Lebanese University president apologizes for bullying of Chinese students

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by arabnews.com -- Najia Houssari -- BEIRUT: Lebanese University President Fouad Ayoub has apologized to Chinese students for “any abuse or bullying by any student at the university or by any Lebanese person against you following the coronavirus crisis.” Dr. Ayoub described any case of bullying as “individual and (this) should not be generalized because it does not reflect the morals of the Lebanese people who love their guests.” Amir Wang, a Chinese student at the Lebanese University who went to Shanghai to celebrate the new year and returned to Lebanon to continue his studies, was asked by Lebanese authorities to stay home until his health status was clarified to find out whether he was carrying the coronavirus. Wang returned to his home in the town of Chehime in Mount Lebanon, 47 km from Beirut. Wang complained to his teacher, Dr. Masoud Daher, and on social media during the past week, that he was bullied by people in the town and in other areas he crossed while travelling to his home.

Dr. Daher, a professor at the Lebanese University and head of the Lebanese-Chinese Association in Lebanon, told Arab News: “Wang was subjected to unjust harassment. He was insulted just because he was Chinese.” Daher said: “The Lebanese University includes 10 Chinese students studying in the department of translation and languages, and there are two students at the doctoral school who are pursuing two economic research projects on China and the Arab world under my supervision. Some of the students live in the student accommodation on the campus of the Lebanese University in the Al-Hadath area, and they were harassed by some Lebanese as well.” Dr. Daher said that Chinese students “have been going to the Lebanese University for 10 years. Some of them are teaching the Chinese language. They are assigned by their government to teach the Chinese language at the University’s language center.” Meanwhile, Ayoub told a delegation of Chinese students that “China will overcome its crisis and will defeat coronavirus thanks to its scientists, students and great people.” He wished the Chinese students to “convey the image of beautiful Lebanon and be the ambassadors of the Lebanese University in your homeland.” After the complaint by Wang on social media, MP Bilal Abdullah, who is from the town of Chehime, invited Wang to lunch with a number of locals. The meeting was published on social media as an apology for any racist behavior toward Wang.

Lebanese authorities are dealing with the coronavirus through sterilization operations for official departments, prisons, border security centers and schools. A decision to resume studies in educational institutions has not yet been taken and schools and universities will remain closed until next Monday. Schools are sending daily lessons to students via social media, especially for those taking official exams. In the ministries’ buildings, digital fingerprints for employees have been replaced by signatures. Hand sterilizers have been placed at the entrance to Parliament, and MPs entering the building are avoiding handshakes. Assem Araji, the head of the parliamentary health committee, said that the virus “has not spread significantly yet, but we must be equipped in the event of its spread, and a plan must be found to keep pace with the stage of spreading. Some government hospitals should also be prepared. One billion Lebanese pounds have been allocated for this matter, but this amount may not be sufficient.” Stores have run out of sterilizers due to the high demand for them, and the price of the remaining ones has increased.

The degree of panic caused by virus was reflected by the fact that one of the courts in Nabatieh, in the south, closed after a security officer lost consciousness. However, he was later found to be suffering from an ear infection that caused him to lose his balance, according to a statement issued by the Internal Security Forces. In the city of Tripoli in northern Lebanon, a decision was made to prevent entry to the city’s main center for all official transactions in the North Governorate, unless face masks were worn. The Lebanese Embassy in Rome advised all its nationals in Italy “not to travel to Lebanon at the present time except when absolutely necessary, in order to avoid the transmission of the virus to their families in Lebanon.”

Lebanon calling for the institution of a new UN commission for Lebanon against corruption

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by arabnews.com -- BEIRUT: Campaigners in Lebanon will gather at Beirut’s Press Club on Wednesday morning to unveil a petition that calls on the UN to create an international commission to investigate and prevent political corruption. It has been signed by number of former ministers, former and current MPs, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and intellectuals. Toni Nissi, the president of the International Lebanese Committee for UN Security Council Resolution 1559, a pro-democracy NGO, said that there have been many attempts by campaigners to clean up politics in Lebanon over the years, including lobbying for international resolutions to be issued and implemented.

“The crisis is due to the high levels of corruption and the lack of leadership skills among Lebanese politicians,” said Nissi, “It is impossible to have a stable economy when the public sector supplies 65 percent of the jobs. How can the taxes paid by the 35 percent working in the private sector be able to pay the salaries of the 65 percent plus all the country’s expenses, with all the ongoing corruption?” Given that politicians from the governing parties continue to exert full control over the implementation of laws in Lebanon, and rarely commit to the implementation of UN resolutions and decisions, including UNSCR 1559, some might be skeptical about the chances of the petition having any significant effect. Nissi, however, remains hopeful that it will bring about change, because the commission would be set up directly through the UN without interference from the Lebanese administration. “Political reform is a must,” he said. “But to reach political reform we must stop the corruption first, get back the stolen money, eliminate any factors that protect the thieves, and achieve enforcement of the law. We believe that if the petition’s requests are implemented, we might reach that phase.”

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Lebanon PM says state can no longer protect citizens

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by AFP -- BEIRUT: Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab on Monday admitted that the state had lost the people´s confidence after months of anti-government protests and an economic meltdown. In the coming days crisis-hit Lebanon must decide whether to repay $1.2 billion in Eurobonds due on March 9 or, as is widely expected, restructure its debt, Diab said.The government formed in January inherited a disastrous economic situation and faces an impossible balancing act between the traditional powerbrokers who voted it in and a street that wants all of its ruling elite out.

“To put it frankly, the state, in view of its current situation, is no more capable of protecting the Lebanese people and ensuring a decent life for them,” Diab said.“To be transparent, I would say that this state has lost Lebanese people´s confidence,” he said in a speech to Lebanon´s honorary consular corps. He said the government was holding “a ball of fire” but added he was ready to undertake the painful changes needed to rebuild confidence and sound institutions.“We have no choice but to take the path of the Calvary, whatever the sufferings, because other options are much more dangerous,” Diab said. Lebanon´s banks are almost alone in arguing against default, a move that would further deplete rock-bottom foreign reserves.

Japanese minister raises Ghosn case in visit to Lebanon

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BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon has exclusive jurisdiction over Lebanese in the country, its president said on Monday, appearing to rebuff a visiting Japanese minister who said it was "obvious and natural" that ousted ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn should stand trial in Japan. Ghosn fled Japan to Lebanon, his childhood home, in December as he awaited trial on charges of under-reporting earnings, breach of trust and misappropriation of company funds, all of which he denies. "We believe it is obvious and natural for Ghosn to stand trial in Japan and this view has been communicated to the Lebanese government," Japan's deputy justice minister Hiroyuki Yoshiie said in Beirut after meetings with Lebanese leaders. "And we agreed to cooperate on that," he told reporters, declining to give details of how Lebanon had agreed to cooperate.

A Lebanese presidency statement noted Yoshiie's request for cooperation over Ghosn but did not say how Lebanon had responded. Lebanese President Michel Aoun noted "that the Lebanese judiciary is sovereign and has exclusive jurisdiction over Lebanese nationals residing on Lebanese soil, without that meaning the exclusive right to prosecution", the statement said. Aoun told Yoshiie that Lebanon and Japan had no judicial cooperation or extradition treaty, and that Ghosn had entered Lebanon legally through Beirut airport.

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A Harvard Student Told Jeff Bezos Something No CEO Wants To Hear. Worse Was The Way He Said It

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By Chris Matyszczyk Owner, Howard Raucous LLC -- inc -- Absurdly Driven looks at the world of business with a skeptical eye and a firmly rooted tongue in cheek. I've met quite a few Harvard graduates over the years. I've heard it said they can be a touch self-regarding. My own impression is that some, at least, can instinctively regard others with a casual disdain. No, of course I'm not specifically referring to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg here. He didn't graduate. A recent conversation with a Harvard graduate, however, drew me to a story about Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Bezos went to lowly Princeton. In 1997, however, he gave a little talk to some Harvard graduate business students about his online store known as Amazon. As Brad Stone's book The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon relates, the large-brained students began to chat among themselves as if Bezos wasn't there. Then, one of the fine Harvardians told Bezos: You seem like a really nice guy, so don't take this the wrong way, but you really need to sell to Barnes and Noble and get out now. Naturally, many will chuckle at the realization that Amazon's position is a touch more secure than Barnes and Noble's these days. But there's one profound lesson here and one that's truly glorious. When you have a business based on a vision of the future, rather than the present, understand that the majority of your critics will likely be looking from the perspective of the present. They see now and they have a certain belief how now will influence the future.

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Al-Rahi Urges 'More Serious' Anti-Coronavirus Approach

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by Naharnet Newsdesk -- Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday called on Lebanese authorities to adopt a “more serious approach” in its measures against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. “The biggest concern is the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which is threatening the safety of citizens be them young or old,” al-Rahi said in his Sunday Mass sermon. “It requires accurate solutions and a more serious approach,” he urged. Al-Rahi added: “We pray to God to help the officials and inspire them about the best means to overcome the stifling economic and financial crisis. We also plead to God to protect our people from hunger, need and sickness, especially the coronavirus disease.” Lebanon has confirmed seven coronavirus cases and the patients are being quarantined at Beirut’s state-run hospital. The majority of those infected had visited Iran in recent weeks. Lebanese authorities have ordered the closure of all educational institutions and nurseries until March 9 and have banned citizens of China, Iran, Italy and South Korea from visiting Lebanon unless they have residency permits. Religious visits to Iran and Iraq have meanwhile been halted but Lebanese authorities have said that Lebanese citizens in the most affected countries will be allowed to return home.