Retired Lebanese soldiers blocked access to the central bank’s headquarters in Beirut on Monday morning, hoping to pressure the cabinet as it considers austerity measures that could include reducing military pensions and advantages.
Demonstrators gathered on Sunday evening to block the Banque du Liban's entrances, preventing employees from entering the building on Monday morning.
About a hundred people took part in the sit-in, which also blocked one of the city’s main roads in the busy neighbourhood of Hamra.
"I served the army for 30 years and now they want to throw me out in the street," Fouad Akoum told The National.
“They are taking money from the poor, from army veterans who paid the price of blood. What did they pay? They just steal”, the 73-year-old continued, in reference to Lebanese politicians who are generally held in low esteem by the public.
Retired soldiers also obstructed the entrance to the central bank’s building in Lebanon’s second biggest city Tripoli and protested in several other locations.
The bank's union leader Abbas Awada told The National that little work was achieved on Monday at the Beirut headquarters.
An official told Reuters that the bank was operating as normal.
Several retired soldiers said that they intend to remain at the bank’s headquarters until the cabinet backs down.
“We don’t mind sleeping on the ground. We’re soldiers. We’re used to it,” said Zouheir Daw, a retired officer candidate.
However, the state-run National news agency reported that the sit-in had been suspended upon request of Defence Minister Elias Bou Saab who said he would he would ask the cabinet to remove articles pertaining to the military from the 2019 draft budget.
The cabinet is considering measures that would reduce salaries in the entire public sector. Discussions, which lasted two weeks, are entering their last phase, a government spokesperson said. Parliament will then vote on the budget.
Thus far, the cabinet has not addressed potential salary reductions.
But several options are on the table, according to local media that have obtained leaked copies of the budget. One proposal would reduce military pensions by six per cent.
The government is desperate to lower its deficit from 11.2 per cent last year to under nine per cent. The public debt is the fourth highest in the world, equivalent to 150 per cent of GDP.
Civil servants’ salaries, pensions and benefits represent the state's biggest expense, followed by the cost of servicing debt.
Every month during a soldier's years of service, the government withholds six per cent of his pay to finance his pension. But this contribution is insufficient to fund the scheme, meaning the state has to contribute public funds, said retired general Georges Nader.
However, one of the reasons the state is struggling to pay the military's pensions is because it never set up a special military retirement fund that was supposed to be created in 1945.
"It's the government's fault, not ours," said Gen Nader.
Today, the money collected for soldiers' pensions goes straight to the Finance Ministry and it is unclear how it is spent.
Additionally, some measures recently taken by the government will reduce expenses on the military over the next few years, retired general Khalil Helou told The National.
The country’s national threat level has recently been reduced from the maximum level in certain areas of the country, which means that soldiers will not be required to be on duty as much as they used to be. Lebanon is officially still at war with neighbouring Israel and regularly faces terrorist attacks.
When soldiers retire – usually in their mid-fifties – they receive compensation for overtime worked during their career, so less active duty will eventually reduce the total pension burden on the state.
Since the government announced its intention to slash civil servants' salaries last month, demonstrations have been organised by several public bodies, but retired soldiers have been the most vocal, blocking roads with burning tyres to protest any cuts to their pensions and benefits.
In front of the bank’s headquarters, a dozen active duty soldiers kept an eye on their older peers. By law, they are not supposed to demonstrate or speak to journalists.
Asked whether they sympathised with the protestors, a soldier in his thirties paused for a few seconds, smiled slightly, and answered: “They are speaking for us”.
Key facilities
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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BMW M5 specs
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Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESupy%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2021%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDani%20El-Zein%2C%20Yazeed%20bin%20Busayyis%2C%20Ibrahim%20Bou%20Ncoula%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFood%20and%20beverage%2C%20tech%2C%20hospitality%20software%2C%20Saas%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20size%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBootstrapped%20for%20six%20months%3B%20pre-seed%20round%20of%20%241.5%20million%3B%20seed%20round%20of%20%248%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBeco%20Capital%2C%20Cotu%20Ventures%2C%20Valia%20Ventures%20and%20Global%20Ventures%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX RESULT
1. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 1:39:46.713
2. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 00:00.908
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-GP 00:12.462
4. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-GP 00:12.885
5. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing 00:13.276
6. Fernando Alonso, McLaren 01:11.223
7. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 1 lap
8. Sergio Perez, Force India 1 lap
9. Esteban Ocon, Force India 1 lap
10. Stoffel Vandoorne, McLaren 1 lap
11. Daniil Kvyat, Toro Rosso 1 lap
12. Jolyon Palmer, Renault 1 lap
13. Kevin Magnussen, Haas 1 lap
14. Lance Stroll, Williams 1 lap
15. Pascal Wehrlein, Sauber 2 laps
16. Marcus Ericsson, Sauber 2 laps
17r. Nico Huelkenberg, Renault 3 laps
r. Paul Di Resta, Williams 10 laps
r. Romain Grosjean, Haas 50 laps
r. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing 70 laps
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
