The Union Coordination
Committee staged on Tuesday a sit-in outside the Grand Serail, after
it had declared its open-ended strike, until the referral of the ranks and
salaries series to the Parliament for ratification.
Head of the UCC Hanna Gharib held the government, the political forces and
employers responsible for the open ended strike.
Speaking during the UCC sit-in outside the Grand
Serail, Gharib said, “the cabinet’s non-responsible way of dealing with issues is now apparent more than ever", stressing that “there is no way to keep the situation as it is,
or to keep silent over the discrimination policy”.
He declared that they will stage
protests on Wednesday near the Finance Ministry and across the country.
For his part, head of the private
school teachers association Nehme Mahfoud suggested that the meeting of
the ministerial committee be turned into an urgent cabinet session to refer the ranks and
salaries series to Parliament.
Mahfoud
addressed PM Najib Mikati saying: “You should know that the people
will not leave the street, and will no longer accept any further
promises
and meetings”.
On the other hand, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati met with a delegation
from the UCC at the Grand serial to discuss the ranks and salaries series.
Following the meeting, Gharib said
that Mikati did not make any proposal, but instead requested that all
movements come to a stop, stressing that the meeting’s results were negative. He declared that
the strike and the sit-ins scheduled for tomorrow will take place as a reaction
to the negative position of the PM towards thousands of protesters.
In this context, the teachers of the public and private schools in Keserwan committed to the strike, called upon by the Union Coordination Committee after the cabinet postponed the session dedicated to approve and refer the ranks and salaries series to the Parliament. However, a number of employees of public institutions came to office but abstained from performing their duties.
In Jezzine, the public and technical schools committed to the strike, while the private schools did not comply, and a number of public institutions closed.
In Donniyeh, the public and private schools responded to the call for strike and closed their doors, as well as the public institutions, technical institutes and municipalities. However, a number of private schools opened only for students who have official exams.
On the other hand, in Baabda, public institutions committed to the general strike, while in the Palace of Justice, normal work was ongoing. The public schools and a number of private schools committed to the UCC’s call.
Similarly in Iqlim al-Kharroub, public institutions, schools and municipalities closed their doors in all the towns and villages of the region.
For the full report, watch the Video above