BEIRUT (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th August, 2020) The situation in Lebanon remains challenging, and the decline in the number of anti-government rallies can be explained by the coronavirus pandemic and protesters lacking a reform program, Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin told Sputnik in an interview.
"Indeed, the problems have not disappeared, and Lebanon is still at a dangerous edge, and the situation remains negative. The coronavirus has certainly weakened public activity. However, in my opinion, the fact that the protest movement did not offer an agreed program of transformation also played a role," the diplomat said.
Zasypkin added that most demonstrators stopped going to rallies when provocateurs joined the protests and started rioting and clashing with the police. At the same time, the situation might escalate even more if problems will not be resolved, according to the ambassador.
The ambassador also said that the government is trying to resolve the most pressing issues, but is being criticized from all sides because of the complexity of the crisis.
"Even under the threat of collapse of the country, politicians are not able to find a common ground. There are attempts to present the crisis in the country solely as a result of the activities of the current government. This approach shows the nature of Lebanon's problems, which are primarily due to the existence of the confessional system," the diplomat said.
The large-scale anti-government movement in Lebanon began in October 2019 after the government hiked taxes in a desperate attempt to salvage the sliding economy. The tax proposals have since been repealed but the protests against endemic corruption and mismanagement have continued with varying intensity.
