Beirut: Revolution is a beautiful thing, but it is also messy. These Lebanese volunteers are taking to the streets early every morning to clean up after the protesters.
Young and old are flocking to Lebanon’s protest centres to pick up garbage and recycle from 7:30am to 11am.
They say its their national duty and they are not being paid for their services.
A Lebanese mother and her three children were spotted wearing hand-gloves picking up litter and cigarette butts.
Other volunteers were seen scattered around doing various jobs such as carrying garbage bags, sweeping the pavements and collecting empty water bottles.
“Basically this is our home. Can you keep your home dirty?” said Rogeh, a university student, told Gulf News.
Yara, another young volunteer, has been coming to Martyr’s Square, one of the largest protest centers in the country, every day.
“A group of us have come every day to clean up the mess and recycle,” she says.
A booth has been set up adjacent to Martyr’s Square, called “The Green Tent”.
“The Green Tent is a spontaneous individual initiative turned into a collective environmental effort to keep our streets clean while we protest. We have also set recycling bins here at the booth,” Dareen Charafeddine, a group member told Gulf News.
Founder of Recycle Lebanon Jocelyn Kaadi said: “We are here all working together hand in hand. We have stations set up all the morning teaching people how to sort and recycle.”
Saria, a volunteer, said she was overlooking the process of loading up the recycled trash bags on to pickup trucks to be driven away to waste dumps.
Noha, a mother twin girls, brings her daughters to the site to help clean up.
“It teaches them the importance of cleaning your country and having a better future,” she says.
-Bassam is a freelance journalist based in Beirut
