News

On the occasion of the graduation yesterday of 227 students from the First and Second Branches of the School of Information at Lebanese University (LU), As Safir daily newspaper interviewed a number of women graduates who voiced concern over the uncertainty of the post-graduation worklife. One student, Nour, expressed her fear of not finding jobs amidst the stressful economic conditions experienced by most of the local establishments in the media. Malak, on the other hand, had her different views of the sector. “It is a broad and competent industry with great capacity for accommodation,” she said, but the problem, she added, is in the multiple partisan and confessional considerations underpinning the country and the employment prospects and requisites. To work for any media channel, Malak lamented, one has to observe its line of thought, and therefore, cannot be fully independent or objective in what she or he delivers. She also identified a discriminatory attitude towards women graduate who choose to wear the hijab (veil), as they are instantly stigmatized and considered unfit for employment. Another student, Pamela Abu Hanna, was critical of the poor record of the Press and Editors Syndicates in protecting the journalists and the industry. 

(As Safir, October 11, 2016)

 

Farmers and people of Arsal in the Beqaa staged a sit-in yesterday in Riad el Solh square, Beirut in protest for the delayed compensation for the lost fruits seasons (cherries, apples and apricots) similar to the apple and wheat farmers. In his appeal to the Speaker of the House and to the Prime Minister, Arsal mayor, Bassil Hojeiri, disclosed the purpose of the rally which centers around two main demands: first, payment of compensations for three years of failed harvest seasons in the Arsal upper mountains that were lost due to the hazardous security situation in the area, and secondly, the securing of all the roads leading to the orchards which represent the basic livelihoods of the inhabitants. For her part, the deputy mayor of the town, Rima Krunbi, blamed the PM and the Agriculture Minister for neglecting this issue. Furthermore, the delegation of farmers and residents of Arsal also met yesterday with Minister Akram Shehayeb to raise their grievances and to inform him of the dire general conditions prevailing in their area. Shehayeb expressed support to the farmers’ just demands and promised to raise the matter in Cabinet. (Al Mustaqbal, Al Diyar, October 11, 2016)

 

Following the launch by the Ministry of Health last December of the results of the program for quality standardization of restaurants and food institutions in Beirut, Minister Wael Abu Fa3ur announced yesterday the formal results for Kesrwan in the presence of the President of the Syndicate for Owners of Restaurants, Toni Rami. According to these results, some 83 establishments were qualified, 63 of which received a gold certificate and 20 establishments the silver one, noting that the total number of food institutions that partook in the program was not mentioned.  While considering that the food health safety campaign launched earlier by his ministry has become a cultural trend, Abu Fa3ur thanked the above Syndicate for its responsiveness, maintaining the ministry’s determination to expand the scheme outside the confines of the capital. He said the silver or gold certificates should be posted at the entrance of qualified establishments to acknowledge the meticulous process that these establishments have been through with the Ministry of Public Health and to distinguish them from establishments which do not hold such certificates. Abu Fa3ur finally pledged that his ministry will follow up the classification process, and the next step will be Aley and the Metn. For full names of certified restaurants, please visit the following link: http://bit.ly/2dM5lZu. (Al Mustaqbal, An Nahar, As Safir, October 11, 2016)

 

In collaboration with Kafa Enough Violence and Exploitation organization, the National Trade Union of Workers and Employees in Lebanon held yesterday a joint workshop with the Trade Union of Migrant Women Domestic Workers (MWDW) for legal awareness on the rights of MWDWs in Lebanon. Participants included, besides Lebanese workers, some 35 workers from different nationalities, mainly, Madagascar, Senegal, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Togo. Kafa lawyer, Mohana Isaac, outlined the problems associated with so-called sponsorship or ‘kafala’ system, notably, the obstruction of the basic rights of MWDWs, including their right to change their present employer or adjust their legal status through the courts. The workshop also raised the prospects of legal appeal to civil courts by the MWDWs to claim their economic rights or receive appropriate compensation in case of physical abuse while observing the deadlines set for trials, the jurisdiction of courts and the tools or means of evidence. The workers, also focused mainly on the difficulties they face in adjusting their legal status in case of violation of their residency requisites or accusing them of a felony. (Al Mustaqbal, October 11, 2016)

 

Sayidat al Jabal League in Aley granted some 33 scholarships for students of the School of Business-Lebanese University (LU), Fourth Branch, during a gathering held last Friday at the  association's Aley premises, Mount Lebanon. Present were the President of the LU branch, Dr. Ramsey Saab, president of the League of Friends and Alumni of LU, Ikhlas Abul Hassan Moghrabi, as well as personnel, faculty members and students. Moghrabi thanked Sayidat al Jabal for its support to motivated students in order to help them reach higher objectives in education and later on at senior positions. Moghrabi maintained that the grants are the outcome of joint efforts by the League, LU and Friends of LU. Towards the end, scholarships were distributed among the students who were selected based on precise information about their conditions. (Al Mustaqbal, October 10, 2016)

 

Similar to the fate of other agricultural sectors (apple growers, wheat and dairy farmers..) owners of poultry farms in the regions of Hasbayya, Marjayoon, Bent Jbeil and Tyre staged a sit-in last Saturday blocking the road of Khardali linking Marjayoon with Nabatiyeh to protest losses incurred on them over a year now as a result of the government's irresponsible stand. Another reason for the unfolding dissent, is the fierce competition from the frozen chicken imported from Brazil or that smuggled from neighboring Syria, which have led to the reduction of the prices below the cost of production. To recall, the minister of agriculture issued last month a directive enforcing a prior license from the minister himself to import all frozen poultry around the year. During the rally, poultry farmers who hoisted banners demanding official support and protection to the sector, blocked the road with live chicken, sustaining that domestic production is ample and meets the needs of the local market. They pointed out to the presence of over 50 farms in the districts of Hasbayya and Marjayoon which sustain the livelihoods of dozens of households, lamenting the deadlock in disposing of their produce. On the subject, the local MP, Dr. Kassim Hashim, partaking in the sit-in, appealed for immediate action to salvage the industry similar to the apple cultivation crisis. Likewise, the President of the Syndicate of Poultry Producers, Imad Yassin, in his address to demonstrators, wondered if it were “logical that the price of one kg of chicken from the farm is the same as the price of one kg of bread?” He criticized the rationale of the government which approves loans to assist farmers and at the same time endorses the import of foreign products to compete with local production. (Al Diyar, Al Mustaqbal, An Nahar, October 8 and 10, 2016)

 

As part of its efforts to develop creative digital visioning, the leading mobile operator in Lebanon, Touch, led by Zein Group, partook in the Innovation Weekend held at the beginning of October as part of the business accelerator activities 2016 sponsored by the Bank of Lebanon. The 3-day event, which was organized by SETT & Startup Megaphone, in collaboration with Seeqnce, included a series of separate workshops, with one main focus, to introduce a thinking design concept as an efficient model for finding the best solutions. In a statement, Touch said the event represented a perfect opportunity for the company to transform its experience in the communications sector into an educational research and learning tool to benefit the young minds. On the subject, Touch Chief Commercial Officer, Nadim Khater, commended the company’s involvement in similar educative competitions which employ effective designs that stimulate thinking out of the box. It promotes the skills of young people, he said, to produce the best solutions, allowing their exposure to real life instances through engaging in real business challenges. For her part, founder of SETT Partners, Tamara Zakharia, said that the purpose of the above workshop is mainly to build bridges between students and establishments, particularly fresh graduates, equipping them with the required skills that facilitate their lookout for innovation-based digital jobs offered by the labor market. (Al Mustaqbal, Al Diyar, October 8, 2016)

 

In a special  feature issued on Saturday, The Daily Star newspaper portrayed one of the most popular desserts on Ashura, known as Kaak al Abbas (al Abbas cookies), which is distributed among families and neighbors and in the husseiniya where the religious occasion is commemorated. The sweet, the newspaper wrote, has earned additional fame last week after House Speaker, Nabih Berri, offered a basket-full of the cookies to his MPs. Simply a dough mixed with sugar and anis seeds and cut into circles, Kaak al Abbas is distributed out of the love of Imam Hussein and out of their respect for the souls of their deceased. The sweet is named after Al Abbas Bin Ali Bin Abi Taleb, best known as Abi al Fadel, who was his comrade and companion. The newspaper spoke to one person that is involved in the preparation of the special sweets. Ahmad Far7hat, from the town of Numeiriyeh, in Nabatiyeh area, who noted that “we make these cookies at home all year round, yet the demand greatly increases during the days of Ashura, driving many bakeries to compete for preparation.” (The Daily Star, October 8, 2016)

 

The minister of tourism, Michel Pharaon, inaugurated yesterday the wine festival Vinifest 2016 at the Beirut Hippodrome which comes as part of ‘a field for all colors’ activity, in the presence of a number of political, social and economic figures. The festival (extending from October 5 to October 8) includes musical concerts and shows performed under the theme of Lebanese wine and European gastronomy tasting. On the occasion, Pharaon stressed the significance of the wine industry as an ambitious and flourishing sector generating jobs for hundreds of young people. He underlined the responsibility of wine producers who, while striving to put Lebanon on the world’s top producing countries. For her part, the event’s organizer, Nada Farah, pointed out that the festival presents an opportunity for Lebanon to make a statement of friendship, joy and hospitality. “This festivity truly celebrates the love of life and living that the Lebanese people boast and always seek to demonstrate, particularly with the level of progress achieved on the local scene and abroad,” Farah said. (Al Diyar, October 7, 2016)