Pumpkin pots, dancing and candle lighting .. Innovative methods of protest in Lebanon

Waseem Al-Zuhairi-Beirut

Protesters in Lebanon did not leave an available method, but they used to express their resentment for the situation in their country, and the methods of protest ranged from banditry to the "pots" (pots) and lighting candles and others.

From the first moment they took to the streets, participants unleashed various possible ideas to speak in various ways and to pressure decision-makers to meet their demands.

Protesters marched in the streets of cities and towns, and protested in the squares carrying Lebanese flags exclusively, in a scene in which they showed their distance from political parties after they blamed them undoubtedly responsible for the deterioration of economic and living conditions.

The Martyrs' Square and Riad El Solh Square in Beirut were the main venue for the sit-in, while Tripoli's Al-Nour Square was the center for demonstrators in the northern governorate and Elia Square as a meeting point for protesters in Sidon in the south of the country, as well as other squares and streets in various areas.

In addition to the chants of denouncing the ruling political class, the participants resorted to organizing political, legal, economic and social seminars and debates.

Cut roads and knock pots
Road blocking was the most painful way. Protesters closed key outlets linking different areas, using various types of obstacles such as dust, garbage containers, iron barriers and lighting tires, to pitching tents, parking and street seating.

Days after the protests began, thousands of Lebanese lined the streets to form a long human chain from north to south, underlining their unity away from political, partisan and sectarian alignment.

In order to adhere to their demands, the protesters relied on the pumpkin method on pots and various household utensils in some areas and sit-ins, while candlelight carried some messages of protest.

Private Messages
Dr. Nazar Abu Judeh, a professor of social psychology at the Lebanese University, said that every movement by the protesters is gaining a special message, in pursuit of a specific goal.

Abu Joudeh told Al Jazeera Net that the closure of roads is a way to put pressure on the authority to respond to the demands, and that the sit-in in the squares and streets and near public facilities express the tendency to overthrow the regime.

Abu Joudeh said that the noise caused by the pumping of "cookers" is an attempt to draw attention, in addition to expressing rejection and resentment of reality, adding that participants in the human chain wanted to show their solidarity and unity in facing the regime.

Another manifestation was the drawing of the Lebanese flag on the face of a number of protesters and the launch of car horns while walking in processions, while some of them found in the entertainment a better way to communicate their voice, especially through singing and traditional dabke dance rings.

Abu Joudeh said that the clasping of the hands in the dance rings is an attempt to raise morale and join the ranks, and it is - besides the delivery of protest messages - an attraction to the venues by demonstrating places of joy as well.

Other moves
After the security forces opened the roads, the protesters moved to other movements, which were represented by a sit-in in front of official departments and departments and public institutions, and deliberately to close some of them and prevent employees from entering, to stress the need to hold corrupt and disclose the waste of public money deals; .

The student movement has been a prominent element in the past few days. School and university students held vigils outside the headquarters of the Ministry of Education in Beirut and marched through the streets of a number of towns and cities to demand what they called a "better future."

Some graffiti painters saw in the walls of the sit-ins a suitable place for their drawings, which showed the demands of the rising street against the political class.

As part of the accompanying activities, some mothers organized painting sessions for their children to familiarize them with the nature and purpose of the protests. Dozens of protesters each morning sorted the waste left by the participants to keep the squares clean.