During his speech representing Lebanon at the opening of the 112th International Labor Conference in Geneva, Minister of Labor in the caretaker government, Mustafa Beyram, called on international organizations to provide aid to Syrian displaced people in their home country rather than encouraging them to stay in Lebanon, as is currently the case. He emphasized the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland, Palestine, and to end their ongoing displacement that has lasted unjustly for 75 years due to the Israeli occupation, which disregards international resolutions and the call of young university students worldwide to halt the genocide in Gaza and immediately end crimes against humanity.
In his speech, Beyram stated, "It is impossible to consider the report of the Director-General of the International Labor Organization without addressing the fundamental facts that follow: Lebanon has been subjected to continuous Israeli aggression for eight months, particularly in southern Lebanon, preceded by ongoing and blatant violations that exceeded 37,000 land, sea, and air breaches of Lebanon's sovereignty since 2006. This has led to the destruction of hundreds of establishments and workplaces for employers and workers who have been displaced from their villages, losing their livelihoods, in addition to the destruction of hundreds of civilian homes, which violates the most basic military operation standards, in addition to the targeting of civilian areas with internationally prohibited phosphorus as well as hundreds of thousands of cluster bombs that have claimed, and continue to claim, the lives of farmers, villagers, children, and women. This contradicts the key topics mentioned in the Director-General's report regarding environmental considerations, green work, and safe employment."
He added, "Despite this, we have insisted on the will to live and solidifying the role of the state through activating the tripartite social dialogue, which has exceeded 25 meetings in the wage index committee to increase workers' wages and establish rapid vocational training to enhance skills to meet opportunities and strengthen flexibility. Moreover, we are adopting governance and transparency standards by launching an electronic transactions pathway at zero cost to the state treasury through constructive partnerships between the public and private sectors, ensuring the highest degrees of trust and transparency through achieving tangible results that prevent corruption, facilitate citizens' affairs, restore trust in the state and its institutions, and establish a culture of law that addresses human rights issues, particularly for foreign workers. We have organized this sector, confronted violators, and closed their offices as part of the path towards the necessary reform to prevent human trafficking and forced labor and to enhance the reputation of our nation, Lebanon."
He continued, "All of this is amidst significant economic difficulties that have weighed heavily on the country, particularly due to the Syrian displacement crisis, which exceeds a third of Lebanon's population. This situation is unparalleled in the world, necessitating their return to safe areas from terrorism in Syria, which now constitute over 70% of their brother country. This must coincide with international organizations providing assistance to them in their homeland, not encouraging them to remain in Lebanon as is currently happening, in addition to the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland, Palestine, and to end their ongoing injustice of displacement for 75 years due to the Israeli occupation that disregards all international resolutions and the will of international youth to stop the genocide in Gaza and immediately end crimes against humanity."
He further stated, "Gaza, which represents a test for human rights slogans that are applied with unjust standards and challenges our conscience and humanity, has been marked by ongoing crimes that distinguish them from all previous crimes, as they are committed via live broadcasts. The aggressors declare their criminal intentions on all screens, allowing us to witness the killing of children and women and the destruction of all aspects of life, resulting in hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs and the destruction of thousands of factories, establishments, and shops that serve as livelihoods for the besieged people of Gaza, alongside the unprecedented destruction of hospitals, mosques, schools, and churches, and the blatant prevention of any aid to these people in a siege that represents a disgrace to all humanity which has the duty to compel the aggressor to immediately cease this genocide. This also strongly contradicts what was stated in the Director-General's report about the fundamental right to food."
Finally, he stated, "The new social contract, which is fundamental in the Director-General's report of the International Labor Organization, can only be achieved through humanitarian justice before social justice, and by not infringing upon the most basic human rights. We have the right to life, security, peace, food, education, and dignity, and we will fight for these rights."
