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PROTEST

Protesters decry 2022 draft budget as Parliament session is postponed

Dozens of demonstrators gathered in downtown Beirut to protest against the 2022 draft budget ahead of a later postponed parliamentary session meant to discuss it, Sept. 14, 2022. (L'Orient Today/Mohammad Yassine)

BEIRUT —  Dozens of demonstrators gathered Wednesday morning in downtown Beirut to protest against the 2022 draft budget, which had been slated for discussion by Parliament before the day's session was postponed until Thursday. 

"My husband earns LL4 million [about $112 at the current parallel market exchange rate]," protester Marcelle Tabcheh, whose husband is a soldier, told L'Orient-Le Jour. "If the budget is passed, his salary will drop to LL2 million [$55]" due to proposed changes to the country's lira-to-dollar exchange rate.

"There is still no medicine, no health care, no electricity ... How can we continue in such a corrupt state?" Tabcheh said. "This is not the way to thank the soldiers who fought for the survival of Lebanon. We are the relatives of living martyrs, those of the army. They should help us, not steal our rights."

Several calls to demonstrate against the 2022 budget project circulated across social media on Tuesday. The Internal Security Forces had issued a statement informing citizens that the streets in the vicinity of the Parliament would be cut off from 7:00 am and throughout the sessions, which were scheduled to begin at 11:00 am. The statement also asked citizens to respect the instructions and guidelines in order to "facilitate traffic and avoid traffic jams." 

However, as the session was set to begin Wednesday, Parliament’s Secretary-General Adnan Daher announced that it had been postponed until Thursday.

According to the constitution, the state budget must be finalized before the end of the preceding year. The Ministry of Finance must prepare a draft budget by August and then send it to the cabinet to be approved by October. Finally, that draft goes to Parliament for voting before the end of that year. The 2022 budget is far behind schedule as the 2023 budget deadline approaches.

BEIRUT —  Dozens of demonstrators gathered Wednesday morning in downtown Beirut to protest against the 2022 draft budget, which had been slated for discussion by Parliament before the day's session was postponed until Thursday. "My husband earns LL4 million [about $112 at the current parallel market exchange rate]," protester Marcelle Tabcheh, whose husband is a soldier, told...