areas in protest at corruption, poverty and lacking access to water and electricity. The protests continued for days but were subsided after the government made promises which were never met, and the people’s situation escalated. Therefore, since 2 October, the people engaged in demonstrations in protest at poverty, unemployment, rising prices, inequality, vast corruption in the government and large-scale embezzlement by ruling Shia sects. The people’s anger at the system was manifested in their uprising. The people stormed the offices of ruling religious parties, especially puppets of the Islamic Republic of Iran. During their struggle they showed they want the collapse of the sectarian and ethnic political system which has been imposed due to a collusion between the US imperialism and Iran’s reactionary Islamist establishment. The protests went on for days and millions of Iraqis participated in the protests. In the course of these actions, mercenaries of the ruling groups and puppets of Iran’s regime killed 149 people and injured 4,207.

The Iraqi prime minister who ascend to power based on agreement between ruling sect last year claimed it had never ordered shooting at the people and ordered the formation of a fact-finding committee to discover who was behind the massacre. The committee found out that the military, the police and the militia affiliated to the Islamic Republic of Iran were responsible for the killings. However, the ruling sects did not accept the committee’s findings and the story was over. He also promised to take measures in support of the poor, to combat corruption and control armed groups and Shia perpetrators. However, it was clear that these were empty promises and would get nowhere because these sects are main shareholders of political power.

The reactionaries thought they could harness the uprising by these empty promises but the second wave of the protests started on 24 October. A day before that, the Iraqi Interior Ministry announced it would guarantee the security of demonstrations and no massacre would be allowed. At the same time, the prime minister issued a statement to reiterate his empty promises for reforms. The statement said reforms would be free from the influence of sects and would be based on merits, and that the minister would act independently. He also called on parliament to pass a law to discover how the rich have accumulated their wealth.

Reducing by half the salary of the four highest ranks, including the heads of the three powers, ministers, MPs, holders of special posts, heads of departments and directors-general was promised. The government promised that resources provided through reducing the salaries would be saved in a social security fund.

However, as soon as the people started their peaceful demonstration they were shot by the police. About 65 people were killed and 2,000 were wounded but the protests continued in a number of towns and the martial law has not been able to put an end to the protests.

The demands of the uprising people are clear; the resignation of the whole cabinet, the dissolution of parliament and political parties, the establishment of a non-sectarian political system, and the realisation of the people economic and social demands.

It is obvious that criminal plundering and corrupt groups which rule Iraq and Lebanon do no easily leave off their robbery and plunder and they will not surrender to the masses simply. They will commit any crimes to protect their position. But, on the other hand, the anger of the Iraqi and Lebanese masses is no longer controllable. Despite all difficulties and interruptions, the struggle will continue up to the day that the people will take arms to bring down the reactionaries.

Article from “Kaar” (Organ of the Organisation Fadaian (Aghaliyat)), No. 844; Oct. 2019