BEIRUT (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Lebanese people are suffering from high food and fuel prices, severe power shortages and a devalued currency. In addition, there are concerns that access to two infrastructures essential to life will be cut off. mobile phones and the Internet.
The Lebanese emergency service telephone ‘140’ is operated by the Lebanese Red Cross and deals with 560 emergency calls a day. The Lebanese Red Cross posted a temporary number on Twitter and Facebook after the line went down last week.
“The problem is that many people don’t have access to the internet, so they don’t read the posts.” The deputy secretary general of the Lebanese Red Cross, Nabi Jabul, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation:
Alternative VoIP lines on the internet do not have enough power to respond to emergency calls, he said. There is also a shortage of fuel to run the network transmission facilities operated by state-owned Ogero, which are at risk of going down like regular telephone lines.
As Lebanon’s bankrupt government struggles to keep power plants running, homes are often supplied with electricity for just an hour a day. Families with financial means buy diesel fuel to generate their own electricity.
“If the normal phone line and the VoIP line go down, of course we won’t be able to call an ambulance. In that case, there will be a big delay in transporting patients to hospital, or they will be transported by a general service. vehicles with safety issues,” said Deputy Governor Jabl: “The truth is that loss of communication can lead to loss of life.”
Telecommunications Minister Johnny Combe warned earlier this month that Ogero would stop providing services at a national level if it did not receive government payment to import diesel fuel. That would mean the disappearance of telephone and internet services in Lebanon.
For the six million people in Lebanon, the situation is unprecedentedly difficult, further disrupting communication, threatening jobs and lives.
Since 2019, the Lebanese pound has lost more than 90% of its value. Food prices rose more than 11 times, and more than 80% of the population fell below the poverty line.
In addition, Ogero workers went on indefinite strike over wages in August. Since then, maintenance work related to telecommunications networks has ceased.
Lebanon’s only suicide prevention helpline, Embrace, is also in trouble. Embrace co-founder and CEO Mia Atoui said the Ogero service disruption could leave the hotline disconnected for the rest of the day.
“More and more people are not getting the help they need when they call the helpline because the lines are down,” Atwi said. The number of calls to the helpline has reportedly increased rapidly since 2020 due to the large-scale explosion at the port of Beirut, the new coronavirus, and the economic crisis.
Touching on the fact that doctors and nurses are leaving the country in search of better job opportunities, Atwi said, “The combination of emergencies and the shortage of medical professionals make these helplines necessary. More and more people do it,” he said.
Lebanon’s health care system, once considered one of the best in the Middle East, is crumbling as hospitals and clinics struggle with financial problems, underfunding and staff turnover.
Many Lebanese suffer from depression and burnout, but mental health practitioners say their incomes are dwindling, leaving the majority of citizens unable to afford treatment.
“We are in a critical time and we need to help as many people as possible,” said Atwi. It is said that more and more people are asking the operator to return the call, even for helpline calls, because they are concerned about the cost of the call.
“But these days the lines go down all the time. You can’t take calls or call them back.”
Telephone charges were raised five times in July to help Ogero pay for imported fuel. For many people, even the telephone becomes an expensive flower.
The price of the 16GB prepaid card has risen from 40,000 Lebanese pounds (about $1 at the unofficial rate) in August to 220,000 Lebanese pounds (also about $6) today.
“I can’t work without internet”
Rising phone and internet bills aren’t just hurting calls for emergency services and suicide prevention hotlines. For many Lebanese, even making a living is becoming impossible.
Rana Khalil, 24, works as a freelance copywriter outside Beirut. In July, I couldn’t pay for my broadband line because the price was raised, so I started using tethering on my mobile phone to connect my laptop to the Internet.
“You have to spend your scarce money for internet access services, which are unreliable and unstable, and the prices can increase,” says Khalil. He added that the stress and high data communication costs can even hinder the motivation to work.
“The rest of my earnings are barely enough to pay rent. I’m afraid one day I’ll wake up with no internet at all. Without it, I wouldn’t be able to work and eventually I wouldn’t have a place to live. You will lose it.”
The situation is even worse for an estimated 230,000 people who rely on aging second-generation (2G) networks for their communications. Abed Kataya of SMX, a digital rights advocacy group, said many of them are from rural areas and older people with little knowledge of technology.
The government announced in May that it plans to end service on its 2G network. The end date of the service has not been decided. 2G networks are used for basic functions such as calling and texting by people who cannot afford smartphones that can connect to 3G networks, which offer faster internet access.
Muhammad Al-Ali, 42, lives in the village of Deirintar in southern Lebanon and has been working as a middleman for 16 years, sending fresh fruit such as grapes, apples and berries directly from farms across the country to stores.
Ali fears that he will not be able to do business if the government shuts down the 2G network.
“If I can’t use the phone, I can’t take delivery orders, and I can’t do my job.” I applied for a delivery job in a supermarket, but was rejected.
“If I lose my job, I won’t be able to support my wife and daughter.
(Translation: Eacleren)
