[Lebanon, USA] so how does a protest movement grow a viable set of politicians of their own?

[PeaceGen]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/beirut-chemical-blast-protests-1.5679368

Lebanon PM calls for early elections to quell unrest over deadly Beirut blast
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• How the Beirut explosion has twisted the future of a country already in crisis

• What is ammonium nitrate, and how did it cause such a devastating explosion in Beirut?

In a televised speech Saturday evening, Prime Minister Hassan Diab said the only solution was to hold early elections, which he planned to propose in a draft bill. He called on all political parties to put aside their disagreements and said he was prepared to stay in the post for two months to allow time for politicians to work on structural reforms.

The offer is unlikely to soothe the escalating fury on the streets.

In central Beirut, some protesters threw stones at security forces, who responded with heavy tear gas. Near parliament, protesters tried to jump over barriers that closed the road leading to the legislature. The protesters later set on fire a truck that was fortifying barriers on a road leading to parliament.

WATCH | Worst damage revealed at Beirut port:

Worst damage revealed at Beirut port

• 3 days ago
  
• 1:26
  

The damage at Beirut's port, where the blast occurred, shows the full power of the explosion. 1:26
At least 142 people were hurt in the clashes, and 32 of them needed to be taken to the hospital, according to the Red Cross. Several protesters were seen being carried away with blood running down their faces. At one point, gunfire could be heard, but its source was not immediately clear.

In the capital's hard-hit Achrafieh district, a group of protesters, including retired army officers, stormed the building of the Foreign Ministry, vowing to make it the headquarters for the "revolution."

• ANALYSIS
  Beirut blast a 'knockout punch' after succession of crippling blows to Lebanon

Retired army officer Samy Ramah read a statement on the steps of the ministry. "This authority must step down," Ramah said. Some protesters entered the building and burned a few documents.

A mobile phone video showed a group of protesters also entering the empty building of the Economy Ministry. After nightfall, the protesters were still at the Foreign Ministry and vowed to enter the Justice Ministry

Anger at leadership
The gathering at Martyrs' Square and outside the parliament building and government headquarters came amid popular anger against Lebanon's political leadership. The country's ruling class, made up mostly of former civil war-era leaders, is blamed for incompetence and mismanagement that contributed to Tuesday's explosion.

"The current leaders' bloodline needs to end. We want the death of the old Lebanon and the birth of a new one," said Tarek, a 23-year-old university student who had prepared a mix of water and paint in a bottle to throw at the police. No peaceful protest would bring about change, he said.

The state, which is investigating the cause of the explosion, has been conspicuously absent from the ravaged streets of Beirut, with almost zero involvement in the cleanup. That has been left to teams of young volunteers with brooms who fanned out to sweep up broken glass and reopen roads.

An aerial view of the demonstration in downtown Beirut is seen on Saturday. (AFP via Getty Images)
The protest came as senior officials from the Middle East and Europe arrived in a show of solidarity with the tiny country that is still in shock.

In a show of anger, the president of the Christian opposition Kataeb Party said its three legislators have decided to resign from parliament over the disaster. Samy Gemayel called on every "honourable" member of parliament to step down and work for the "birth of a new Lebanon."

• What the Beirut blast radius would look like if it occurred in Canadian port cities

• Ottawa to match Beirut relief donations as unrest in Lebanese capital grows

A senior Kataeb Party official was killed in the blast. Also killed were 43 Syrians, the country's embassy in Beirut said. Lebanon is home to some one million Syrian refugees.

The Dutch Foreign Ministry said Saturday that Hedwig Waltmans-Molier, the wife of the Netherlands' ambassador to Lebanon, had also died from injuries suffered in the explosion.

International aid
Documents that surfaced after the blast showed that officials had been repeatedly warned for years that the presence of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate at the port posed a grave danger, but no one acted to remove it. Officials have been blaming one another, and 19 people have been detained, including the port's chief, the head of Lebanon's customs department and his predecessor.

"We will support Lebanon through all available means," Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the secretary general of the 22-member Arab League, told reporters after meeting President Michel Aoun on Saturday morning. Aboul Gheit said he would take part in a donors conference for Lebanon in France on Sunday and convey Lebanon's demands to the international community.

An anti-government protester steps on a portrait of Lebanese President Michel Aoun in Beirut on Saturday. (Hussein Malla/The Associated Press)
Later on Saturday, the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, arrived in Beirut for a brief visit. Turkey's vice-president and the country's foreign minister met Aoun and said that Ankara was ready to help rebuild Beirut's port and evacuate some of the wounded to Turkey for treatment.

At the site of the blast, workers continued searching for dozens of missing people. Bulldozers were also seen removing debris near a cluster of giant grain silos that were heavily damaged but still partly standing.

International aid has been flowing to Lebanon for days, and several field hospitals have been set up around Beirut to help treat the wounded.

WATCH | Why Lebanese might fear aid channelled through government:

Why Lebanese might fear aid channelled through government

• 3 days ago
  
• 1:06
  

Sending aid through the Lebanese government would legitimize leaders whom protesters want out, says international aid expert Ruby Dagher. 1:06
U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he had spoken by telephone with Aoun and French President Emmanuel Macron, who paid a brief visit to Lebanon on Thursday. Trump noted that medical supplies, food and water were being sent from the United States, along with emergency responders, technicians, doctors and nurses.

The ammonium nitrate, a chemical compound used in fertilizers and explosives, originated from a cargo ship called MV Rhosus that had been travelling from the country of Georgia to Mozambique in 2013. It made an unscheduled detour to Beirut as the Russian shipowner was struggling with debts and hoped to earn some extra cash in Lebanon. Unable to pay port fees and reportedly leaking, the ship was impounded.

In 2014, the material was moved from the ship and placed in a warehouse at the port, where it stayed until the explosion.

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so how does a protest movement grow a viable set of politicians of their own?
by :
* regularly advocating against violent uprising
* not lying, and regularly advocating against lying in politics
* not engaging in self-enrichtment, and regularly advocating against self-enrichment in politics.

of course, this *also* applies to Palestine, and even the Israelis.