It was remarkable to see Lebanese MPs last Friday [May 31], trying to sneak into parliament in downtown Beirut, either through side roads leading to alternate entrances to the building, or disguised by their use of “non-official” vehicles without the famous blue-colored license plates reserved for Lebanese MPs’ cars.
The reason behind this subterfuge was their need to attend a legislative session dedicated to the adoption of one single item: the extension for an additional 17 months of their four-year term, which ends on June 20. This move angered a number of pro-democracy activists who gathered at the entrance to parliament and pelted each arriving MP voting for the extension with a barrage of tomatoes, eggs and water.