The streets of Beirut are quiet after a week of violent protests that appeared as if a belated Arab Spring had descended on Lebanon. However, the government would be making a big mistake if it believes the worst is over. If it does not act to address the many grievances the protesters have, the demonstrations will return. The protests started ostensibly over a garbage crisis but became a larger call for government reform. There has been a deterioration of public services. People have daily power and water cuts, and it all came to a head. The original organizers were more of the hipster crowd, but later on people of all walks of life gravitated toward the demonstrations. When they were met with police force using water cannons - when they don't even have water in their homes – the people naturally became angry. The Lebanese were not just protesting against politicians who cannot deliver on day-to-day basic needs. Lebanon also faces some urgent regional crises. The Syrian war is right next door, and it has produced about 1.5 million Syrian refugees. There is also the threat of Daesh (the self-proclaimed IS) at the border. The Hezbollah announcement of support for the protests fueled concerns that the group would try to hijack the protest movement for its own political gain. The protests were not all that surprising given that Lebanon cannot even elect a president. The country's politicians have for over one year been unable to decide on a president, a post reserved for a Christian in a sectarian power-sharing system. According to that system, the prime minister must be a Sunni and the parliament speaker a Shiite. Parliament has extended its term twice without elections and has been paralyzed because some lawmakers insist a president be elected first. The government has not made any substantial decisions as rival parties bicker over the decision-making process in Cabinet in the absence of a president to preside over the sessions. This complex sectarian system separates responsibilities. Each party blames its opponents for failures amid a fragmented governing structure. And it is nearly impossible to change the status quo. Overthrowing the government is possible in a country like Lebanon; however, deposing dozens of leaders of 18 sects is impossible. It would do more harm than good. These leaders allow this diverse society to co-exist, even if in the form of sectarian quotas. One of the slogans heard chanted during the Lebanese protests was “the people want the fall of the regime”, the same tune that echoed throughout the countries that experienced the Arab Spring. But in some ways that is ironic because Lebanon does not have a regime. A more serious problem is that the youth's demand to overthrow the government will create an even bigger political vacuum in the absence of a president and a tangible vision by the youth for resolving the crises in the country. The Arab Spring youth knew how to bring down the old without knowing how to build the new. The explosion of anger in Lebanon laid bare the divisions of a brittle country once torn by civil war. The so-called “You Stink” movement is a loud expression of the youth's rejection of the ruling elite in Lebanon who bicker over power but are united in defending the existing system. The protests had as much to do with the rotting garbage that is clogging the streets of Beirut as it did disenchantment toward the leaders of a politically stagnant nation. They were seen as a proxy for wider dissatisfaction with Lebanon's dysfunctional government. The protests were Beirut's wake-up call.
